Proper Care and Cleaning of a Sprayer

by Warne Chemical Equip January 14, 2020

It's important to clean your garden sprayer immediately after using it to spread pesticide. If you leave residue in the sprayer, it can harden and become very difficult to remove, and the next time you use the sprayer, you could end up injuring the plants you spray. Moreover, some pesticides are corrosive and can damage the sprayer if you don't clean them out. You can buy commercial cleaning compounds, but household ammonia and trisodium phosphate are also effective, and you may already have some around the house. Stick with whichever cleaner you choose; combining cleaners can be dangerous.

1. Drain the sprayer tank in a safe area where there's no danger of contaminating water supplies or vegetation. Fill it with water, and rinse the sprayer and hose by spraying water for 5 minutes. Drain the water.

2. Pour kerosene into the tank and spray it through the nozzle if you have been using an oil-based herbicide. Drain the kerosene into a bucket and dispose of it responsibly -- don't just dump it on the ground. One way to deal with it is to pour it into a 5-gallon bucket and dispose of the entire bucket of kerosene as hazardous waste when it's full.

3. Mix a solution of 2 1/2 tablespoons of ammonia per gallon of water and fill the tank with it. Alternatively, fill the tank with a solution of 1 1/4 ounces of trisodium phosphate per gallon of water or a commercial cleaner, mixed according to the instructions on the cleaner container.

4. Spray the cleaner through the nozzle to flush the hose. Drain the sprayer, then take the screens and nozzles out of the sprayer and immerse them in the cleaning solution separately. Then put them back on the machine. If you were spraying a growth-regulating herbicide, don't drain the sprayer -- let the cleaning solution sit in the sprayer overnight, and then clean the nozzles and screens in the morning.

5. Drain the sprayer, fill it with clean water, and flush it again. Drain the water and let the sprayer dry off. Store the sprayer empty.