I just recently bought this gadget.. and I'm hoping it will speed up my spraying process.



Can anyone help me with the math involved in changing my usual 1 tsp per gallon routine to this format?

Oh, sorry! You were serious.

yup...I bought this a week ago...and I'm stumped. But I had to take algebra 1 ..three years in a row before I could get a passing grade..math is NOT my strong suit!

Where are math experts when you need them?

If I remember correctly, 1 tablespoon is the same as half a fluid ounce. There are three teaspoons in a tablespoon. So, divide half an ounce by 3 and there you have it. So 1 teaspoon equals .165 fluid ounces. Also, 1 fluid ounce equals 6 teaspoons or 2 tablespoons.

My guess is you are not going to be happy with your new spraying device. It is made for greater quantities than you are using on your orchids.

Jim

pepper23 said:Where are math experts when you need them?

In a different time zone and work only with metric.

LOL, I can usually do the math but just thinking about it gives me a headache. I cheat and use something like this. You can swap the units if necessary.
http://www.calculateme.com/Vol...

What is the lowest amount shown on the dial on your sprayer. I have a similar one and it does go down to 1 tsp. per gallon. I have to check but I think it even goes lower.

Joshua....
Alice, I'm with you... even Jims explanation, hurt my head!

Thanks Alice for pointing out the obvious...yes, by simply rotating the BIG DIAL I was able to move it to a fraction. Now there's still lots of colored water in the jug, so I'm wondering if any food was actually delivered

I often have too much left and wonder about that. I understand they have those sprayers calibrated to a certain water pressure and I know my water pressure is low so what dilution am I getting???

I hate hose end sprayers because of that! How many of us have a clue about our water pressure? To make matters worse, it changes with the time of day, as city water usage is higher during peak, daylight hours....thus lowering the pressure to an individual property.

Yes, that would be my problem with the whole system - varying water pressure would make the dilution rate vary too.

With the slow growth rate of most orchids, you're not going to know if you're under-feeding them for quite a while. On the other hand, if you give them too much you'll probably know right away . . .

OK, since 2017 have there been any significant improvements in hose end sprayers? That two gal. Chapin is getting heavier every time I need to feed the 'chids. And with summer full here it will be more lugging that thing around. I fertilize at half strength once every 1 1/2 to 2 or so weeks depending on the temps and the growing activity I see. Go to 4-5 in spring and fall and stay completely without feeding in the winter,

I have found the battery powered sprayers to be the best thing ever. Still heavy but the hose is long enough that I can put it down and spray in every direction before moving on to the next area. No lugging a heavy garden hose around. It is easy to use and easy to clean and I find the spray itself is more controllable - going from a mist to a heavy spray is more exact. This is the Ryobi but all the big companies have the same thing. https://www.homedepot.com/p/RY...

I use the same battery powered sprayer as in the link!
Recommended by Alice a few months back, I bought it and like it!

Same here, but I got the Milwaukee battery-powered sprayer because we have a lot of other Milwaukee tools and had the batteries already.

Mine is 4gal. but that's way more than I use so I only fill it half full. As Alice says, it's still heavy to lug around, but my plants are grouped nicely so I can put it down and spray everybody. It does a much better job than the pump sprayer I'd been using.