Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Property Projects & Construction Boom Boat Rev2

I decided to upgrade my tin boat, an all welded Grizzly Tracker 1448, and my DIY spray boom I periodically use. Over the last 3 years, blue green algae hasn't given me any option to kill nuisance plants because I needed them to absorb all the nutrients in the pond. We're getting close to fall, and unless we get some rain, there will not be a third hay cut, and I still won't be able to spray do to the dropping water level.

Short story long. Welded tin boat built like a tank, an 8' spray boom that runs on a 1" venturi system , and a very loud 2 cycle gas powered 1" clean water pump. An 11 acre shallow pond that usually has around 20% of plants and hard cover, but presently has about 40% to 50% plant coverage. It's been setting under our tractor shed for the last few years and it does need some help.

It'll be redone in my spare time.

This is the victim. First thing is strip all the electronics, remove everything not nailed down, and then give it a mani-pedi.


This was the venturi system.


This was the 3 drop 8" boom.


2 batteries an a Minnkota charger was in the rear of the boat.

I'm not 100% certain, but I think we may have the same exact boat. You are 100% right on the built like a tank!

Looks like the project is going well. I hope your nuisance vegetation is quaking down to its roots fearing the time when you deploy your fully-operational Deathstar boom boat.

The trolling motor on the boat was wire driven for pontoons. I thought having the 12 volt fly by wire cable would let me work the sprayer and drive from the back of the boat at the same time. Poor choice on my part. I've used toe and heel trolling motors for almost 50 years, and the side to side pedal just didn't work for me. I added a more beefy 24 volt Minn Kota, got it wired up, and am now waiting for 5/16" ring connectors for the batteries and the in-line breaker.

After this, I'll make a tray for the 2 batteries.

Looking good all cleaned up! I've been thinking about the trolling motor too on our rig. Currently has a 12v with pedal up front but wondering if a rear mounted might be easier for out little pond.

My son found a video of an engineer that put a gear assembly in the handlebar riser of a bike, such that the bike steered the exact opposite of the way you turned the handlebars. Adults were NOT capable of riding that bike! Their muscle memory was too entrenched and they steered out of balance every time. (I found that very enlightening as regards old dogs like me and new tricks.)

My real point: I have never used any of the trolling motors where you can program a path based on GPS waypoints. However, if you are going to replace a trolling motor in the future, might it be worth the additional cost if that would give you a self-driving boat while your worked in the back?

IIRC, Bruce Condello had one of those tracking trolling motors years ago. Sunil would remember if it did. I was there the night that there was 16 people on a 12' pontoon, and most were sitting on slippery aluminum lawn chairs no less. My spidey senses said to get my keys, wallet, and phone, over dry land because it's a long walk from Lincoln NE to Hooterville TX.

All the 24 volt wiring is done, and nothing started smoking.

I finished the battery tray. I used scraps from the shop, and only bought a couple HF $2 tread stickems for softening the ride.


24 volt set up. I haven't decided how to handle the breaker and the NOCO charger yet, but I will at some point. If you look at the bottom, I added horse stall mats to the rear compartment and the floor of the boat. It's thick, cheap, and helps the boat be quiet if something drops.

New spray boom bar next.

Take the Pixley bypass.

I finally got the boom bar done, and this is what I got. I needed it higher and lighter, so I just cut out 3X3 square tubing and hung it over the transom. It probably weighs a third of the old one.

Probably getting the 1" pump tomorrow, and then fitting the venturi for the chemicals is next.

These are the detachable drops.


I got the back like I wanted it, and it shows the bar hanging over the transom. I treated it with spray bed liner, and it's better than I thought it would be.

Nice and clean! Very nice work there.

New boat? The paint looks better than I remember it. LOL

I use BottomLine weighted air tubing with a lead weight on the bottom end for subsurface injection. For ease of storage I use brass quick disconnect 1/2" garden hose ends on the boom and on the drops..

Yep, I stayed on dry land that night as well.

Same boat, just cleaned up a smidge. I use bigger hoses, 1" and three 3/4", to make sure there's no backup that may affect the venturi's flow.

I just use these slip on pieces of pipe. They fit the hose perfectly, and I keep them in the grey box if needed. Clamps or zip ties hold them on.

Better than the lead sinker idea!

