Spraying lawn for weeds.

[rswyan]

BTW, I've cut back on the dye to 3 ounces per 25 gallon tank and I can still see it fine - will probably cut back to 2 ounces next time - that's half of the lower end of the recommended amount.

 

[JWE]

rswyan... Thanks for the tip. I will try your technique the next time that I spray. I think I still have about 3 oz. of the blue dye left. I wonder if yellow or orange would be easier to see. I'm not sure whether TSC carries any color but blue. That's the only color that they had a few weeks ago.

John

 

[PineRidge]

Randy I'm wondering if Aquashade might work in your sprayer and also be a lot more economical for your use as a dye. Aquashade is used in ponds to tint the water to eliminate the penetration of the suns rays thus preventing weed growth.

Aquashade is sold at places like TSC in gallons for about 40 bucks a pop and is highly concentrated since it is meant to treat thousands of gallons of pond water.

If I owned a sprayer I might be apt to try the stuff just to see if it works out. There's always an open gallon here since one gallon lasts me a full season of pond treatment.

This stuff just might go a lot further than the marker dye that you have been using.

 

[rswyan]

JWE,

You're quite welcome. I've never seen any other color than blue at the two local TSC's here.

 

[rswyan]

Mike,

Definitely sounds like it would be worth investigating ....... although I'd assume that Aquashade is meant to retain it's color for some period of time. What color is it ? The price is definitely better. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

The trick thing with the UV dye is that once the sun hits it for a while it disappears.

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( There's always an open gallon here since one gallon lasts me a full season of pond treatment. )</font>
Maybe I can be the guinea pig the next time I spray - if you're willing to let me filch a couple of ounces for a tankful. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

Sure sounds way more economical.

So did you use John's sprayer when you sprayed ? ..... sounds like you got a pretty good kill.

 

[PineRidge]

Randy give me a call the next time you are ready to spray and I'll run this open container over to mix up a batch. I would like to see how it works also. Aquashade is blue in color, makes a pond look great after it's added.

Yes I did use John's sprayer with a mix of 2-4-D and Weed-Be-Gone. The dandelions are all doing the shriveling up act so I would say it worked real well.

BTW: Do you have a local source for a plastic 55 gallon drum? I'm thinking of making a boom sprayer for the 40D.

 

[rswyan]

Mike,

Fair enough - thanks. I still have about a half gallon of Trimec left out of the three I originally picked up so I'll probably hit the problem areas again at some point.

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( The dandelions are all doing the shriveling up act so I would say it worked real well. )</font>
I'm surprised at how long it actually takes them to completely go away - the front yard, which I think I originally sprayed about a month ago, still has some that have finally turned a dark red/brown and are about gone .... though now that I think about it the wife said that there was a short rain later the night that I sprayed.

As far as plastic barrels go there was a place out in Medina - Packaging Specialites - that manufactures drums - I checked with them on stainless steel ones - they were very pricey - dunno if they handle plastic or not. You could also try Malco (automotive) chemicals over in Barberton - I had a call into a guy over there (plant foreman) before I found a source for metal 55's - anyways he and I never hooked up but I think the girl I talked to said that they get alot of stuff in plastic drums. You could also try car washes - I think their detergents come in plastic drums.

Now that I've become more familiar with them I think you could do a spray rig pretty easily ..... and getting a larger tank is definitely the way to go .... I wish I would have. /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif As it is, I have to refill probably 8 to 10 times to do all the lawn .... cutting that in half would have been nice. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[PineRidge]

Randy thanks for all the leads for the plastic barrels. I'll start letting my fingers do the walking right after the holiday. Be sure to let me know when you are ready to spray the next round so I can run over with the Aquashade. Maybe we can both learn a new trick or two.

Have a good holiday! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[have_blue]

My wife is in health care, and works for a dialysis clinic. They are springing up all over the place to take care of the aging Boomers, and are a good source for plastic drums in which they buy acetic acid. One quick rinse and they're good to go, or just use it on a salad. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I already have about 8 of them, and will need another dozen for a floating dock some day. Oh yes, and 1 for a small boom sprayer.

 

[JWE]

Randy, thanks for mentioning about the dandelions taking a long time to die. I sprayed Trimec about two weeks ago and all the leaves on the broad leaf weeds curled shortly after application. However, they are still green; they look sick but not dead. I was beginning to wonder if they were going to recover but your comments on how long it takes to kill them gives me hope.

John