Fast, Simple Way To Calibrate Sprayers

Fast, Simple Way To Calibrate Sprayers SPRAYING Miscellaneous 2-1-23 Somebody has finally figured out a fast, simple and accurate way to calibrate crop sprayers and liquid fertilizer applicators. "With this new system, calibration is almost as easy as looking at a clock to tell the time," says Craig Broyhill, vice president of the Broyhill Co., developer of the new calibration and monitoring system. In addition to aiding in sprayer calibration, it has other features which aid in more accurate spraying. Heart of the system is a section of installation pipe which has a built in paddle wheel Flosensor device. A Flometer connects to the Flosensor via a long cord, allowing the meter to be remotely located on the dashboard of a tractor or pickup, or wherever most convenient. The Flometer gives the operator a direct reading or gallons per minute (GPM). To get gallons being applied per acre (GPA), you simply read the "GPM" reading on the dial and plug the figure into the following formula: GPM 495 GPA = M.P.H. x Boom width in ft. For example, suppose you're using 45 ft. of total boom width, plan to travel 6 miles per hour and the meter reads 18 GPM. Plugging this figure into the formula, you get: 18 495 GPA =---x--= 5 3 x 11 = 33 gals. per acre If this application rate is higher than you want, you reduce it by increasing sprayer speed, reducing pressure or using smaller nozzle tips. And, if the application rate is lower than you need, you simply reduce sprayer speed, increase pressure or use larger tips. The regular Flometer is equipped with a dial which gives the operator a direct reading. It's available with an optional 5 digit resettable accumulator that allows the operator to get a GPM flow reading, plus total gallons of flow, from the same instrument. For example, suppose you're applying 15 GPA on a 300 acre field. The accumulator, which works much like the odometer on your car, should read 4,500 gals, put through the system when you've finished spraying the field. Any reduction in boom flow due to plugged tips, loss of pump prime, loss of pressure, or an empty tank, will instantly register on the Flometer. The accumultor can also be reset to register the amount of liquid used for a fill, or to make it easy to accurately transfer a desired number of gallons. The flometer can also be used to tell, at a glance, if nozzle tips are delivering close to their rated capacity. For example, you look up the rate the nozzle tips you're using should be applying at a given pressure. If the total book rate is less than the meter rate, you know that tips are worn and that the pressure should be adjusted accordingly. Or, if bad enough, the tips should be replaced. If any tips plug, or there is a loss of pressure, the operator will detect the problem by noting the "dip" on the flometer dial. "This new monitoring system obsoletes the usual time-consuming and complicated methods of calibration, such as the volume method, the area-volume method of the timevolume method," explains Broyhill. "Sprayer operators who find these conventional methods confusing and difficult to grasp will welcome this new system. It's fast, simple and accurate to within 1%", he points out. Cost of the installation pipe with built-in Flosensor and the regular Flometer is $249, plus $211 for the optional meter with the resettable accumulator which keeps tabs on total gallons delivered. For more, details, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, The Broyhill Co., Dakota City, Neb., 68731 (ph 402 987-3412).

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