Not sure what chemistries you're planning to utilize through your subsurface injection system, but keep in mind that on-board dilution of the product is rarely necessary or beneficial - but will certainly complicate the calibration process.
Most subsurface products are labeled for and applied at rates designated as "x-amount of product per acre-foot". Calibrating the application-rate for undiluted product is challenging enough, but diluting the product aboard the boat will further complicate the calibration process - and the additional onboard water-diluent offers no technical advantage other than allowing (or requiring) more time to distribute the product that it contains.
Instead of an onboard gas pump coupled to a mixing-tank, maybe consider using a low-volume12v pump (ideally with variable-speed controls) to "meter" undiluted product through notably smaller tubing (i.e. 1/4" ID vinyl), which better maintains subsurface depths due to less resistance as it slices through water. This approach greatly reduces onboard equipment-bulk, weight and complexities - and somewhat simplifies the already challenging task of calibration - while the end-result yields the same ppm or ppb concentration within the treated water-column. This tactic even improves chemical handling-safety since there's no need to transfer the concentrated product from its original container.
I have photos of such a system – but not sure how to link them; plus they might be deemed as advertisements - so, let me know if you want to view a pic through some other means.

Great clean up job, looking forward to seeing how it works out.

I've farmed for over 20 years and very comfortable with spraying on land but it seems like a whole different ball game when to do that in the water.

Keep us posted.

Kelly, for me the easiest way is to use an on-line hosting site like imgur then just copy/paste the UBB link to the picture in your post. Post 'em, I don't think it would be considered advertising.

Roger that... Yes, the image-post process was easy enough - but all of my public pics are "tagged" in some manner or another, to preserve ownership interests.
Here's a photo of what I call my "meter-box", which is useful in place of an onboard mix-tank & gas-engine pump for conducting subsurface injections.
Depending on the treatment, the meter-box might pull from a bulk-tank of "concentrate" (undiluted product) - or it can pull product directly from the product's original jugs. Onboard water-diluent is avoided entirely or used only sparingly to thin the product's viscosity. The meter-box's discharge flow-rate can be easily adjusted for calibration purposes - and modified as water-depths vary.
I'll link a video of the meter-box in operation further below - in which the concentrate flows through "injection-pipes" rather than weighted-hoses; the latter being prone to snagging on vegetation or "skiing" up to the surface at higher boat-speeds.
My main point with all of this is that onboard dilution of product destined for subsurface-injection isn't necessary - and can actually complicate the calibration-process (with it being easier to calibrate a treatment using virgin product rather than a diluted solution).

[video:youtube][/video]

Kelly, thanks for the information. If I was licensed and traveled, I'd really like something like your Chemical-Injection System. I do only treat my pond and am very comfortable with my venturi rig and it's functionality. I did get a new pump, but it's replacing a pump that fills my fish hauling tanks, and occasionally (3 years since it's been used) is used for chemicals. I'm basically giving my rig a mani-pedi, and I'm out one can of spray on bed liner, and $11.36 on stainless steel nuts and bolts.

And your rig looks great. I like the attention to detail!
No doubt it will serve your needs well.

Kelly, I love the airboat video. That metering box is fantastic. I wish I could figure out stuff like that but electronics and my just don't get along. Give me something to fab and I am golden though.

I'm in that airboat video wearing the white shirt. My drone was set on "follow-me" mode until I could get seated and take over the controller to orbit the airboat.
The meter-box's electonics are rather simple. The 12v pump is basically powered through a potentiometer. The wire-less remote is very handy, enabling on/off control of the system from the pilot's seat.
Sorry, FireIsHot!! I truly didn't mean to pirate your post. Your workmanship with boat application-equipment captured my attention. A very clean setup!

Kelly,

We are glad to have you back on Pond Boss!

"Pirating" a post (with valuable though somewhat tangential information) is what we do best here.

My particular pond questions are almost never exactly the same as the original poster's question. Reading ALL of the commentary frequently gives me 2-3 more ideas to try to skin my particular cat.

Don't sweat it. Glad you're back and I let most things bounce off my back anyway. Once I fired and rehired esshup in about 4 minutes. My wife walked up and was very confused. When things to get boring to me, I'll post most anything. Whether it's welding up a 250 gallon BBQ smoker, our garden, my boom boat, or my most handsome goats, I'll post it it.

LOL It's funny how fast some people realize how indispensable us Yankees are!

