Easy Way To Calibrate An ATV Sprayer

Forget confusing calculations and "how to" chemical spraying manuals that lead you down a path of ATV sprayer calibration confusion. I prefer to work backwards. Simply attempt to spray and acre with 10 gallons at a rate of 7-8 mph and see how much you have left in the tank. If you come up short, add more water. if you spray too much, slow your rate slightly. For 20 years the best personal rate I have found is to use a full 25 gallon sprayer with enough chemicals to kill 2 acres mixed with water and then drive 7-8 mph, slightly overlapping the spray pattern. This is a great base amount to spray per acre (12.5 gallons per acre), and you can adjust your rate slightly to find the perfect speed for your setup. Calibrating your ATV, tractor or back pack sprayer should be as easy as running a few gallons of water through it to discover your coverage rate, and then head to your next wildlife spraying activity.

[@jamesmcconnell9754]

my wife and I founded our Horse Farm in 2005 and every year since we have struggled to decipher how to celebrate our herbicides and humic agents. Thanks for bringing some simplicity to the process and a newfound degree of confidence that we are now applying properly! 😃😃

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

You are very welcome James! It's a whole lot easier than those manuals make it, lol. Happy for you guys!

[@tonybarrell9884]

Just in time, I bought a pull behind last year and it was driving me nuts trying to figure out how much to use, lol! Thanks Jeff!

[@anthonychurilla8252]

Your videos are so informative! Always a good watch 🦌 Thank you for the content!

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

You are very welcome Anthony...GREAT to hear and I will do my best to keep them coming!

[@csemrau]

This is perfect Jeff, thank you. I really needed to see this!

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

That's great to hear Craig...I hope it makes it a lot easier for you! Always appreciate your feedback

[@duggiestone]

I have a 200 gallon tractor pto sprayer and a 60 gallon UTV sprayer for the Ranger. This concept is the same I use for both. For me, it all depends on how rough the ground is. On rough ground at 4-5 mph it takes 20 gallons per acre with quite a bit of overlap to make sure nothing is missed. At 7-8 mph on good ground I’m closer to the 12 gallons per acre. Same concept no matter the size of tank or equipment used. With any wind I tend to slow it down to the 4-5 mph range too.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

That's a great comment...I really like that! On a side note too we have a lot of elevation change...so of course measuring flat with Google will deliver less acreage than the ground actually lays... Great points though, appreciate you sharing!

[@markc4921]

Thank you! This was very helpful!!

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Awesome...good to hear Mark! Really hoping that makes sense to folks...should help you with the 15 gallon tank!

[@timbejian9152]

I have a 15 gallon tank sprayer that I mount on the back of my atv and I've been doing what you said for many years. The hardest part of the spraying is controlling my ground speed. Part of the problem is my land is very uneven - hills, bumps, wet areas, rocky places etc. what I've learned though is the best way to control my ground speed is to run in low gear. Running in high gear on uneven ground makes it difficult to maintain a consistent speed. But low gear while a bit noisier gives me great control when moving over different surfaces.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Hr at advice Tim! We have very uneven topography where I spray and it is the same thing. I wish I had flat ground too for the plots for a number of reasons, but being able to spray in 2 wheel drive is nice on flat ground! Thanks Tim...

[@chiefo4654]

Great advice mate, guess thats what the low gear is there for in circumstances like that

[@tdougiefresh1506]

Just by watching you pour your chemical how exactly do you measure by just pouring straight from jug to tank?

[@jamesphelps3862]

Does the glyphosate that you use have the additive in it to make it stick?

[@sammysixtoes3724]

What pressure setting is everyone using? I have the FIMCO 20 gallon (two nozzle) sprayer and according to the manual if I set it to 30 psi and drive 7.5 mph I should only spray 10.3 gallons per acre. I barely got 1/4 of an acre from a full tank at those settings.

[@garymalchow6996]

what size nozzle did you usr with plot start?

[@rfb7117]

Jeff......great comments to make it easy to understand. In a back pack sprayer is it about 3-4oz. per gallon of RU and 2oz of 2-4D? thanks, Bob

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Thanks Bob! With a 4 gallon backpack sprayer I find your coverage will only be an 1/8th of an acre. So if you are mixing gly and 2-4D you would just need to add the amounts of both to equal 1/8th of an acre's worth of chemical. 1/8th of an acre of gly (2 quarts gly x .125 and 1 pint of 2-4D x .125). I hope that makes sense? You figure out the coverage rate per acre first...and then work back to the amount needed based on your coverage rate.

