“Spray Brooms” Sweep Away Chemical Drift

“Spray Brooms” Sweep Away Chemical Drift SPRAYING Accessories Kurt Kamin has found a way to target coverage of spray booms with “spray brooms” designed to contain chemical drift “We use water sensitive paper to demonstrate in front of customers and they can’t believe how well our Pattern Master brushes work ” says Kamin K-B Agritech “The first words out of a university researcher specializing in spray patterns was ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’” The brushes are 6 1/2 in wide with a thin layer of bristles that hang in front of the spray tips Wind striking the bristles is deflected allowing the drops to form and fall intact Independent research has shown a near doubling of coverage with the brushes in place over neighboring tips without them Coverage went from 25 percent applying 20 gal per acre at 12 1/2 mph to 48 percent coverage Kamin points out that every sprayer creates its own headwind simply moving through the field As air moves around the boom it speeds up “Add a 10 mph ground speed to a 10 mph wind and we’ve had airspeeds of 20 to 25 mph hitting the spray pattern ” he says “That scatters spray droplets If you see a mist form around spray tips the droplet pattern is being disrupted ” “The brushes are made of polyethylene fibers with memory ” says Kamin “The brushes bend if they hit the dirt putting no pressure on the boom but returning to shape We are also working on a spring-loaded brush for breakaway booms ” Cost to equip a 120-ft boom with brushes on 20-in spacing runs around $4 400 They’re available direct from Kamin by phone or on his website You can see a video of the Pattern Master brushes at www FARMSHOW com Contact: FARM SHOW Followup K-B Agritech N6875 5th Ave Plainfield Wis 54966 ph 715 498-0005; kurt_kamin@yahoo com; www k-bagritechllc com

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