| ATV Sprayer- Gallons of Water per Acre? |
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By:
Hunt98
Date:02-Jun-20
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I’m going to spray a one acre plot for weeds with an ATV sprayer.
How many gallons of water do you recommend using for a one acre food plot? Why??
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By:
t-roy
Date:02-Jun-20
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15-20 gallons is better than 10, IMO. You will get better overall coverage that way vs spraying 10.
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By:
APauls
Date:02-Jun-20
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So are you saying the % on the mix doesn't matter? ie: if you go over the 1 acre twice at 1% concentration, or go over it once at 2% concentration will it work the same?But you have a better chance of more even coverage going over it twice with half the concentration?
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By:
Kydeer1
Date:02-Jun-20
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That's a tough question to find a quick answer for. There are variables to consider, however you need to mix a certain concentration based on the manufacturers recommendation. From that it will depend on your spraying system, speed you're traveling etc. Best recommendation I've seen is to fill up a 25g tank of water or whatever your sprayer will hold and see how far it'll take ya. A rough estimate on an ATV spreader for 1 acre though would probably be 11-12 gallons IMO.
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By:
Ok...Russ
Date:02-Jun-20
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APauls, how about if you drive the ATV twice as fast instead of cutting the concentration? Okay, just bored at work this afternoon sorry for the diversion. :)
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By:
APauls
Date:02-Jun-20
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Hey Russ if it takes you 4 hours to dig a hole - how long does it take to dig half a hole?
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By:
Ollie
Date:02-Jun-20
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When in doubt...read the product use label. It is there for a reason!
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By:
chasin wtails
Date:02-Jun-20
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Ideally it would be best to calibrate your sprayer/ATV. There is a number of websites you can look up for guidance. Help save you some money on chemicals and time over the long run.
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By:
t-roy
Date:02-Jun-20
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If it calls for 32 oz. (or whatever amount) of herbicide per acre, you need to determine how many gallons of water you are going spray on that acre. Then you need to determine how fast you need to drive to apply said amount of water on that acre.
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By:
Ambush
Date:03-Jun-20
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I have my Round Up figured out per square yard. I use my range finder to mark off an area and get the square yardage. Mix up amount required and make several passes untill its gone. Then mark off the next area. I'm using a backpack sprayer, but the principle is the same.
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By:
hillbender
Date:03-Jun-20
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Put the right dose of chemical in the tank and go over the target acreage until the tank is finished
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By:
Pat Lefemine
Date:03-Jun-20
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Don’t overthink this. Here’s a simple formula for ATV sprayers which are typically 25 gallons.
There’s 3200 ounces In 25 gallons, at a 2% glyfosate rate add 64 oz. then drive around and try to keep track of where you sprayed. If you missed a spot it’s not the end of the world. Just go back and hit those spots again.
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By:
sagittarius
Date:03-Jun-20
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Until you measure the output of your sprayer you really don't know. There are formulas out there to figure gallon of mix per acre. You need to measure how much water goes through your spray nozzle(s) per minute, spray width per nozzle, and speed you will spray at. If it figures out to 14 gallons per acre, then you put 14 gallons of water in your tank, add herbicide for one acre, and spray at a consistent speed, to cover that acre evenly in one pass.
Or, just fill the tank up, add herbicide, and keep spraying the acre until the tank is empty. Maybe there won't be much over, or under application, and you may get the results you want regardless.
What really matters is how much herbicide gets put down per square ft, or per acre, not the % in the tank. ;-)
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By:
blue spot
Date:03-Jun-20
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Sagittarius is correct. You need to calibrate your sprayer. Figure out the swath your sprayer will cover by the length of the swath at a constant speed. Then add the right amount of chemical for the given acres. Now what you are trying to do is apply a certain amount to each plant. I find it much easier to think in terms of percent chemical (straight out of the jug of concentrate as apposed to percent active ingredient although that would work just as well but require slightly more math) I will share this with you. A lot of chemical comes in 2.5 gallon containers. 2.5 gallons is pretty damn close to 10 liters. Now you can just measure out your chemical in terms of 100 milliliters per 10 liter batch to figure the percent mixture. The plastic measuring cups at tractor supply and most places are graduated in milliliters ! simple simple. Only thing I have found useful about the metric system.