Nice job guys and good info. Not sure about the Yankees - I thought they lost the World Series!

Ha! The jokes on you. You lost 79 cents while you were fired.

HA!!

It's done. No caustic chemicals going thought the aluminum pump housing, and very easy to disassemble and stow. I cut out a 3/4" slit of a PVC tube so that the hose remains rigid, and it lets me see the chemical flow easier.

I'm not sure what's next.

Have you tested it yet?

Kelly, no, not yet. I've been told that I'm late on planting our potato and onion plants. My boss wins.

LOL!! Bosses don't always share the same priorities, huh!
I only ask since I've attempted similar venturi-induction systems in the past - with lackluster success.
Anything coupled to the terminal end of the ribbed-hose (downstream of the black venturi/inductor device) will likely create a restriction (i.e. back-pressure), potentially compromising the venturi's function - and often resulting in pumped-water diverting backwards through the chemical-induction hose.
A venturi's induction-vacuum requires lower downstream pressure relative to the upstream source. The low-pressure differential on the downstream side of the venturi inductor is what produces the vacuum on the tangent chemical-hose.
I hope your setup works, but I'm concerned that might not - assuming you're discharging into a transom-mounted hose-arrangement - as opposed to no terminal hose-attachments.

Kelly, be patient with me. I may have to break my thoughts over a couple of posts, but I will add them all to this post.

As I said, I don't take this boat off the property, and living in a rural area, and I don't mind helping neighbors with pond issues. For those smaller cow tanks, I use the regular 25 gallon tank with a 12 volt pump. I also have a 60' heavy black chem hose with an adjustable stainless steel gun. The hose and the gun weren't cheap, but they've lasted years with good care. I've also stocked close to 400 adult LMB to my neighbors as well.


Kelly, I appreciate the issues you brought up, and yes, I sat down and tried to correct the issues you mentioned as well as I could with the first round. I haven't tested this run yet, but I'll test it using a 50 gallon tank for clean water. That would test for clean water leaks. Using this siphon, there's only one hose fitting in the boat that could leak chemicals. The chemicals coming out of the tank is on a draft, and no pressure is on it. That worked well on the old rig, and it stayed clean as well.

The 2 clear ribbed hoses you see are ribbed on the outside. The inside is smooth, and they weren't cheap either, so I kept them for this round.

Over the years I ran over the first kit, there was only one "burp", or restriction. What was an initial issue was the sometimes high viscosity of the chemicals I was adding to the tank. For some reason, 3 gallons of diquat with 2 gallons of Captain wouldn't always flow evenly when I turned down the venturi control. They didn't seem to be thick, but my solution was to fill the rest of the tank with water, and that worked well. The added water let me open the control up, and all went well. The venturi connection was exactly 11 inches under the tank, and mother nature also added help with the flow. Landscapers use the same venturi system I use with the liquid fertilizer on the ground, not elevated. Much like siphoning gas out of a car to a gas can on the ground, the gas ran up out of the tank, and then down out of the gas neck to the ground. That's exactly how this works. I also add a bilge pump to the tank to keep the water and the chems mixed evenly. That was my initial thought, and I wound up keeping the chemicals to no more than 5 gallons per run.

OK, break time.

I truly hope your setup works as intended. I'm very interested in your test-trial results.
The concept is ideal; with no on-board mix-tank and what is effectively a closed-system that minimizes potential applicator-exposure. A true win-win in for both efficiency and safety.
My efforts with a similar system didn't pan out as I hoped. Adding any type of downstream restriction; such as a fire-hose nozzle or connecting to smaller dropper-hoses, caused the pressure to equalize throughout the system's piping - which disabled the venturi-inductor's "draw" from the concentrate-reservoir.
Should your venturi fail to draw fluid from the concentrate-reservoir (while the downstream ribbed-hose is coupled to the transom-mounted dropper-hose boom), maybe try disconnecting the ribbed-hose from the boom's tee-feed - since that would be the point of a potential restriction - and then see if induction from the concentrate-reservoir is achieved.
Yes, those ribbed suction-hoses are indeed pricey (often $4-$6/ft). They're typically used where the fluids within are under a vacuum rather than pressure. The integrated ribs prevent the hose's collapse under a vacuum.

I agree with Kelly, I will be interested in the test results. Very clean looking work there Dreamboat Annie!