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Tips from Tech: Liquid Application Pre-season Check

by Jun 4, 2019DirectCommand®, Technical Support

If it hasn’t by now, soon it will be time to turn to another field operation, spraying. We have an application control system, DirectCommand®, that helps make applying easier and more accurate. The following list is a good starting point for getting your machine field ready. Remember, safety first! Make sure you have an adequate supply of gloves, goggles, particle masks and chemical jump suits before proceeding.

Mechanical Inspection

  • Clean or replace tank and boom sprayers as needed.
  • Inspect hoses, clamps and fittings for wear or leaks. Repair or replace as needed.
  • Test nozzle flow rate and compare to new. Replace any tip that has 10% or greater error from new nozzle flow rate. If two or more nozzles fail, replace the whole set.
  • Inspect boom suspension and general mechanical condition, repair as needed. Automated boom height control can’t perform well if boom mechanicals are worn.
  • Inspect the flow meter – clean, test or replace as needed.

Electronic Inspection

  • Inspect cable for corroded connectors and physical damage. Pay extra attention to possible pinch points like drawbar and boom fold areas.
  • Calibrate ground speed sensor for backup GPS speed source.
  • Be sure your flow meter cal number is correct. 
  • Test flow meter, boom and flow control valves for proper operation by adding water to the tank and placing the Ag Leader display into “Rate not Responding.” You may want to create and load a test field for this procedure in order to prevent garbage data. Calibrate or repair as needed.

Don’t forget to enter your tip information!

Knowing spray tip characteristics can be very important to the Ag Leader system and is a good practice application overall. From setting minimum flow, maintaining system pressure, to avoiding error messages, even just to get the best performance out of the system, tip information matters!

Entering tip details is easy, learn more about it here. Tip charts for the various tip manufacturers can be readily found online.

DirectCommand’s nozzle wizard makes entering tip information a breeze!

Advanced Troubleshooting

Reference Guides

Contact a Dealer to Learn More 

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