Hose End Sprayers, Hose-End, Sprayer for Garden Hose

There are many styles, types and brands of hose-end sprayers or sprayers that attach to the end of garden hoses. Choosing the correct hose end sprayer will determine how accurate your pest control spray or herbicide spray is applied. When a pest problem requires or suggests the use of a hose end sprayer, do not use a pump type sprayer for the pest control job. Pump sprayers cannot give you the volume of product needed to control lawn pests such as fleas, ticks, Asian roaches, molecrickets. You will not see a knowledgeable pest control operator using even a professional pump sprayer to spray lawns. Instead, the PCO will use a power sprayer to broadcast prescribed solution.
Most home owners do not own nor do they have access to a power sprayer such as the ones used by professionals. Power spray rigs are available but unless you spray lawns for a living, you rarely need to invest in such equipment to treat an average size lawn. Hose end sprayers will do the same job without spending nearly as much money.

There are two basics you should know about these sprayers: some have a siphon tube and others do not. Miracle Gro (or Miracle Grow) type sprayers do not have a siphon tube. These sprayers are fine for applying water soluble fertilizers but are not as accurate as other types for applications of outdoor insecticides in lawns or gardens. These sprayers flush the small tank with water and force the solution out of the applicator tip. This means that the insecticide or herbicide solution that comes out of the tip in the beginning of the operation is stronger than at the end - not an accurate way of evenly broadcasting the same strength of solution over a medium to large area.

When spraying outdoors for ants, fleas, fireants, molecrickets or other lawn pests you should use a hose end sprayer that has a siphon tube. Within this group of hose-end sprayers that have a siphon tube there are two basic styles: those that are equipped with a dial and sprayers that do not utilize a dial. Both types will work and will help you evenly broadcast your pesticide accurately. You simply choose the sprayer that is easiest for you to handle or the one that is best suited for your needs. Besides broadcasting lawns for pests, hose end sprayers are also used for spraying trees and shrubs. A good example of this use of a hose-end sprayer can be found on the pigeon plum tree weevil information page.

A dial sprayer, such as the Gilmour Dial-A-Mix Sprayer requires no mixing. You only need to know to things: how much product (concentrated herbicide or pesticide) is needed for the area you are about to spray and at what strength is to be used for your targeted pests.
Example: When using Talstar Concentrate on a 10,000 square foot lawn, you will need about 10 ounces of concentrated insecticide. The desired rate can be as low as 1/2 ounce per gallon or high as 1 ounce per gallon. If you are treating for ants, the lower rate will work, so you set the sprayer's dial to 1/2 ounce. Now, evenly broadcast your insecticide solution over the desired area. The sprayer will empty when your job is finished.

A sprayer, such as a 20 Gallon Hose End Sprayer, that does not have a dial will require a small amount of mixing.
Example: When using Dragnet or Permethrin SFR (Professional Strength Permethrin) on a 10,000 square foot lawn that is flea infested, you will need 10 to 16 ounces of concentrated product to effectively cover the area. A 10,000 square foot lawn requires 30 to 40 gallons of finished solution for effective coverage. Since you are using a 20 gallon sprayer, you simply have to spray half of the lawn at a time or per mixed batch of chemical.
Pour 8 ounces of concentrate into the hose-end sprayer; finish filling the sprayer to the "20 Gallon" mark shown on the side of the sprayer. This solution will treat 5,000 square feet. You now will "re-load" the sprayer to spray the remaining 5,000 square foot area.
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