Great Plains 3P-FF900 Operator Manual - Manual (Page 20)

3P-FF600, 3P-FF800 and 3P-FF900
500-643M 12/8/2009
18
Adjustments Before Going to the
Field
1. Securely attach the sprayer to the tractor. Make
sure the sprayer is adjusted so that the sprayer is
level.
2. Fill sprayer tank 1/2 full with water for calibrating
purposes. (Tanks are not provided with the spray-
er)
3. Hook-up the pump to the tractor. Engage the
pump slowly and check for any leaks.
4. 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 hy-
draulic motor, start out with the hydraulic con-
trol valve set at a minimum flow, and the
hydraulic lever in the float position.
b. Open up the sprayer control valve to its maxi-
mum setting. (On the Raven 450 monitor, with
the power switch on, the rate switch must be
placed in the manual position, and the in-
crease/decrease switch must be pushed to in-
crease for 10-12 seconds.)
c. Start the tractor and engage the pump by
placing the hydraulic lever in the down posi-
tion. Once the system builds pressure on the
nozzle pressure gauge, speed up the tractor
throttle to normal operating speed. Shut off
the boom section switches and close the agi-
tation 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.
5. Calibrate sprayer. Sprayer calibration (1) prepares
your sprayer for operation, and (2) diagnoses noz-
zle 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 condi-
tions. 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 spraying 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 procedure, and average the times that
were recorded. Use the following equation to de-
termine the exact ground speed.
Step 2
Determine the application rate at which your
chemical should be sprayed. In determining
which spray nozzles to use with your sprayer, you
must know:
Using this information, calculate the volume per
minute, per nozzle as follows:
Using GPM .34 and pressure 30 P.S.I., you would
select a nozzle from your nozzle chart that
comes closest to providing the desired output.
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)
GPM = GPA x MPH x W (nozzle spacing)
5,940
Example:
a. Nominal application pressure 30 P.S.I.
b. Target application rate 20 GPA
c. Target speed 5.0 MPH
d. Nozzle spacing 20 W (in)
GPM = 20 GPA x 5 MPH x 20 W (in) = .34
5,940