Garden Sprayers

Using garden sprayers

To mix garden chemicals first pour half of the water into the tank, add the measured amount of chemical concentrate and use the remaining water to rinse the measuring cup into the tank. Mix by inverting the tank several times. When you are finished spraying be used to rinse the tank 2-3 times with clean water and rinse out the hose and nozzle with the final rinse. Hose off the exterior of the sprayer as well.

Quality sprayer manufacturers, like Solo, provide spare parts for their larger sprayer models. I urge you to only consider sprayers that have spare parts readily available. I use insecticidal soap (1-2% solution) to clean spray tanks between applications and at the end of the season.

Sprayer maintenance and spare parts

Garden sprayers are made of a metal or polyethylene tank, a pump mechanism, hose, valve, wand, and spray nozzel. The pump mechanism is the part of the sprayer that requires the most maintenance. Every year you should take the pump mechanism apart, clean it and replace the "O" rings. Add a little grease around the new rings as well. Next, clean the nozzel and replace the wand if it has been bent or broken. Finally, disassemble the valve, clean the parts and reassemble with a little grease. New "O" rings are the parts that are most often replaced. Large sprayer manufacturers like Solo sell "O" ring kits for their sprayers but you can also find individual "O" rings at most auto parts stores.

Where to purchase garden sprayers

Inexpensive garden and hose-end sprayers can be found at your local lawn and garden stores but better quality sprayers can be found at stores that cater to farmers, and online. My own preference is for Solo sprayers because they are extremely well built and spare parts are easy to find when something does break.

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