At 84, Drew Stabler of Laytonsville, Maryland has slowed down significantly. For the most part, he has offloaded most of his farming duties to his two partners on the 1,700 acres he farms in central Maryland.
But he still does the fumigation. In fact, he's been using a sprayer since he was 16.
"The only thing is that the team is much more complicated and bigger than the one I started with," says Stabler. But when it comes to winterizing your sprayer, some things don't change.
He uses a John Deere 4830 with boom guidance and controls. Spraying season isn't over yet, but when it's over, prepare the sprayer for winter storage.
At Stabler, start by cleaning your sprayer with cold water. Then break out the RV antifreeze—it will take 25 to 30 gallons of antifreeze to get the job done. He runs it through his arms and cleans the jets and filters. Then high pressure wash and wax the sprayer.
Winterizing the sprayer is essential. But with the growing popularity of PWM (pulse width modulation) sprinklers on poles and the increase in the number of plastic piping components, it has become even more important to make sure nothing freezes in those nozzles," says Alex Caldwell, Product Marketing Manager. for New Holland.
"As there are more plastics and delicate components, around the bar or in the syringe, new technology becomes more important, but that doesn't make what was always there any less critical," he said. .
Erdal Ozkan, a specialist in expanding pesticide application technology at Ohio State University, explains that the larger arms of most modern sprayers are forcing growers to pay more attention to flushing pipes, filters and nozzles.
"The end section of the long booms is more likely to have spray residue on both sides, even after the boom has been flushed by squeezing clean water or water with detergent. The rinse was expelled through the mouthpieces," Ozkan says. "This could be a problem, especially when there is dry chemical in the spray liquid. Having the boom ends open during the flushing process virtually eliminates this problem. Many newer sprayers have transfer systems, which this system flushes and cleans like any other piece of piping in a sprayer.
what to focus on
Caldwell says growers should focus on these key systems when overwintering a sprayer:
- Main Product Distribution Circuit - Consists of pump, main filter, flow meter, control valve, boom isolation valves and boom piping.
- Rinse Circuit: This includes the rinse line and the tank cleaning nozzles in the product tank.
- Agitation loop: Includes the electric agitation valve or manual agitation valve and agitation nozzles.
- Material pump vent line.
- Chemical ejector tank and fill line.
Sprinkler control components like pressure transducers, flow meters and control valves can be expensive to replace if not properly winterized, Caldwell says.
Other parts often overlooked by growers are unload systems, secondary/tertiary fill points, side nozzles and optional tail boom for front boom sprayers.
The pump, says Ozkan, is the most important part to think about.
"Improper winterization before temperatures drop below freezing could cause pump components to rupture and the pump may not function properly next spring if growers don't have time to fix or replace a pump," he says.
Some tips he gives:
- After the interiors have been thoroughly rinsed and drained with clean water, a small amount of antifreeze should be added to the tank and this mixture pumped out until this light-colored liquid begins to ooze from the tank.
- For even more protection against freezing of the water, a small amount of oil can be placed in the pump and the pump should be rotated four or five turns by hand to completely cover the internal surfaces.
- In some cases, it's easy to overlook flushing the system with antifreeze or coating the pump with oil. Pour a small amount of antifreeze into the container and run the pump until the colored liquid starts to come out of the ends of the sprayer. A small amount of antifreeze at the bottom of the pump or in the hoses will do.
Caldwell says don't forget foam marking systems and hand wash tanks.
"It's one of those things where the main operator might not have used them during the season, but someone else might, so make sure you get everything ready for the winter," he said.
what to wear
Some growers like to overwinter in a sprayer with a liquid fertilizer mix (likely 32% nitrogen), but Caldwell advises caution as nitrogen can be caustic.
Blue-tinted windshield washer fluid was also used as a cheaper alternative to RV antifreeze and fertilizer, but Caldwell discourages its use due to deposits that could remain when dry and clog valves and fittings when taken out of storage.
RV antifreeze, he says, is the best solution because it prevents freeze damage and rehydrates seals, diaphragms, and O-rings.
Caldwell suggests running some sort of trapping system under the nozzles at several different locations to check the color of what's coming out. "You can tell by its color how diluted it is," he says. "If it's too light, that means you're probably removing too much water with this antifreeze and the residue you're leaving isn't as pure as you'd like, so another pass might be needed."
things to remember
Ozkan says growers need to make sure no spray mix is left in the tank after spraying.
Also ensure that no pressure builds up in the sprinkler lines during storage.
Blowing out the pipes with compressed air after the final flush and piping is done is a good way to get rid of any remaining flushing water.
And, of course, read your owner's manual for specific manufacturer instructions.
Means
Ohio State University: fall sprinkler maintenance
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