To buy or not to buy - sprayer

PumpingPete · Aug 23, 2013

All:

I have about fifteen acres that needs sprayed due to being over run by teasel. I can buy a sprayer for $350 that will basically cover 10 ft wide swaths. I can have it sprayed for $30 an acre. Basically, it would cost me close to the amount of the sprayer to have it done. My thinking is that it makes sense to buy the sprayer and do it myself as it won't be a spray once and done type of thing. Does anyone have any thoughts around this? Thanks in advance!

Wakey · Aug 23, 2013

I don't know teasel but if your acreage is overgrown with it you can bet this is not a one and done deal.

If you have the means to drag this sprayer around I would definitely get it.

Most pastures need to be sprayed with a wand after using the boom anyway. If you don't miss a few small strips, you are overlapping way too much!

Gary Fowler · Aug 23, 2013

For that price I assume you are talking about a 12v rig. There are several grades of pumps on those. I bought a 15 gallon one for about $150 and the pump only lasted about 1 tank of fluid and then it wouldn't prime up. Force feed with a hose to get it started and it sprayed another tank of grass killer. Next tank it wouldn't prime again and when I finally got it to pump, it barely put out enough liquid to feed one small hand nozzle. I replaced it with a better quality pump that I haven't tried yet, but the Farm and Ranch store (I bought the original tank there) had 3 pumps, one like I had for about $30 a much bigger and better quality for $60 but still a diaphragm pump and a centrifical one for $150. I think if I had a lot of spraying and was feeding a boom mount, I would spring for the $150 pump for the greater volume and less moving parts to wear out.
As for your cost of spraying, was the $30 per acre including the chemicals? Roundup isn't cheap, so if that included the chemicals, you may need to do some shopping and figure the cost of chemicals into the cost of the tank. I think it will cost you over $20 per acre in chemical cost alone.

EMcPhee · Aug 23, 2013

Watch craigs list, I got a 25 gallon one for 60 bucks, and it works great.

remington270 · Aug 23, 2013

Gary Fowler said:
For that price I assume you are talking about a 12v rig. There are several grades of pumps on those. I bought a 15 gallon one for about $150 and the pump only lasted about 1 tank of fluid and then it wouldn't prime up. Force feed with a hose to get it started and it sprayed another tank of grass killer. Next tank it wouldn't prime again and when I finally got it to pump, it barely put out enough liquid to feed one small hand nozzle. I replaced it with a better quality pump that I haven't tried yet, but the Farm and Ranch store (I bought the original tank there) had 3 pumps, one like I had for about $30 a much bigger and better quality for $60 but still a diaphragm pump and a centrifical one for $150. I think if I had a lot of spraying and was feeding a boom mount, I would spring for the $150 pump for the greater volume and less moving parts to wear out.
As for your cost of spraying, was the $30 per acre including the chemicals? Roundup isn't cheap, so if that included the chemicals, you may need to do some shopping and figure the cost of chemicals into the cost of the tank. I think it will cost you over $20 per acre in chemical cost alone.

Not if you buy generic roundup "glyphosate". It runs $50-60 for 2.5 gallons of the 41% concentrate. At 2 qts per acre it would run around $10/acre.

Dingeryote · Aug 24, 2013

Get the sprayer, or fab up one yourself.

The advantages of being able to spray when YOU need, and adjust rate, as well as fertilize and apply fungicides/insecticides, beats the pants off of hiring it out.

Never had any luck with the 12v pumps myself.
They seem to choke on flowables, and wont tolerate the undisolved bits in AMS very well.
I have had better luck with Hy-pro Roller pumps, and keeping them cleaned and stored with a good coating of lube.

30 bucks per A using 2-4-D or Triclopyr(Garlon) is kind of steep.
Shop around a little and you should be able to get it down to half that or less.