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A low-cost dryer was developed to dry forage or biomass samples unattended in 20 to 60 minutes. The simple dryer is built from readily available plumbing and heating supplies; the heat and airflow source is a hair blow dryer. Based on data from hay, hay crop silage, and corn silage samples ranging in moisture from 12 to 70%, the vortex dryer dried 200 g (7.05 oz) samples 35% quicker (hay crops in <40 minutes) than a KosterTM tester and yielded moisture estimates no different than a drying oven (220o F for 24 h). Compared to microwave ovens, the vortex dryer will not burn a sample and does not require constant supervision and frequent re-weighing of the sample.