Field spraying

Calibration of field crop sprayers

Precise, safe applications in the field demand that the sprayer is effectively calibrated. Calibration must always be
done with clean water and before the use of any crop protection product. Follow these three steps to calibrate your
sprayer:

1 Check driving speed 2 Select volume rate, nozzle and pressure

Half-fill the spray tank with water. For easy selection of nozzles and pressure, use the
HARDI calibration disk (order No. 285721).

Example
Volume rate 15 GPA Pressure 40 PSI
Driving speed 8 MPH Nozzle flow 0.40 GPM
300 ft Nozzle ISO F-04-110

Mark out 300 ft – note time to drive the distance.

HAR DI ISO nozz les
www.ha rdi-noz zles.co m
Example
If it takes 24 seconds to drive 300 feet, the spraying speed is 8.5     

 
miles 
If it per hour.24 seconds to drive 300 ft then the spraying
takes 

 
speed is 8.5 MPH.   
Driving speed formula    
 



K
distance driven ft) x 0.68 = MPH
PS


time (sec.) 





 

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Calibration formulas
When calibrating, it is the perfect time to check the spray distribution across your boom. Here you have clean water
in the whole system and a great opportunity to inspect your sprayer for any leaks, blockages, etc.

Speed check Nozzle output

distance (ft.) u 0.68 nozzle spacing (in.) u GPA x MPH
= MPH = GPM (per nozzle)
Time (s) 5940

Pressure adjustment Application volume

( )
new output (GPA) 2 5940 x GPM (per nozzle)
u known pressure (PSI) = new pressure (PSI) = GPA
known output (GPA) nozzle spacing (in.) u MPH

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 Field spraying

Calibration of field crop sprayers

Cleaning of nozzles A soft brush for nozzle clean-
An even distribution across your boom is critical to the ing is included as a part of the
performance of the product you are applying. Dirty and/or HARDI calibration set
blocked nozzles are the most frequently reported problem (81624503).
affecting distribution. Cleaning nozzles is best
done using water and a soft brush such as a
toothbrush. Never use tools like screwdriv-
ers or nails - they will certainly damage the
nozzle and its ability to evenly distribute the
sprayed liquid.

Liquid fertilizer When did you last check the output from
Liquid fertilizers may be of a higher liquid density than your nozzles?
water and almost all normal spray solutions. The 1. After every week of spraying, check minimum 2
density correction table below states the increased nozzles per boom section.
pressure that will be needed to reach the required 2. If the flow from one or more of these nozzles has
output with such liquids. increased more than 15% compared to a new nozzle,
change all nozzles.
Example
The nozzle has an output of 0.5 GPM at 40 PSI. If the Water sensitive paper
density of the liquid fertilizer is 10.65 lbs/gal you have An important tool to check the spray quality and deposi-
to multiply the calibration pressure – found when tion in the field. Buy it at your HARDI dealer.
checking the nozzle flow with water – with the density
factor. This gives an adjusted pressure of 45 PSI. The 1" x 3"
value can be found in the table at 40 PSI (calibrated 50 pcs. no: 893211
pressure) and a density of 10.65 lbs/gal.

Density (lbs/gal)
9.00 10.00 10.65 11.00 12.00
PSI Adjusted pressure (PSI)
20 21 22 23 23 24
30 31 33 34 35 36
40 42 44 45 46 48
50 52 55 57 58 60
60 62 66 68 69 72

Nozzle flow
If your water volume rate and spraying speed are known then use this table to identify the flow rate that will be
required by the nozzle. The nozzle flow rate [GPM] selected from this table, can then be used together with the
nozzle tables on the following pages, to identify a suitable nozzle.

GPA
MPH 3 5 7 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70
2 0.067 0.101 0.135 0.168 0.202 0.236 0.269 0.303 0.337 0.370 0.404 0.438 0.471
4 0.067 0.094 0.135 0.202 0.269 0.337 0.404 0.471 0.539 0.606 0.673 0.741 0.808 0.875 0.943
5 0.051 0.084 0.118 0.168 0.253 0.337 0.421 0.505 0.589 0.673 0.758 0.842 0.926 1.010 1.094 1.178
6 0.061 0.101 0.141 0.202 0.303 0.404 0.505 0.606 0.707 0.808 0.909 1.010 1.111 1.212 1.313 1.414
7 0.071 0.118 0.165 0.236 0.354 0.471 0.589 0.707 0.825 0.943 1.061 1.178 1.296 1.414
8 0.081 0.135 0.189 0.269 0.404 0.539 0.673 0.808 0.943 1.077 1.212 1.347
9 0.091 0.152 0.212 0.303 0.455 0.606 0.758 0.909 1.061 1.212 1.364
10 0.101 0.168 0.236 0.337 0.505 0.673 0.842 1.010 1.178 1.347
12 0.121 0.202 0.283 0.404 0.606 0.808 1.010 1.212 1.414
14 0.141 0.236 0.330 0.471 0.707 0.943 1.178 1.414
16 0.162 0.269 0.377 0.539 0.808 1.077 1.347

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