[compost_tea] Here is a neat sprayer

From: Jeff Lowenfels <jeff_at_gardener.com>
Date: Sun, 18 May 2003 20:09:10 -0800

Wow, I think I finally solved my spraying problems and so pass this on to y=
ou all! Hope it helps!

Last year I sprayed a good part of my lawn with tea almost every week. I u=
sed a battery powered back pack sprayer that didn't seem to clog every minu=
te,only every five....My Doctor tells me I developed the first known case o=
f Compost Tea Elbow and that if he were a bit more of a learned man, he wou=
ld have sent in an article to the New England Journal of Medicine where the=
se new conditions are often announced.....

Anyhow, I have to spray my lawn because I am doing CT tests. I needed a bet=
ter way. I found a 30 dollar "driveway water sweeper" made by Rubbermaid a=
t a local hardware store. It has two wheels on either end of a 30-inch long=
, 1" diameter, PVC pipe with five brass spray nozzles. This is connected to=
 a long, 1" diameter, PVC handle that allows one to sweep a driveway with a=
 water spray.......
http://www.mscdirect.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Merchant_Id=1&Section_I=
d=868&pcount=15&Product_Id=71064&Keyword=Y
will bring up a pic if you need it.

I attached this to a hose attached to a Little Giant sump pump submersed in=
 a 60 gallon tank of Bob-0-lator made tea. (I put window screening around t=
he bottom of the pump to prevent anything from getting up into it).

The wheels are not worth a damn on a lawn and need adjusting to go only in =
one direction or need to be removed.

However, the item is light and you can easily pick it up and spray. The tea=
 went out smooth as can be---not one single bit of Alaska Humus was left in=
 the Bob-O-Lator so it was all in the tea! Still I did not experience one =
single clog and there are five spray nozzles and I did 60 gallons!

I put an on/off value which allowed me to slow down the flow otherwise the =
thing would have sprayed out the entire 60 gallons in ten minutes! I also p=
ut a quick connect on the end so I wouldn't have to fiddle with screwing on=
 the hose every time I use it. In addition to the test plot of lawn, I sp=
rayed gardens and starts. Fantastic. The coverage is quick, complete and a=
bout three feed wide.

For 30 bucks, this is the way to go if you make and apply large amounts of=
 tea from a large tank. Of course, the pump costs about 50..... Still, NO C=
LOGS. NO TEA ELBOW!

Cheers,

Jeff
 

 



Received on Mon May 19 2003 - 00:26:11 EDT

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