Spreader Spreader or Sprayer

[MikePA]

OK, I'll admit it right up front, I'm trying to avoid buying two pieces of equipment. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

My wife would love it if we bought a tow behind or 3ph sprayer to kill the weeds in our paddock and riding ring.

I would also like to be able to fertilize our yard and our pastures and I was looking at 3ph spreaders.

Do all fertilizes/weed killers come in both dry and liquid form, so matter which piece of equipment we bought, it could be used for both purposes?

 

[JackIL]

Mike,
You can avoid buying 2 pieces of equipment, but it will cost you much, much more to do the 2 jobs. Liquid fertilizer is available, but unless you are buying bulk for serious large scale agricultural applications, it is very expensive.

A small mounted or tow-behind sprayer is relatively inexpensive and 3-point mounted pendulum type or spin type fertilizer spreaders are readily available at reasonable prices. You will appreciate working with pelleted fertilizers much more than messy and corrosive liquid fertilizers.

I started out trying to use liquid fertilizer through my first sprayer and found it very expensive and inconvenient.

I suggest you ask the CFO for permission to buy 2 units and then get on with the work she needs to have done.

Jack

 

[kevincook]

I bought both a sprayer and a spreader this year and the amount of money I saved this year alone has paid for both units. I do have two things I have to store now which I guess means I'll need to build a barn soon.

I professional lawn applicator told me that the liquid spray would be much cheaper and work much better than trying to put down dry weed killer. So far I am thrilled with the results. It costs me about $15 for the liquid weed killer at TSC to do 3.5 acres of lawn. I have been using the Ag fertilizer this year with great results and that costs me about $45-$50 to do the whole lawn. If I bought weed & feed at HD or Lowes it would cost me about $300 each time I did the lawn.

I can also apply the weed killer much more accurately with the sprayer than I could with the spreader but it does take longer than covering the lawn with the spreader.

 

[RobS]

I can see a sprayer in my future perhaps for weed control. I can envision using both Round Up type products for the driveway and selective weed killers for the yard. How does one switch back and forth without spraying leftover round up on the yard? How/where do you clean the sprayer between applications? TIA /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I have had much better luck with the liquid weed killer also, best on a hot sunny day. Then follow up with a granular fertilizer, just before a good rain.

 

[OkieG]

Kevin,

You might ask the professional lawn care guy where he gets his supplies. Here, where I live, there is an outlet in town that sells to all the professional lawn care folks....but also sells to individual homeowners. Many of the liquid concentrates come in sizes up to 2 or 3 gallons, which lasts me for several applications The cost per application is less than HD or Lowe's, but may or may not be cheaper than TSC or your ag fertilizer source.

At least, it's an idea for another place to shop for the best price. Also, since lawn care products are all they sell, they really know their stuff when it comes to advice

OkieG

 

[OkieG]

Rob,

Switching back and forth between different chemicals isn't too hard. Empty, rinse and flush the system after each use.

If you only mix what you think you will need, you probably will end up with little if any left over. If there is a little left, then you can either spray a bit more on areas in need, or drain the extra to touch up trouble spots with a hand sprayer later on.

With the tank as empty as you can get it, there will still be a bit that needs to be rinsed and flushed out. I rinse the inside of the tank with a garden hose with the pto engaged, so the system is flushing out the left overs. DON'T do this over your lawn or any plants you want to keep. In a few minutes it'll be plenty clean to store til next time.

OkieG

 

[beenthere]

I do what you are talking about doing, and have had no problem. The excess round-up is sprayed on the drive, along with the rinse water. It works very well to keep the gravel drive looking neat with clean-cut edges and no grass/weeds coming up in the center. I use a spray bar on the front of my tractor that is easy to control where the spray is going, and have a nurse tank on a trailer that I tow behind.

 

[hazmat]

Mike,

Don't know how much weed killing you need to do, but a small 12V sprayer and a 3pt spreader will <font color=blue>probably</font color=blue> cost less than a pto sprayer alone.