Rake?

I weed whack my hiilly and rocky 7 acres. There is a lot of debris from down limbs and other stuff that I would like to rake up to reduce fire danger. My property is hilly enough that I cannot use my tractor to rake these areas, but since I have a brand new RV900 Worksite I think I might be able to attach a landscape rake to the RTV and clear out some stuff. Anyone else do this or have an idea about a rake?

Thanks

JR

    Welcome to the forum JohnRussell,

        That is a super idea .  There is no reason why it would not work . There is no doubt, that the RTV would pull it with no problem at all.

        But like all off road / utility vehicles, be careful with the hills / slopes , use good judgement on the grades, and wear your seat belt !!!!  Play it safe >>>>>>>

                                         ~~~~~~ Two Guns ~~~~~~

Welcome to the forum.

How big are the limbs and debris?  For smaller stuff, I found a good leaf blower works well.

Thanks for the welcomes !  I learned quickly with my tractor (BX24) that it is important to pay attention to using on hills and I plan to apply the same mindset to the RTV.

The debris is big enough and there is enough of it that a leaf blower is not an option for me because it would take way too much time. The oaks and pines around my property drop small to medium size limbs from wind storms and such and a lot has accumulated in some areas that I hope to get to with the RTV.

I also plan to get a sprayer, probably a skid type unit that I can spray roundup right next to the county road that is at the front edge of my propery. I weed whack it every year and spot spray some stuff, but for the future I am going to just spray a 4-6 foot area along the road to deal with the fire danger. I am hoping to find a sprayer with a boom that will go out to the side or some way to spray other than directly behind the RTV.

I hope this machine will help out with a lot of things I have been doing manually.

Thanks

JR

    Fimco sprayers :

       http://www.fimcoindustries.com/sprayers.htm

  They are Superior spray units.......... PERIOD , many to choose from. Down here, that's all we use is the spayers with the booms, also they have a hand held spot sprayer you can also use when needed.

    On all spayers we use, I install shut-off valves, that way I choose what way I want to spray, either it be left flank, right flank, both flanks, back and left,  etc. etc >>>> You cannot bet these spray units, we've used them all, and these have performed better and maintence free for years for us....  Do not run bleach threw them. And when you get finished spraying, and not going to spray again for awhile. Clean up really good >>>>>> it will last you forever !!!!!

                             ~~~~~~ Two Guns ~~~~~~

 3025 

     JR.,

      These sprayers have valve you can turn to circulate your chemicals while you are loading up. Big plus for mixing. By the time the tank is full, you are just about perfectly mixed up, and ready to start spraying >>>>>>>>  JUST THAT SIMPLE, give 'em a lookin' at >>>>>
            

                            ~~~~~~ Two Guns ~~~~~~

Those look like quality sprayers. They look very similar to the Gearmore sprayers my dealer recommeds. When I compare the specificaitons of similar model Gearmore and Fimco spreayers, they look almost exactly the same. Here is a link to the Gearmore site:

http://www.gearmore.com/allsprayers.html

What do you think of these? My plan is to spray round up and since we have high fire danger here, I also plan to spray a fire retardant boundary at critical points using either Phos-Check or Fire Shield. The ability to have a gun to spray trees plus the boom or nozzles is a big plus for me.

There seems to be an emergin industry in providing commerical and rural residential fire protection options. Fun stuff to look at:

http://www.wildfire-equipment.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=5901&category_id=6&manufacturer_id=0&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=26

http://www.rkoenterprises.com/utv-mounted/utv-mounted-skid-units.asp

    This is a item one does not want to cut corners on, for he would pay dearly in the end >>>>>> 

  Need to look at who makes the pump, nozzles, parts. Can they be found and replaced IF one wants to go bigger with the bigger or smaller with the nozzles for fluid flow.  Is the pump a  " on-demand " pump system ?  There is many questions to be asked when purchasing a quality sprayer.  That goes back to the saying, " YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR " >>>>

                      ~~~~~~ Two Guns ~~~~~~

 Two Guns,  Have you used the Firmco spray bar that just sprays out the ends?  I saw that they will spray out 30 feet.  I just need to spray out a wide fan pattern about 10 feet tall and 6 feet out.  Folding up a boom section until it is vertical might work, too.

With all the rain this year the woody brush along our pond levees and dams has gotten out of control.  I have a 7 foot offset flail mower that we normally use but it's been too tough on it this year.  We were thinking a selective herbicide might help us out.

    Doggman,

        I have several types of spray booms, BUT, all of them after purchasing, I install a plastic valve in the line that goes to each nozzle, that will cut the flow off what nozzle not wanted to spray. That being said, we can spray any way or any direction wanted. If I just want to spray a fence line or a small enbankment, I will turn off one side and the middle, and let just one side spray. There are different combinations that you can spray. Left only, right only, middle only, right & middle, left & middle, left & right only , etc .. etc... >>>>> 

     Another thing that can be done, is if you are just wanting to spray one side, but not to far out, either change nozzles, or , you can barely close the valve to shut down the pressure on that nozzle, resulting in a spray, but not shooting as far out.

     Fimco also makes several different size nozzles .  Some nozzles spray more GPM than others, some spray mist, some jet, some of them fan.....  Most of there nozzles are color coded.  Give them folks a call and tell them what you are lookin' for as far as the type of fluid spray you want, and they will be glad to help on the perfect nozzle. 

http://www.fimcoindustries.com/images/catalog/08/tips.pdf

    1-800-831-0027  ( FIMCO )

       Hope some of this helps >>>>>

                           ~~~~~~ Two Guns ~~~~~~

Speaking of rake...

I have a long gravel driveway that needs a lot of care and grooming. I usually use the tractor and box blade or turning grading blade. Anyone use a rake for gravel? 

Just wondering.

DigOrange:

Speaking of rake...

I have a long gravel driveway that needs a lot of care and grooming. I usually use the tractor and box blade or turning grading blade. Anyone use a rake for gravel?

I've done that in the past with decent results... as long as you have relatively fine gravel.  If/when the rake snags onto something big (let's say 4" or larger, unlike a box blade, it takes a big bounce and dumps anything collected.

 John

Did you come up with any ideas to be able to use your landscape rake behind you RTV?

a RTV wannabe, Keifer

Sort of ... I think a sound opotion is a York rake. They seem to be the OEM for others and from what I can tell they are good products. I am also looking at some drag harrows, but I don't think they will do the same as the full blown York rake for getting up the debris that accumulates under trees and such. Still working on the solution....

Welcome aboard JR. Two guns is sure right about those Fimco sprayers. They are great! I myself use one. I got the 60 G tow behind  with a 'boomless'  boom. It is not any larger than the tank trailer itself but will spray up to 30 '. It also came with a handheld wand. The 3 nozzles can be turned on or off   depending on where you want to spray. I can spray the right of way  using only the left hand  one and when a car approaches the unit can be turned off with the accompanying toggle switch. I always turn off with approaching traffic in case the wind changes.I also have had a 14' boom but it is more of a bother since we have so many gates.You will certainly want to get some extra nozzles and fittings if you go with the long boom 'cause sooner or later   you will  get it caught in something and it will of coarse be after 5 or on the weekend.  I had good luck winterizing the sprayer by putting a container of  antifreeze in  and under the suction line [inside the tank] and turning the unit on until it is sucked up and has come through the pump.I have a small 25 Gallon  Fimco that  I use in the rear of the RTV for small jobs. It is devoted to the hand held wand and Round up. Good Luck, Bordercollie