Liquid Sprayer For Treating Bulk Salt Piles

This is a basic set up. A few basic guidelines will make spraying easier.

What I have learned...

1. Cast iron pump (some liquids weaken aluminum).
2. NO strainer or filter on the system (it will clog constantly).
3. The return line should enter the tank as low as possible, to help prevent foaming.
4. The return line will prevent damage to the pump when the flow is regulated at the spray end. You can increase spray pressure by closing off the return line valve a little at a time. Never close it completely or pump damage can occur, or a hose could blow (been there done that, VERY messy).
5. Make sure the suction line is a rigid suction hose, or rigid pipe. It could collapse from suction otherwise.
6. Make sure the hose for the spray end is rated at the highest pressure the pump will put out.
7. Use a flexible rubber hose for the last 10 feet or so at the sprayer. Using a coil reinforced "pool" type hose will cause it to break at the sprayer from flexing so much when spraying. The rubber will hold up to the flex much better.
8. The tank should have a drain as low as possible, to allow you to wash out any debris and solids that accumulate in the tank from time to time, and to allow you to drain the tank if you have to.

The pump should be more of a high volume, low pressure type, as high pressure is not necessary. You do not want a fine mist coming out of the nozzle when spraying salt piles. The pump should have 1.5" inlet and outlet, larger is not necessary, and smaller can be used, when treating on a smaller scale, such as when using liquid from 55 gallon drums. A "trash" type pump is perfect.

That's about it. The sprayer itself can be made from grey sprinkler pipe (the same diameter as the hose) threaded on each end. Install a ball valve on the end of the hose to regulate flow, and as far as a nozzle, you want a fan pattern, like a hydroseeder.

Like I already said, this is a basic set up. More complicated set ups can be made with more features. Some liquids can weaken aluminum, so it is best to avoid using any aluminum parts on the entire set up. A more complicated set up could have an automatic return valve to help protect the pump, in addition to the ball valve that allows you to manually regulate the return line flow.

The above set up can be made on a smaller scale, for treating piles with liquid from 55 gallon drums. It should include the return line too, and it should have a stem (rigid pipe) on the return that will allow it to rest on the bottom of the tank. The suction line out of the tank should also be rigid, and cut on an angle, to allow it to rest on the bottom of the tank. Cut the ends off on a 45 - 55° angle, to allow them to rest on the bottom, but not be blocked.

Treating the piles...
The spraying is a small part of treating piles of bulk salt. The more important part is mixing. The mixing will take much longer than the actual spraying. Mixing must be done thoroughly, to ensure even coverage of the salt. The larger the pile to be treated, the larger the loader to mix it more efficiently, and the larger the area needed to drag out the pile to be sprayed and mixed.

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7-15-03