[@rfb7117]

To make it easier would and set it up per gallon in the back pack sprayer would it be okay to say 3-4oz. of both per gallon? That way you could mix ups as much as you desire. Thanks Bob

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

@@rfb7117 Bob that to me makes it harder...because ultimately you need to know your coverage rate of the sprayer first...and then add the appropriate amount of chemical per that coverage rate. For example a 4 gallon back pack sprayer will cover about an 1/8th of an acre...based on more experience that I probably should have ☺️ So then you need to add an 1/8th of an acres worth of chemical. No different than you have an 1/8th of an acre food plot, so you need to add an 1/8th of an acres worth of seed. Of your brassica mix is 8#s per acre, then that would mean you spread 1# of food plot seed. Same with spraying. If you are spraying 1 acre you just need to add 1 acres worth of glyphosate (2 quarts per acre) and 1 acres worth of 2-4D (1 pint per acre when mixed with glyphosate). So first you figure out your ATV coverage rate that you need per acre (for example 13 gallons per acre at 7-8mph, slightly overlapping spray). I hope that makes sense but that's where a lot of those manuals and spraying calculations are so rediculous....you need to know your coverage rate first. I would forget about ounces per gallon, etc.

[@randlerichardson5826]

Hey brother we had the funeral today and were just getting home. I’m just now watching videos.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

I hope you were able to have more of a celebration of his life today...and that the family is more at peace now too!

[@randlerichardson5826]

Whitetail Habitat Solutions yes brother that’s exactly how it was. I know where he was goin and he told me a little while before he got to where he couldn’t talk that he was ready to go. He’s a lot better off and in a better place Amen. Thanks brother for the thoughts and prayers GOD BLESS you and your family Amen.

[@stevestarkey6183]

just in time for my early spray up next to columbus.any recommendations for that area up on ridge top jeff?alot of briar and thorn bushes

[@stevestarkey6183]

basically just gonna put a couple small 1/4 acre kill plots in

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

That sounds great Steve! I would go with the 2 quarts per acre if gly with 1 pint per acre of 2-4D. Really good broad-based killer combo. But...you have to have a lot of green showing first, in order to kill.

[@dirttdude]

Your sport quad will wheelie a lot easier if you put the full 25 gallons in it

[@grizzrider09]

Sport utility. My kodiak 450 is my work horse and it squats a lot with my 25gal filled

[@randlerichardson5826]

Is that weed killer or some type of fertilizer brother???? I seen the 2-4-D just then. I see now. Great video as always brother. Very informative video. I’m goin to apply what you’ve told in your videos ASAP. Turkey season opens in the morn I’m finally goin to get out in the woods and clear my mind for awhile. I’m goin to enjoy GODS WOODS AMEN for awhile tomorrow. GOD BLESS.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Yes weed killer Randle. Are you out turkey hunting? Best of luck but most of all I hope that you can find some peace in the woods after all that you have been thru this week...

[@randlerichardson5826]

Whitetail Habitat Solutions yes it helped me a lot this morn did. Took a lot off my mind THANK THE LORD AMEN. Thank u to brother GOD BLESS you and your family always Amen. We went to four that were gobbling this morn but it just wasn’t meant to be right now. I’ll be there when one of them makes that one little mistake and it will be over for him. GOD BLESS.

[@johnbarrows111]

What spray nozzles do you run?

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

The 2 sprayer nozzles that come with the Fimco...not the 3 sprayer model. I've found the 2 to be a lot more reliable!

[@wesleyjohnson5854]

What size is your atv

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

700cc

[@user-nr7kh5zb4c]

Your nozzles are set incorrectly, reference the Fimco instruction manual. Nozzles should be horizontal and 15 degrees upward, yours are spraying downward. Also, I saw one of your previous videos where you stated 2 quarts of glysophate per acre, you suggested disregarding the manufacturers recommendation per ounces per gallon. This is not correct.

[@whitetailhabitatsolutions9751]

Unfortunately only newbies use ounces per gallon...very unfortunate way to not do it right. Also, we want it spraying straight down to keep from wind drift. After spraying thousands of acres over the last 30 years...just run along to another channel rookie 😂