Now for how much to put on. You want the most complete coverage of the plant as practically possible. You should aim to moisten all the foliage but not to the point of run off. Smaller droplets give better coverage but are more susceptible to moving off site in a wind or temperature inversion. A slight breeze is the safest condition to apply in so you know where your chemical is going.
Also as stated above read the label. The label is the law. In general the label allows a spectrum of concentration to be used. That allows a professional to match the chemical to the situation/crop/pest based on their experience. But for a novice, these generalized directions don't give a lot of help. Most grasses and annuals that have sprouted from seed are easily killed with as little as 1% mix of 48-52% active ingredient concentrate. 2% is supposed to be pretty effective on most things. Mixed to 4% you will get a rapid kill on well established tough woody material with a big root system. Some trees you can kill with as little as 3/4 - 1% mixture. Key is getting good coverage from the top down or outside edge in of what your treating.
using the percent concentrate applied to give thorough coverage of the foliage not to the point of run off will allow you treat your target pest correctly without getting hung up on the acres being treated and calibrating your sprayer. But you do want to know how fast you should drive to give the desired coverage to the foliage.
You can use this method of application whether you are using a Windex bottle, a back pack sprayer or a utv or tractor mounted rig. And if you work your math backwards I am more than confident it will result in the range of ounces of product per acre directed on the label. Good luck killing your stuff
Blue Spot
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By:
Ambush
Date:03-Jun-20
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.
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By:
WI Shedhead
Date:03-Jun-20
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My sprayer is 24 gallons. I add generic glysophate at a rate of 2.5 oz per gallon and that gets me a good killing coverage on an acre or a little more
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By:
WI Shedhead
Date:03-Jun-20
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My sprayer is 24 gallons. I add generic glysophate at a rate of 2.5 oz per gallon and that gets me a good killing coverage on an acre or a little more
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By:
APauls
Date:03-Jun-20
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How fast does the average guy drive with an ATV sprayer? Is there a general consensus on speed?
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By:
Ok...Russ
Date:03-Jun-20
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I agree with Pat in keeping it simple. Can always go back and spot spray if missed something. Using RoundUp Max, I believe we used 32oz per 25 gal of water and it covered 2 acres. As for speed, generally 4-5 mph is my goal although I get kinda bored after an acre and end up going 8 or so and drive around twice.
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By:
Ambush
Date:03-Jun-20
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By:
DDD in Idaho
Date:06-Jun-20
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Wow guys, this thread scares me!!
I work summers for the Forest Service spraying noxious weeds. I am required to have a Professional Applicator's License. Please, get some "real" knowledge before you follow some of the cockamamy theories on this conversation.
Somebody up above got it right ---- READ (and follow) THE LABEL!!!! Chemical companies spend millions (yes, they have to) of $$ to give you that info. both for safety and effectiveness of the registered product it refers to.
Key "calibrate herbicide rates" into Google, you should get lots of hits on calibration methods. Calibrate your equipment at least once a year --- spray nozzles wear, they get bigger and cause tremendous changes in application rates.
Read the label to find out what plants or critters the manufacturer engineered the chemical in that container to control. What worked (or maybe really didn't) for the guy on the thread that's telling you how much to use is NOT necessarily the most effective, or safest, way to go.
Call your local agriculture dept. or university for ideas. They are usually glad to help and they have the knowledge to back it up!
Rant off.
DDD
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By:
Shawn
Date:09-Jun-20
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I agree don't over think, my glysophate is 41 percent concentrate and calls for 1.5 ounces per gallon. I use 2 per gallon, 50 oz. for 25 gallons, that will easily so an acre. I just did a half acre two weeks ago and used about 10 gallons of water. I went over it twice with light spray. It's been 2 weeks and it killed everything. Gonna seed today cause we got rain coming over the next few days. Shawn
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By:
JSW
Date:09-Jun-20
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All the above advice is good. I have a 15 gallon ATV sprayer. I extended the booms and put 4 spray nozzles on it along with a bigger pump for the added volume. That is probably irrelevant to your question.
