Great Plains TS1000 Trailer Sprayer Operator Manual - Manual (Page 17)

Great Plains Mfg., Inc.
Assembly and Setup
7/6/09 15 TS1000 Trailer Sprayer 500-111M
Adjustments Before Going to the Field
1. Securely hitch the sprayer to the tractor and fasten the
safety chain. Make sure the hitch is adjusted so that
the front of sprayer is 1 1/2” lower than the rear so that
the liquid in the tank will drain to the sump.
2. Fill sprayer 1/2 full with water for calibrating purposes.
3. Carefully unfold the boom on level ground. Inspect the
boom for levelness. If boom is not level, reference
Tractor/Sprayer Hook-Up in the “Assembly and Set-
up” section on page 11.
4. Hook-up the pump to the tractor. Engage the pump
slowly and check for any leaks.
5. Set the deadhead pressure of the pump at 80 P.S.I.
depending on how the pump is driven.
Hydraulic Driven Pumps
a. To determine the correct flow rate to the hydraulic
motor, start out with the hydraulic control valve set
at a minimum flow, and the hydraulic lever in the
float position.
b. Open up the sprayer control valve to its maximum
setting. (On Raven 440 monitors, with the power
switch on, the rate switch must be placed in the
manual position, and the increase/decrease
switch must be pushed to increase for 10-12 sec-
onds.)
c. Start the tractor and engage the pump by placing
the hydraulic lever in the down position. Once the
system builds pressure on the magnetic nozzle
pressure gauge, speed up the tractor throttle to
normal operating speed. Shut off the boom sec-
tion switches, close the throttling valves (if appli-
cable) and close the agitation valve.
d. The pump is now at deadhead pressure and the
hydraulic control valve must be adjusted up until
the spray pressure reaches 80 P.S.I. maximum on
the nozzle pressure gauge. Mark this setting on
the hydraulic control valve for future reference.
e. Open up the agitation valve and reset the throt-
tling valves (if applicable).
PTO Driven Pumps
a. Open up the sprayer valve to the maximum set-
ting. (On Raven 440 monitors, with the power
switch on, the rate switch must be placed in the
manual position, and the increase/decrease
switch must be pushed to increase for 10-12 sec-
onds.)
b. Start the tractor and engage the PTO pump slowly
with the tractor engine idling. Once the system
builds pressure on the magnetic nozzle pressure
gauge, shut off the boom section switches, close
the throttling valves (if applicable) and close the
agitation valve.
c. The pump is now at deadhead pressure. Increase
the engine RPM’s until the spray pressure reach-
es 80 P.S.I. maximum on the nozzle gauge or the
PTO speed reaches the rated RPM (540/1000).
Never exceed the rated tractor PTO RPM. This is
the RPM needed to spray at to prevent excess
pressure on the sprayer’s plumbing.
d. Open up the agitation valve and reset the throt-
tling valves (if applicable).
6. Calibrate sprayer. Sprayer calibration (1) prepares
your sprayer for operation and (2) diagnoses nozzle
wear. This will give you optimum performance from
your nozzles and ensure accuracy from your sprayer.
Equipment Needed:
• Calibration Container
• Calculator
• Stopwatch or wristwatch with second hand.
Step 1
Measure off a 200’ course in the area to be sprayed or
in an area with similar surface conditions. Select the
engine throttle setting and gear that will be used when
spraying. The starting post should be far enough away
to permit your tractor/sprayer to reach desired spray-
ing speed. Hold that speed as you approach the “start”
marker, and check the time required to travel through
the course to the “end” marker. Repeat the above pro-
cedure, and average the times that were recorded.
Use the following equation to determine the exact
ground speed.
Step 2
Determine the application rate at which your chemical
should be sprayed. In determining which spray noz-
zles to use with your sprayer, you must know:
Using this information, calculate the volume per
minute, per nozzle as follows:
Speed (MPH) = Distance (ft.) x 60
Time (seconds) x 88
Example: MPH = 200 x 60
27 x 88
MPH = 12000
2376
MPH = 5.05
a. Nominal application pressure ____P.S.I.
b. Target application rate ____GPA
c. Target speed ____MPH
d. Nozzle spacing ____W (in)