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Walking speed?

5K views 15 replies 5 participants last post by  teeca 
#1 ·
I was wondering how fast some of you walk when you do blanket liquid apps? Since I still don't have tons of experience with draggin' hose. I've calibrated so that I apply 2 gallons per k, if I walk 100 ft/min. I also spray a 10 foot wide pattern to accomplish this rate.
With some of the posts I've read on here, that talk about how quickly some of you spray lawns of varying sizes, I'm wondering how fast you walk.
I'm looking forward to the time, when I can calibrate my sprayer to flow 4 gallons/min, so I can walk twice as fast while still putting down the same 2 gallons per k rate.
With that kind of flow, I'd really have to be careful to keep moving though. For now... I'm much more comfortable, being able to go at a slower pace, even though it's not nearly as efficient. :rolleyes:

Vic
 
#4 ·
How do you overlap? None or very little? I have heard some guys talking about a 50% overlap on each pass. You are right 2.27 mph is not very fast. How fast are you waving the gun would you guess? Is a 10 foot swath about average for a hose application. What is keeping you from changing tips and spraying twice as fast now?
I have picked up a good many very small lawns and my rider is cumbersome sometimes. I have been thinking about getting a skid sprayer. I cannot go to work for someone to learn the hose method. I will just have to buy one and practice with water in my lawn.
 
#5 ·
How much overlap?

How much I overlap, or if I overlap at all, is determined by what I'm spraying and what it's label says. On the label of some products. You're instructed not to overlap. If overlapping is allowed. I do usually throw my pattern back to the footprints I left on my last pass (thus giving a 50% overlap). That would give me 5 feet of new coverage onto turf I had not treated yet and 5 feet of overlap onto turf I had sprayed on my last pass. Follow me?

How fast do I wave the gun?

I try wave my gun at a speed that will allow me to hit each blade of grass, or weed 3 times before I walk by it.

Average width of a pass?

I'm not sure what the average width of a pass would be for most applicators. I think most applicators wouldn't make such a wide pass, but I really don't know for sure what most people do. I would image more people make 8 foot passes, than 10 foot passes. I just try to work on being a machine with my consistancy. 5 feet to the right and 5 feet to the left time after time.

Why have I've limited my speed for now?

I've limited my speed and consequently how much product I flow per minute, for the same reason you don't put a relatively inexperienced driver out on the freeway. If I doubled the flow rate of my spray gun. It would be much easier to overapply product on my customer's lawns. You really have to keep moving when you've calibrated to let product really fly out of your spray gun.

The guys on here with a lot of experience dragging hose, can crank their flow up to high rates and spray their lawns while eating a sandwich, without doing any damage to their lawns. I would probably damage lawns if I tried to do it, because I would probably overapply whatever product I was spraying.

Practicing..

That's how I started. Practicing on my lawn with water. I also practiced on a really big parking lot after hours. That way. I could easily see what kind of pattern I was putting down.

Some of the more experienced guys on here might want to chime in here, but where I think most inexperienced guys get into trouble, is with inproper calibration. I could be wrong, but it sure seems that way to me. If you're not properly calibrated. How are you going to apply the right amount of product?

Vic
 
#6 ·
I am no expert at the hose method, but I don't think that when the label say do not overlap that it means that it is not OK to apply with 50% overlap if you have mixed with the 50% overlap taken into account.

I think that the no overlap statement on the label is just to let you know it is wrong to double apply active ingredient in areas.

I think as long as the correct AI gets applied evenly across the area with the label recommended amount of water, you are following the label. And follow everything else on the label also.
 
#7 ·
Victor,
you left out an important detail. What are you spraying? If..for instance..you are mixing liquid fertilizer with weed killer solution--the consequences and fertilizer burn associated with only 2 gallons of water per 1000 sqft are an important consideration. There is no room for error--especially at high temperatures.
I mix fertilizer and herbicide and wetting agent. I use 7 foot swath. Spray about 2.8 gallons per 1000 sq ft. Walk about 1.6 miles per hour.
 
#8 ·
I use granular ferts instead of liquid fert and only spray herbicides through my skid. I always follow what the label says for rates and mixing on the herbicides I use, so I know what I put down will be safe for my lawns.
I just was curious about how fast or slow, some of the more experienced applicators walked when they were doing blanket apps with a skid sprayer.

Vic
 
#11 ·
Normal walking speed (3 mph). 6-8' swath, 1-2' overlap.

Calibration is your delivery rate per minute. (1,000 sqft per minute). Use a bucket and a stop watch.

This is a starting point. You can adjust your mix & flow rates or speed as needed.
 
#13 ·
Victor said:
You walk 264 feet per minute while you spray then. If you weren't getting good results, obviously, you wouldn't be walking that fast. Now that's efficiency! That's something for me to work towards. :)

Vic
:rolleyes: Prolly been a year or 2 since I've gone that fast (I'm 52).

Like I said my numbers were starting points and this is how we trained back in the day.

The main thing is to find a delivery method that is comfortable to you (10' swaths seem uncomfortably wide for me) that provides even coverage at your target rate of AI and/or nutrients..... :walking:

Good luck
 
#14 ·
you can also figure it like this.
MPH = TIME (traveld 100') x .682
GPA = GPM x 5940 / (MPH x SWATH ")
94.3 = 4 x 5940 / (3 x 84)
94.3 / 200 (tank size) = 2.12 acre(s) per tank
2.12 x 4 (pints per acre herbicide) = 8.48pts or 1.06gal
 
#15 ·
Turfpro... I'm going to recalibrate for a narrower swath and see how I like it. Maybe I'd be more comfortable with a narrower swath. I'll try it out and see.
Teeca... Thanks for that good conversion info. That's going to come in handy.

Vic
 
#16 ·
Victor said:
Turfpro... I'm going to recalibrate for a narrower swath and see how I like it. Maybe I'd be more comfortable with a narrower swath. I'll try it out and see.
Teeca... Thanks for that good conversion info. That's going to come in handy.

Vic
i started doing it this way awhile ago. people (past employers) kept telling me inorder to raise GPM, you needed to walk faster?? what?? no, you just need to calibrate you GPM, to your walking speed.. duh!! this formula is for calibrating a boom sprayer, but i found it works the same for draging hose. and it's easer math to do the acre calculations, then the 1K figures. jmo
 
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