Under EU legislation, all sprayers with a boom of 3m or greater must be tested. This legislation comes into effect from 26 November this year and all sprayers must pass to be used legally.
We visited Eddie Lynch of Suir Sprayers in Co Waterford to look at the process involved in the test and what elements are examined.
Eddie carries out the sprayer test himself and says the overall objective is to ensure that the machine is working accurately and to assess its environmental impact.
He says the test applies to everyone from “smaller farmers to large-scale tillage farmers – it’s across the board and everything on the sprayer has to work”.
Components examined in the test include the PTO shaft, pump, nozzles, tank lids and the tank itself.
The costs involved in the sprayer test vary depending on the size of the boom, according to Eddie. “Costs can range from €160 for a 12m test to €240 for a 24m test”.