Sprayer sprayer advice needed

   / sprayer advice needed #1  

nancyk

Silver Member
Joined
Jul 5, 2017
Messages
112
Location
east Tennessee
Tractor
Deere 5055e 2015, Ferris IS2000z 2007
My husband made a tractor-carried sprayer years ago. It has a 25 gallon tank. The fixed boom is five feet wide with 4 spray heads, this is to spray our long graveled driveway and other graveled places on our property. He rigged it so the power source is not to the battery but to the back-of the tractor, you push in a big round plug(quick connect?). He passed away a year ago and now I am in charge of spraying the driveway. This past year went ok but I could see that the nozzle heads were not spraying correctly/efficiently, some areas were not hit by the spray(should have possibly overlapped but did not). I of course always clean the heads after each use and replace if needed. This fall the diaphragm pump(1.4gpm), died so at a minimum I need a new pump. I WOULD like to get a different boom setup to attach to my current frame/tank, still 5 or 6 feet wide and already set up so I can change the spray configuration from total coverage to just one side, for spraying one edge of the driveway. Now I have to get off the tractor and move a handle on the boom to do a half spray, I have heard there is some way of switching this from the tractor. This is certainly not my area of expertise so I hope I am explaining what I would like to get with the correct terms. I have emailed everythingattachments but from their website it looks as though what they carry is too big for my needs.
Thank you.
 
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   / sprayer advice needed #2  
I have a very similar sprayer setup, mine is a 25 gallon tank also and is actually designed to go on the back of an ATV but I mount mine in a carryall on back of the tractor. Mine differs from yours in that it does not have a spray bar, it has what I think is called an omni spray head and sprays 9-10 feet wide when 3-point is at maximum height. I have never see a boom type sprayer where you can shot off one side the spray bar while using the other. I would think you could modify what you have by putting a shutoff valve on one side. STC_0025.JPG
 

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   / sprayer advice needed
  • Thread Starter
#3  
Attached are pictures of my current set-up. You can see it is a homemade rig and has been around for a while. All it has been used for is spraying the long driveway(attached picture as an example). If I only get a new diaphragm pump it probably would be usable, but I would like to get this a bit upgraded so I am not duct-taping it continually for the next 5 years. You can see one valve on the boom which allows the user to shut off the left side of the spray, and in another picture you can see a ball valve that shuts off all the flow to the boom and allows the user to spray from the wand. The less putting together I have to do the better. My husband was very mechanical and enjoyed making things that fit his purpose but now if/when they break, it is up to me to get them up and running. In one other picture you can see the power connect for the back of the tractor and the on/off switch that was rigged up, which actually works very well.
Thanks.
 

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   / sprayer advice needed #4  
Once you replace the pump, remove and clean each nozzle. They should have a small metal screen that catches junk, and that is possibly affecting your pattern. Worst case just replace them - generally available at farm style stores.
If you end up making a new boom, it’s not very difficult- basically plumbing. Your quest to control each side of the boom spray from the tractor seat is doable, but is likely not worth the trouble. I personally wouldn’t want to take on that project.
 
   / sprayer advice needed #5  
teejet selector.png This is what you would generally use for boom control on manual controlled sprayer. You would mount this close enough so that you can reach from the tractor seat. If wanting a lot of info like this google teejet, pretty dominate player in the ag world for spraying products. Download their 51a catalog and you will find a plethora of spraying system options.
 
   / sprayer advice needed
  • Thread Starter
#6  
A neighbor told me his uncle has a set-up that from the tractor seat he can flip a switch and change the pattern of the spray. As it is now when I want to use the hand-held nozzle or do just a halfspray, I have to turn off the pump, get off the tractor, switch levers etc. Certainly no big deal but when using gly4 to spray the driveway, the less I have to be near that stuff/handle it, the better. My neighbor believes the company he got his rig from was Stevens in Louisiana, I have an email out to them. This is a small set-up so it may not be worth someones time to alter an existing operation. If I can at least get a new pump up and running by late spring, I will be satisfied. And yes, I clean the heads each time I spray and try to align them but somehow there always ends up one thin line I missed.
Will research teejet, thanx.
 
   / sprayer advice needed #7  
Looks like a nice sprayer... we'll be able to help you. To cut off half the boom you need a 12 volt Solenoid Valve like the one below (I don't know if this is a good price or not - it's where I shop).

Shut Off Valve, Sprayer Parts, Solenoid Valves

So in addition to the Solenoid Valve, you'll need some cheap wire, toggle switch and a 12 volt fuse to power it on and off. If that sounds doable, let us know and we can let you know more.

There are cheaper ways to be able to cut off a boom, which involves adding hose so you can reach the cut off from the tractor seat.

Onto the pump, is the motor working but not getting pressure? You can usually can replace the diaphragm head. Although a new SHURflo Industrial Diaphragm Water Pump is less than $100. If the motor is not working, we might have to test to see if a fuse is blown. We need to make sure it's getting power, no need to replace the pump if that's the problem. A photo of the pump itself would help....

As for the bad spray pattern, you need to clean the nozzle and screens. If you can post a photo of the nozzle, we can go from there. If it's a 8002 flat fan, you can go to 11002 to get a wider pattern (more coverage).

My suggestion, would be fill with water and blow out the lines without the nozzles or screens in. Also, would not hurt to add a little bleach. I do a lot of spraying...
 
   / sprayer advice needed #8  
TSC also sells hose,fittings ,nozzles , clamps and pumps
 
   / sprayer advice needed
  • Thread Starter
#9  
The pump has died, trust me(there is a picture of it in my 2nd post). After the last spraying, the lines were flushed with and without nozzleheads and hand-held sprayer was flushed and let drain. But did not run through any bleach. As to the solenoid valve et al, that would have been right up my husbands alley. Not mine(though possibly could be given some time). I have emails out to a number of companies(Grainger and others), I may wait to see what they suggest. I am trying to keep it simple yet be very functional.
 
   / sprayer advice needed #10  
Look at AGSPRAY they have several place around. we have one down here and they have everything for the tiny gardens to thousands of acres.
 
 
 
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