Power sprayer

[Ernest]

Charlie advised me in a previous post to consider getting a large capacity power sprayer because I have a lot of large old plants in the ground. I found one online that looked good and just tried it for the first time. It worked great and I was able to spray my entire yard--front and back--in about 15 minutes without having to lug a heavy container around and without having to repump the pressure every couple of minutes. This is a durable unit with large wheels that rolls easily. It isn't cheap but for those of us with large yards who are getting on in years it is a fine investment.
http://www.domyownpestcontrol.com/gallon-master-gardner-cart-sprayer-battery-powered-p-1775.html

Erny

[Charlie]

Ernie, I think you may have found the perfect machine for a home hibiscus garden. I was thinking a 4 wheel sprayer with a little larger tank but those cost significantly more than your 2 wheeler and 9 gallon tank which should take care of all but the biggest collections of hibiscus with just one filling of the tank. As anyone who sprays much knows, refilling the tank is a time consuming pain in the butt. Electric sprayers are surprisingly powerful and give better coverage than manual sprayers.

Anyway, thanks for sharing the info.

Charlie

[farmer d]

Much thanks Erny for the referral and link.  Count me in on this one too, I really really look forward to less time spraying going forward.  Just what I was looking for.

Farmer D

[Ernest]

Darren, I think you will like the sprayer. It looks like a quality product--solidly built and should last a long time. I particularly like the rechargeable 12 volt battery. Most of the other medium to large capacity sprayers seem to run on D batteries and people that review them online say that they have to replace them quite frequently--often after only a couple of hours of use. With the cost of batteries these days I think the rechargeable will save a lot over the long term and considerably defray the initial cost of the unit.

Erny

[farmer d]

Erny thanks a million for the sprayer referral.  I used it for the first time today and the amount of time I saved is HUGE!!  This will have a big impact on my life as far as time for other things which I need desperately.

It is a well built product and works great once I figured out a few things that took a little time.  The instructions were really my only complaint as the diagrams were so small I had a really hard time matching up the correct pieces and seeing how they fit together but in the end it wasn't too bad.

Nice when it comes mostly assembled already.  Again really appreciate the heads up so a big Thank You!

Farmer D

[Ernest]

Darren, you're welcome. You expressed exactly the same thoughts I had. Once I realized that it was mostly assembled I breathed a sigh of relief that I didn't have to match up all those small parts shown in the instructions. I specifically had you in mind when I posted that since you and I seem to be the main "ground planters" that would benefit most from this device.

Erny

[Charlie]

We're going to do an article on sprayers sometime soon and this electric unit will be mentioned.

BTW, almost all sprayers come with the diagram of all the parts - this is to make it easier to order parts in case one needs replacing. (Hold onto the diagrams for future use).

Charlie

[Ernest]

Darren and Charlie, I've had two pump failures with the power sprayer. The first was shortly after I started using it and the pump just failed--wouldn't run or take a charge. It must have been defective but they immediately sent me a new pump and that worked fine until yesterday. The pump would run but there was no air pressure building up in the tank. The person I spoke to at the company said that sometimes that happens when wettable powders are used--the particles can cause the thin rubber check valves to fail. I had been doing some spraying with Special Blend and Booster mixed in the water; so I'll stop that and just use it for Supernova, Spinosad, and other liquid insecticides. The good news is they are sending me another pump. If you have any trouble with your unit call 800 864-1649 and ask for Adam. He has helped me both times.
I'm also going to get a backup pump because I've become so spoiled by this sprayer that I hate to have to wait for a replacement to arrive. Had to get out my 3 gallon hand pump sprayer today. Ruralking.com sells the pump (Everflo Model EF 1000) for $39.

Erny

[Charlie]

Ernie, sorry to hear about the pump problems. However, "wettable powder" has a very specific meaning in the spray world of pesticides and neither Booster or Special Blend fertilizer qualifies as a "wettable powder" (even though they are dry powders to start with). Wettable powders are materials (usually pesticides) that do not dissolve in water but rather stay suspended. Commercial sprayers usually specify whether they can handle wettable powders or not. Booster and Special Blend are very water soluble and should be fine in any sprayer.

Charlie

[Ernest]

Charlie, thanks for the clarification. I had just assumed that any powder could cause a problem. Would Epsom salts also be OK to use?

[Charlie]

Right, epson salts also dissolve well and can be used in any sprayer. Wettable powders are powdered materials that do not float, sink, or clump when water is added so they are called wettable, but they do not dissolve in water either which makes them more likely to cause problems in some machinery. Very few wettable powder formulations are available without a pesticide users permit.

Charlie

[Ernest]

Thanks again Charlie. I guess it makes sense that a wettable powder wouldn't be water soluble.

[farmer d]

Erny I do notice that when I add and then thoroughly mix the special blend there is always a little undiluted sediment on the bottom of my watering can so maybe that is occurring with your spray tank too?  Maybe those undiluted pieces are causing the issue...

I guess I have been fortunate as I only spray with supernova so I have had no pump issues.  When I feed my hibs I do it by hand with a 2 gallon watering can.  That is where I mix in the special blend and quelant-k along w/ supernova.  It never crossed my mind to spray the special blend, though I have been tempted to spray the quelant-k as David has suggested in another thread a few days back.

Farmer D