PTO sprayers (2 questions)

[pharmvet]

I have recently decided to purchase a PTO operated sprayer. I have enrolled some of my land in a TPWD native grass restoration program. It calls for spraying improved pasture to kill out the bermuda and bahia grass so that native grass can be planted this fall. I am putting in 25 acres this year and may do so each year for the next several years. I also have the occasional need to spray fencerows etc. I will need the sprayer to have a spray wand as well as fold out booms. I have never used a sprayer before. I will be using a Ford 7710 or a NH TB110. Here are my questions:

1) trailer or 3 pt. (what tank capacity)??

2) what are some good brands (USA only please)??

[bdog]

How big is your tractor? The bigger the tank the better. It is not at all uncommon to use 20 gallons of spray per acre to get adequate coverage. 25 acres = 500 gallons which equals 4000+ lbs. I had a 125 gallon tank and it was ok but I did several jobs where I had to refill and remix.

I don't know what brands or if it even mattters. just check out what they have at Tractor supply or wherever. What you are doing is low volume compared to the high use pumps that get used for hundreds or thousands of acres. In other words the cheapest one should work fine.

[Foodplot]

We have several small fields in 10-30 acre size range that we converted and maintain in NWSG mixes, and continue to convert other pastures. Based on our experience, here are a few other things to consider:
1- If using glyphosate, make sure your pump will stand up to its corrosive nature
2- booms are fine on flat land, and where you don't have to negotiate fencerows and gates. We're hilly, with lots of fencerows, so we ditched the booms and went with a high volume boomless nozzle from TeeJet. You can block the orifices on it to spray just about any direction. The drawback is that the day must be windless.
3- Anything particularly maneuverable is going to be fairly small and require frequently fill-ups, so consider your access to a good water source
4- A hose and gun is a handy addition to the system

We settled on a 3-pt system, 125-gallon tank, corrosion resistant Hypro roller pump, and the boomless nozzle I mentioned before. It's worked well with glyphosate, 2,4-D, and imazapic. Your tractors could handle a larger tank, given some front weight.

For the two chemical burndowns you are likely to do prior to seeding a field, save yourself some trouble and time by having the local co-op bring a dedicated sprayer.

[warhammer]

I have a 55 gallon Fimco 3 point for my 45HP tractor and a 25 gallon spot sprayer for the back of my Kawasaki Utility vehicle. I also went with a boomless nozzle as I thought it would be less susceptible to collision damage.
I do fencelines with the spot sprayer as I do not want to have a lot of overspray for the neighboring cops.
For a main sprayer 25 acres would be a few refills with a 55 gallon tank to put the several gallons of liquid an acre that the herbicide manufacturers all seem to recomend for effectiveness. I went with that size due to cost and size considerations. Bigger would be better if you can swing it.

I have recently decided to purchase a PTO operated sprayer. I have enrolled some of my land in a TPWD native grass restoration program. It calls for spraying improved pasture to kill out the bermuda and bahia grass so that native grass can be planted this fall. I am putting in 25 acres this year and may do so each year for the next several years. I also have the occasional need to spray fencerows etc. I will need the sprayer to have a spray wand as well as fold out booms. I have never used a sprayer before. I will be using a Ford 7710 or a NH TB110. Here are my questions:

1) trailer or 3 pt. (what tank capacity)??

2) what are some good brands (USA only please)??

[beenthere]

Personnaly, I'd go with 12 v pumps (about $100 each) instead of the PTO pumps. Over the years, I've found the 12 v pumps easier to maintain (and cheaper to replace, if needed). Big farm spray rigs seem to use the 12 v pumps as well. Might be worth checking it out for your needs.

And for fence row, I have a boom with nozzles that can be configured to spray individually, making the outside nozzle (or two) useful for spraying strips along fencerows (where accessible). I use the wand for spot spraying thistles.

[mscheer772]

I made the mistake of buying a FIMCO sprayer. I'm still waiting. Horse**** service.
Never again.

-Mike Scheer-

[204saskman]

I just built my own out of a 15-20 gallon tank. I used a 12 volt pump instead of a roller pump just for the simple fact that the roller pto pumps put out 100psi at 1000 rpm which was to much for me. I think im gonna have to do some work on making a refief valve setup for mine to start to by pass at 35 psi though so that the pump runs constant instead of kicking on and off. I currently have mine rigged up with a bypass valve pinched back to keep 35 psi constant.

[lawn_king]

Demco (usa) has a nice lineup, i own one myself with a hypro 6 spline pto pump.

[bdog]

Here are the pictures of the 125 gallon pto rig I made. It had folding booms and a electric switch to turn the spray off and on. It also had a return / agitator with good volume to help keep the tank mixed. It would take a pretty serious 12v pump to get the job done.

[forester2]

I'm in the process of making a 125 gallon sprayer to replace a smaller gas driven unit. Considered buying a pto unit but decided on 12V because of flexibility of using either my tractor or RTV. Am using 2 pumps for wider boom coverage. 2.1 gallon units are cheap and switchs allow me to vary width. This is important because some of my spraying is between rows of planted trees. Plumbing is pretty straight forward for construction. Only spraying herbicides; primarily glysophate so no high pressure or wettable powder considerations.