# Ortho Hose End Sprayer Breakdown



## steensn (Jun 25, 2018)

I hear a lot of people talking about the downfalls of the Ortho hose in sprayer. Issues with it working consistently, recommendations to poke a hole on the screen, etc. @LawnCareNut just did a video saying "he thinks it was his fault for all the challenges he has had because he took the filter plain out.

Well, I took apart my ortho to figure out what is going on and why it is so darn inconsistent. First, this is a siphon tube technology that has a dial you can turn to select different orifices that SHOULD related to different rates for the average user, overview here:



As you rotate the dial, there is a gasket that connects to the water path, through the orifice, to the tube going into the bottle. The negative pressure created on the water side pulls the fluid through the orifice acting as a flow restrictor and replacing the volume in the bottle with the air:



While I was playing with cleaning out the sprayer, I tried tightening the bottle fully by twisting it just past "inline" as one would expect vs inline perfectly, verses holding the bottle with the tube hanging in the water. In all these cases, the amount of fluid from the bottle coming out varies greatly. I did not do a timed test, but while I was spraying my N-Ext products I would tighten and loosen the bottle and could visibly see a change in the mix via darker or lighter brown. I fill bottles based on 1,000 SQ/FT sections and the rest with water, mix well, and spray the 1,000 SQ/FT evenly until it runs out. So I had some variability to try out different levels. It was clear the less tight the bottle the faster the rate was.

I looked at the Ortho again to see if there are good paths for air to replace the fluid in the bottle "easily" at the same rate it is being pulled out. If the rate of fluid being pulled out is higher than the net restrictions of airflow to replace it, the siphon effect will be reduced and flow slower than the orifice can allow. Checking out the areas where external air pressure could provide the pressure to move the fluid, it seems like Ortho did not design in enough of a external airflow space to allow the outside atmospheric pressure to push the fluid through at its designed rates. I believe the small gap by the hose is mostly sealed and does not allow much external air in:



That means you will get different rates if the orifice selected allows for flow higher than the restricted flow in. I believe that is why I get so much varying rates depending on how much I tighten the bottle. The most consistent results I get are when I only "mostly" screw the bottle on, not allowing the seal to contact. The risk is that you have to be careful or fluid will leak, not tipping the sprayer too much in any direction or any crazy fast movements. Benefit, you get more consistent flow rates and the orifice on the dial is in control as a flow restrictor.

I'll have to see if I can get it apart more without breaking it to confirm, but I do believe this is the main cause more most people's inconsistencies in rates. It does not seem like a device you can really dial in and rely on. By design, different water rates will product different delta pressures and therefore different rates. So if someone is taking a shower when you are using it you'll get even more variability. This is not the same as a can ro backpack sprayer with fixed orifices and consistent pressure supplies.


----------



## TommyTester (Jul 3, 2018)

Clearly if fluid is going to be drawn up from the bottle, an easy path for air to enter to replace the fluid needs to be provided - usually a pin-hole. This pin-hole would be positioned to minimize leaking. Perhaps there is a pin-hole in the lid that is clogged. Is there one in the circled area close to the dotted arrow in your last photo?


----------



## steensn (Jun 25, 2018)

To find out, I have to take it apart further. Right now I cannot see far enough in and the other side is covered by the dial. But based on how I install the bottle, it flows much different, hinting that whatever they did was not sufficient. I can't imagine it is clogged, it is barely a month old and I had the same problem from day one.


----------



## iFisch3224 (Jun 11, 2018)

Interesting. I usually have a small issue with initial priming, getting the product out, but once I do, I find it fairly consistent. Also, depending on which products I use, I also find different results. Such as Air8 and Microgreen vs RGS vs RGS and Humic.

The "slimier" the consistency, the harder it is to get that initial "priming" going.


----------



## LawnCareNut (May 31, 2018)

This was like an episode of "What's Inside" lol
I have been messing with a sprayer that works on a venturi (I think that's how you spell it) and it works much much better but you are stuck with whatever rate it throws based on the size of the venturi. (I'm not technical on this but those who are could probably tell you the details of why or why not)


----------