The nozzles I use put out 5 gallons per acre at 30 PSI going 6 MPH. I set it up for 5 gallons for when I want to spray a bigger patch. If I'm using round up, I almost always plan for 1 quart per acre. I've ran it at 6MPH and only applied the 5 gallons per acre and done well. I generally put in 2 quarts and slow down so I'm getting 7.5 gallons per acre. More water per acre is better but I've never had a coverage problem with 5-7.5 gallons. I have a 3 acre patch of alfalfa that I spray twice a year with round up. 7.5 gallons per acre has worked very well for me. I recently sprayed an 8 acre patch and it took 4 tanks. Good luck
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By:
wackmaster2
Date:12-Jun-20
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Im with Pat on this. Its not rocketry . Just killin weeds. I go back and spot spray the spots I missed a week later.
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By:
APauls
Date:12-Jun-20
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I used mine for the first time the other day for my lawn. Seems to be the most popular tank for putting on the ATV, but it has ridges in the bottom. When my sprayer started coughing, I still was able to fill an entire backpack sprayer with the leftover. That's another 4 gallons. That's 15% of the tank unusable. How are you guys getting around this "waste?"
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By:
sticksender
Date:12-Jun-20
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I’ve used a number of different sprayers. Glyphosate application being far from an exact science, and the Generic stuff being relatively cheap, I don’t get too “sciencey” about it. I throw in 2 or 3 ounces to the gallon of water along with a little spray grade ammonium sulfate, then just drive a a speed that puts a decent mist onto the weeds. As a rule of thumb it ends up at about 20 gallons to the acre, which if you go back and calculate comes out to 3 or 4 pints of glyphosate concentrate to the acre. Works quite well for me. Of course there are lots of weeds now with resistance. Sometimes I’ll have to add a good dose of 2-4,d to the same tank, when there’s water hemp, marestail, and etc.
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By:
t-roy
Date:12-Jun-20
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APauls....My atv sprayer has more of a flat bottom than yours, but I understand your point. One thing I do get the most mix sprayed, is, if possible, I spray any sloped areas of my plot last. That way you can drive with your suction line to the downhill side of the slope. Not a great solution, but it helps some. If you don’t have any sloped areas, you’re SOL!
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By:
LINK
Date:12-Jun-20
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I mix 2-3 oz per gallon and use roughly 15 gallons per acre with no problem on burn downs. My field sprayer uses 8 gallons of water per acre with no problem.
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By:
Pat Lefemine
Date:12-Jun-20
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This week I sprayed Foma 1.88 pre-emergent on my 16 acre bean fields. I had my 30’ boom sprayer calibrated and carefully applied.
But for a 1 acre glyfosate application? My formula above is close enough. Glyfosate is neutralized by soil. Over application hurts nothing. I’m much more concerned about under applying because that’s how you create glyfosate resistant weeds.
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By:
'Ike' (Phone)
Date:12-Jun-20
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My head hurts...Lol! Always love following you guys and ‘food plot’ work!
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By:
Ambush
Date:12-Jun-20
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I have this tacked to a wall to save some math. Just use a rangefinder to get the square an area.
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By:
t-roy
Date:13-Jun-20
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Litres, meters, mililitres!! .....We’re already confused enough, Rod!! (The rangefinder idea works good, though)
I calibrated both my atv and bigger sprayer for the tractor a few weeks ago. It was a little unorthodox, but worked for me. I squared off exactly one acre in a plot (using a rangefinder), then planted soybeans in that area. After they came up to where I could see the rows really well, I filled each of my sprayers with water and sprayed that acre several times at different speed rates with both the tractor and the atv. I then wrote those various rates down on the sprayer tanks with a magic marker. I also documented those figures on a piece of paper, like Ambush did. The markings on the sprayers are already fading somewhat, so it’s a good idea to have it written down elsewhere as well. I also changed to some different sprayer tips and figured the rates on those as well. I spent several hours doing this, but I have a WAY better feel for precisely how much product that I am spraying now, vs using the different calculation formulas out there, or the WAG method.
For glyphosate or similar type chemicals, it’s not quite as important to be as precise, but for other chemicals, like Pat alluded to, a pre emerge, or other products that can cause damage or even kill young or growing desirable plants, if too hot of a mix is applied, such as clover, chicory, etc., knowing accurately how much chemical you are applying, might save you some grief.
