bigpete
Veteran Member
Just to play devil's advocate on spraying turf while mowing, I foresee a couple of problems....
Having been taught to be very thoughtful about spraying chems (field, lawn and trees), I have learned to carefully calibrate my sprayer. In most turf applications, the boom width is much greater than the mower deck width, so you would certainly be overlapping a considerable portion of the mower path. The result would probably overapplication of the chem which could damage your turf, not to mention cost a considerable extra amount of money. Aslo, properly calculating an application of 2-4D, Banville, or pesticide requires a constant tractor speed with planned turns. This further complicates the application rate. Finally, spray drift/blowing could be a big problem caused by mower blow-out. Maybe I'm missing something, but I've always been taught that spraying is a dedicated practice.
Of course if there were a way to properly calibrate the spray job to be done in conjunction with mowing, a belly mower and a 3-PH model would work. I'd just hate to stop to refill the sprayer very often in the middle of a mow.
In an agricultural field application, the multi-tasking setup is more practical, i.e. disking and spraying with a boom width about the same as the disk gang.
As to one of the original questions, you can find good roller pumps at a fair price under $100. We always keep a new spare or rebuilt pump handy to stay productive. Also, many farmers keep two or more pumps around for a single unit so they can have a dedicated pump for spraying Round Up, and another for, say, selective herbicides or pesticides. The silver-plated roller pumps are the most corrosion resistant, but run several hundred $. Most pump manufacturers make roller replacement and rebuild kits that are reasonably priced and pumps are easy enough to rebuild.
I have a new, extra pump sitting in my garage that I got on sale when Quality Farm and Country sold ot to TSC. I may noy have to use it for years, but I know its there. Just make sure to rinse and re-rinse you tank and use a cleaning solution after using the acidic chems, such as Round-up. Most residual problems come from chems impregnated in rubber seals and filters, and there are a few good inexpensive specialized tank and line cleaners that will keep you unit ready for the next applcation. And ALWAYS take your roller pump off in the winter and thouroughly flush and drain the unit. I found a new roller pump split wide open like a frozen egg in my father-in-laws barn one winter as the hired man had forgotten to remove it after flushing it for the winter.
Having been taught to be very thoughtful about spraying chems (field, lawn and trees), I have learned to carefully calibrate my sprayer. In most turf applications, the boom width is much greater than the mower deck width, so you would certainly be overlapping a considerable portion of the mower path. The result would probably overapplication of the chem which could damage your turf, not to mention cost a considerable extra amount of money. Aslo, properly calculating an application of 2-4D, Banville, or pesticide requires a constant tractor speed with planned turns. This further complicates the application rate. Finally, spray drift/blowing could be a big problem caused by mower blow-out. Maybe I'm missing something, but I've always been taught that spraying is a dedicated practice.
Of course if there were a way to properly calibrate the spray job to be done in conjunction with mowing, a belly mower and a 3-PH model would work. I'd just hate to stop to refill the sprayer very often in the middle of a mow.
In an agricultural field application, the multi-tasking setup is more practical, i.e. disking and spraying with a boom width about the same as the disk gang.
As to one of the original questions, you can find good roller pumps at a fair price under $100. We always keep a new spare or rebuilt pump handy to stay productive. Also, many farmers keep two or more pumps around for a single unit so they can have a dedicated pump for spraying Round Up, and another for, say, selective herbicides or pesticides. The silver-plated roller pumps are the most corrosion resistant, but run several hundred $. Most pump manufacturers make roller replacement and rebuild kits that are reasonably priced and pumps are easy enough to rebuild.
I have a new, extra pump sitting in my garage that I got on sale when Quality Farm and Country sold ot to TSC. I may noy have to use it for years, but I know its there. Just make sure to rinse and re-rinse you tank and use a cleaning solution after using the acidic chems, such as Round-up. Most residual problems come from chems impregnated in rubber seals and filters, and there are a few good inexpensive specialized tank and line cleaners that will keep you unit ready for the next applcation. And ALWAYS take your roller pump off in the winter and thouroughly flush and drain the unit. I found a new roller pump split wide open like a frozen egg in my father-in-laws barn one winter as the hired man had forgotten to remove it after flushing it for the winter.
