Sprayer ATV Sprayer vs. 3 point Sprayer

[npaden]

I've been thinking about getting a sprayer for a while now and saw a 25 gallon ATV sprayer on sale for $170 that seems like it is almost too good of a deal to be true.

http://www.moultriefeeders.com/produ...?id=MFH-SPR25D

At first thought an ATV sprayer seems like the ideal option because you wouldn't be tying up the tractor and the ATV could make some quick work out of things. But I'm not sure how far 25 gallons would go on a normal spray job on weeds in a field. Most of my jobs would be under 5 acres, but I have one field that is 15 acres that would probably take a whole lot of fill ups.

The cheapest I've seen the 25 gallon ATV sprayers at Tractor Supply is $360 so this seems like it is such a good deal that I might should just go ahead and get one. The 3 point sprayers I've seen that hold 100 gallons are up closer to $1,000.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks, Nathan

[Oleozz]

25 gallons is not going to go very far when spraying a decent sized field. I went from an ATV sprayer to a 110 gal 3ph sprayer and there is a big difference in what you can get done. I have a cab so also have the electric sprayer control inside the cab to control the on-off, pressure and the booms.
I bought mine used and paid about $1600 and it was worth the money spent.

[Foodplot]

Are you spot-spraying? If so, you are probably OK with the small unit. Otherwise, you'll be frustrated with all the fillups, delays while you agitate, etc.
Do you have to travel far from the field to get your water? We spray numerous small fields, 10 to 20 acres, for installing and maintaining native grasslands. With no water source close by, there is considerable time wasted traveling to a fill point. For us, a larger tank was the way to go. We also have two pickup truck tanks on a trailer for refills.
You'll typically use at LEAST 10 gallons per acre if you are doing broadcast weed/grass control, usually quite a bit more, depending on your herbicide/application rate. Also, I've found the anemic electric pumps on ATV sprayers less than efficient for broadcast spraying.
If cost is really prohibitive, I built a 325-gallon sprayer using a pallet tank from the local scrapyard ($50), a boomless nozzle ($50 on ebay), a roller pump (6 roller, Ni-resist on ebay for another $50) and various plumbing parts. Total (less my 3-pt pallet forks) was under $300.00. Hope this helps.

[teg]

You'll want 10-15 GPA (gallons per acre) for most stuff but if you have thick brush, 15-20 gpa will get better coverage. The amount of chemicals per acre will be the same but your mixing rate will vary with GPA. The larger the field the bigger you'll want your spray boom or "Flood" nozzles (I don't know much about these but seen them here on TBN).

If you have plenty of time and not much money, it will get the job done but if you plan to do a couple of sprays per year and short on time, you'll have to spend a little more.

I'm a fan of Craigslist for cheap stuff and the one in Raleigh is pretty good since it's mostly "city slickers". It takes up to a year to find one but if you search now for "3 PT Hitch Sprayer - $300" posted Dec 10th in Raleigh... you might get a good buy!

[flINTLOCK]

If your land is flat, booms are the way to go. My foodplots are uneven and would end up breaking booms I think. Went with 60 gal 3 pt boomless that works well for me and my irregular ground. I wanted to go 100 gal version, but was afraid of having that much weight shifting up in the air to risk rollover.

[EddieWalker]

If cost is really prohibitive, I built a 325-gallon sprayer using a pallet tank from the local scrapyard ($50), a boomless nozzle ($50 on ebay), a roller pump (6 roller, Ni-resist on ebay for another $50) and various plumbing parts. Total (less my 3-pt pallet forks) was under $300.00. Hope this helps.

This sounds like just the ticket!!!

Is this a three point setup?

I've been looking for a one hundred gallon tank, but of couse, now that I've been looking, I can't find any. Craigslist and even Ebay had some that were cheap and local, but not right now. I'm not in a rush, but would like to build something before spring.

I'm really leaning towards a trailer or wagon setup, but nothing is set in stone.


Nathan,

Keep us posted on what you get and how it works out. If you build one, please post pics and narate what you do and why.

Thanks,
Eddie

[dsb5610]

I use a Fimco ATV-25-71 for my foodplots. I removed the garden hose washer style screen then added a Banjo filter which was a big improvement. I do 5+ acres of food plots annually and other misc spraying throughout the season. I even sprayed 55 acres of CRP with it one year. I do have to fill up more often but I can get from point A to point B in the blink of an eye when I use it on the ATV.

dsb

[Riddler]

I am going though much the same learning process myself. I have weed control to do in a 10 acre area, but in bands (i.e., in vine rows spaced 6.5' apart).

Before investing in a permanent set up, however, I figured I should spray some by hand to get a feel for some of the variables (nozzle types, spray patterns, affect of pressure, drift issues, material use rates, etc.). I bought a inexpensive 15 gallon 12V spot sprayer to start working with. Even though the cone pattern nozzle on it is adjustable, I've discovered that I need something very different for the herbicides I will be applying.

The shape and angle of the spray pattern, and the rate at which it applies the mixed material, is way off from what I need. To figure out what works well, I measured the pressure and flow rate of the little 1 gpm pump on the sprayer, estimated the ideal nozzle output for the materials I would be applying based on the output of the pump and the rate at which I needed to apply the materials, and then researched some different nozzle options to try out with the little sprayer. The best maker of nozzles I have found (and the best website for information) is

TeeJet - Welcome to TeeJet.com

Where is all of this going?? By "working backwards" from how my permanent sprayer will be used, I figure that I am less likely to make a mistake buying and/or building the wrong thing. There are different types of pumps (e.g, 12V v. roller, etc.), and different sizes of pumps, used on ATV v. 3pt sprayers. In turn, the optimum type and size of pump for a particular spray application is dictated to a large degree by the number and type of nozzles you'll run. Finally, the number and type of nozzles to use are dictated by the materials you'll be applying and the environment you'll them applying it in. In fact, I figure that the least of my problems is deciding how large a tank I want. That will be easy to determine once the rest of the set up is optimized.

[blueriver]

Foodplot ... Got any pictures?

I have the pallet tank, am thinking about using a 2 wheel utility trailer, roller pump, etc. I have never built one so need ideas! My neighbor said to simply get a set on 3 pt hay forks for the pallet tank, don't know if they will support the weight.

Looking for ideas for Plumbing, gauges, switches, hand held nozzle ... etc!!

[Luremaker]

Too bad your not closer to the Canadian Border. Princess Auto has a 3ph 55 gallon boomless sprayer with 6 roller pump for on sale for $349. I paid $499 last summer and thought I was getting a good deal. I build my own 20 foot boom using an old bed frame and spray nozzles from the local TSC for spraying my lawn.

PRINCESS AUTO