Filling fertiliser spreader with one tractor.

[Dry Rot]

Auger it up from bag to spreader?

 

[Aftermaths]

If filling at the yard on good concrete, then just get an old industrial forklift, you'll probably get a half decent one in exchange for a packet of biscuits

 

[Nowthenblue]

Liquids ? Remember the old saying, ' Pump don't Hump'

 

[Muck Spreader]

Make something like this or use a strong tree branch.

Irish farmers journal

 

[davidroberts30]

Make something like this or use a strong tree branch.

View attachment 978122
Irish farmers journal

i know the irish are renowned for making strong stuff but that corrugated tin must be something else!!!!...

 

[Bury the Trash]

Bag lifter (they are so safe to use i find) on the spreader but put an axle on the spreader to make it trailed .
.... not quite so suitable for topdressing true / with one set of wheels but.....

 

[betweenthelines]

Buy a trailed fert spreader


Put A frames on tractor and spreader so you can drop it off, fill and hook up again



Old bulk feed bin, empty big into bin, reverse the spreader under



Go organic

 

[BuskhillFarm]

I had a bag lifter and didn’t like it felt it was a bit unsafe. So when I changed my sower I bought a small forklift instead. Would never go back forklift so useful

 

[Moors Lad]

Isn`t that about 265 x 600kg bags? I think you need something that`s not too makeshift for that sort of quantity - I think I`d be looking for something like an old rough terrain forklift - can a good(ish!) one be bought for about £6k ?

 

[rob h]

You're gonna wast a hel of a lot of time messing about with that tonnage to spread.plenty of old industrial fork lifts or old rough terrain for peanuts

 

[neilo]

Anyone on here have any genius ideas to efficiently fill a spreader with only one tractor? Have one tractor with a loader and nothing else. Thought about a platform that we could sit a bag on, which seems like a good idea. Or use a bag lifter, but tractor is only 90hp and a wee bit light by the time the spreader is full and sat further back because of the lifter.
so basically just needing some ideas, using the collective of the forum may think of something I haven’t? Have about 160 tonne to spread over the whole season so not just a few bags here and there.
cheers

Being nosey, what system do you run that has only one tractor, but you spread 160t of fertiliser?

 

[betweenthelines]

I think there's a video on U tube about dairy farming in the 1950's-basically an advert for ICI fertilisers.

There's a clip in it where a Fordson Major is towing a trailer with a trailed fert spinner attached. Some poor sod is on the trailer topping up the spinner from 1 cwt sacks while the whole lot is on the move!

 

[box]

I went through this last year and found the easiest, quickest and safest way was to just buy another tractor, I'm only spreading about 70 tonnes a year and it was a no brainer for me once I thought about it.

I got the cheapest 4wd 50hp tractor with a loader that I could find, it's man enough to lift a 500kg bag into a trailed spreader, but all my fert is bulk so I just fitted a euro hitch and put my big bucket on the front, nice and easy....too bad it hasn't got power steering

You're never going to lose money on a used tractor and it's handy to have a second tractor around.

 

[glasshouse]

Anyone on here have any genius ideas to efficiently fill a spreader with only one tractor? Have one tractor with a loader and nothing else. Thought about a platform that we could sit a bag on, which seems like a good idea. Or use a bag lifter, but tractor is only 90hp and a wee bit light by the time the spreader is full and sat further back because of the lifter.
so basically just needing some ideas, using the collective of the forum may think of something I haven’t? Have about 160 tonne to spread over the whole season so not just a few bags here and there.
cheers

What spreader?

 

[Kiwi Pete]

This is a great

I made the hooks a little too "square" to easily see from in the tractor, and ended up in a loader bucket with a gas torch - got there in the end

the original "hooks" were like the handlebars on a 10-speed, but they needed modified so the tips of the spikes would go into the hook properly, and then slowly slide the bag onto one from the other, like slipping a stitch from one knitting-kneedle to the other.

Once it was right though, bloody good

personally I hate bags with a passion because I've seen so many disasters with them (like bottoms dropping out, loops tearing off etc) in the days of recycled bags, that I don't have any trust left.
I liked the "hangman" approach because it has the bag static while you're out of the cab.

 

[Kiwi Pete]

I know. Fertiliser is only on the up too. Just gets dearer and dearer. Not really interested in buying another machine for one job. The reason we went with this is because of the rising cost of fertiliser and needing to use it more effectively to try and grow more grass. As you mine the soil, you have to put it back. Usually get a truck in to spread but have been unsatisfied with the quality of the work, hence doing it ourselves.

Maybe talk to your supplier about putting a silo in, just reread the thread and they should install one if you're using that much over a season - and all the anti-gravity stuff is done with a blower truck . Back in, fill, go spreading.

The last farm I was on used 130T+ and had one, as I only used 13T and then 4T the next season Ballance wanted to take it away

no pressure at all

Interesting to see the recent price hikes, funny how that coincides neatly with a better forecast payout, eh?

 

[Kiwi Pete]

Being nosey, what system do you run that has only one tractor, but you spread 160t of fertiliser?

Sounds like the average NZ dairy farm
Cows do the work

 

[JackoTS90]

Being nosey, what system do you run that has only one tractor, but you spread 160t of fertiliser?

Dairy farm in New Zealand. Purely grass based with 280ha effective and 715 NZ fresian cows. No need for anymore than one tractor for most jobs just make do, but a second tractor would be handy but can’t really be justified. (Tight) haha . An old forklift would be great but we would rather buy a fertiliser silo that can hold 16-20 tonne at a time instead, but the only con is how well does the fert store in a silo? Wouldn’t want any Moisture in there.

 

[JackoTS90]

Sounds like the average NZ dairy farm
Cows do the work

Bang on there. Try too keep tractor work to a minimum as it’s dead money. Do all our own drilling (mostly direct). But contractors for silage and cultivation.

 

[JackoTS90]

Maybe talk to your supplier about putting a silo in, just reread the thread and they should install one if you're using that much over a season - and all the anti-gravity stuff is done with a blower truck . Back in, fill, go spreading.

The last farm I was on used 130T+ and had one, as I only used 13T and then 4T the next season Ballance wanted to take it away

no pressure at all

Interesting to see the recent price hikes, funny how that coincides neatly with a better forecast payout, eh?

Yep as long as the price hikes go with an increase in payout, that’s fine. Not the other way round when the payout drops the fert and other compliance costs keep rising. That’s when it gets tough. Two increases in all of two months for ballance, hopefully not just clicking the ticket