“Shade Maid” Makes Fieldwork Comfortable

“Shade Maid” Makes Fieldwork Comfortable CROPS Miscellaneous For labor-intensive field work in the hot sun Shade Maid provides all the things you need to make the job more comfortable - shade seats fans and racks for coolers of ice cold water David King came up with the idea for what looks like a “carport on wheels” after he had heat stroke and was unconscious for 3 hours after working in a tobacco field without water on a hot day Powered by a 24-volt battery pack from a solar panel and 24-volt motors on each front wheel the portable canopy travels up to 4 mph It has 3 fans 3 seats center seat is removable and at 12 ft wide and 14 ft long there is plenty of room for 4 people to walk inside and be shaded under the canopy with an adjustable height A battery usually lasts all day Shade Maid has an accelerator pedal and steering control to move forward and reverse It rolls on 14-in tires with an 11-ft wheelbase and drives like a golf cart King had the first one built a few years ago for family members who tried it and told him they wouldn’t work again in tobacco fields without it So King had Elmer Fisher owner of Country Machinery LLC in Leola Penn build them for King to sell Recently Fisher took over sales too While initially designed for tobacco field work to go between 36-in rows the canopy can be customized for other crops including hemp strawberries blueberries and other vegetable crops “One was custom designed to go to Virginia for a tomato picker who wanted self-propelled drive comfort the shade and the fans ” King says Shade Maid sold for around $7 800 in the past but as manufacturer and seller Fisher may be able to cut the cost Anyone interested in the original design or a customized version can contact him with details and for a quote Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Elmer Fisher 609 Musser School Rd Leola Penn 17540 ph 717 656-9733; www countrymachinery com

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