# Does the Ryobi backpack sprayer really spray at 60psi?



## fronty (Nov 27, 2019)

I'm trying to select the right teejet nozzle. I thought most backpack sprayers spray around 40 psi. Is anyone familiar with the Ryobi sprayer.


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## Christech11 (Mar 26, 2019)

I have the 5 gallon Ryobi and can't tell you about the psi but I find myself using the red tee jet nozzles to put down most herbacides.


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## corneliani (Apr 2, 2019)

I placed a pressure tester on the wand output and my reading came in at approx 75psi. The stated 60+ psi (with a tip on) makes sense as the orifice will reduce the pressure in the tank some, depending on the size.

EDIT: BTW the black plastic fan tip that came with it was very very similar in output to the TeeJet 8004-SS that I picked up from my local SiteOne. I measured them both at approx 0.35 gal/min. I did not test out the spray patterns/widths so that may vary but if you're looking into a different nozzle than the one that came with it consider the AI or TurboJet style ones that can be used for more soil-type applications. The red fan-tip is a bit misty with the PSI this thing pushes, imo.

LAST EDIT: I just noticed you're in Orlando... which means you can drive down to Sprayer Depot and pick up whatever your heart desires! :thumbup:


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## DuncanMcDonuts (May 5, 2019)

It does output at 60 psi. There's a noticeable recoil. I tried the red TeeJet 04 at first, but I felt like it sprayed too fast for my pace. The blue 03 might be better for me.


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## fronty (Nov 27, 2019)

Thanks for all the help.

I didn't know Sprayer Depot was located here. I was going to order from them online. I'll just pickup what I need.


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## kk07 (Sep 2, 2020)

Hi,
I just bought the same backpack sprayer from Home Depot last week. Upon testing, I am not getting the advertised 60 psi. Here is what I did to test.

I don't have pressure gauge but I do have Chapin 29 psi constant flow (CF) valve that I recently bought. I also have TeeJet AIXR11005 (maroon color). Per TeeJet fact sheet, that tip is supposed to output 0.61 GPM @60 psi. That means for 1 gallon, it will take 1/0.61 = 1.64 mins.

Test #1
When I did the bucket test with that tip on the sprayer (no CF valve attached), it took 2.10 mins (I tested 3 times, each time filling up the whole 1 gal milk jar, I get nearly the same 2.10 mins).

Test #2
Then I attached on the CF valve and ran the same experiment again using the same tip. It took 2.18 mins (3 times average).

Observation
The time it took without CF valve and with CF valve is very close.

Conclusion
That means the backpack sprayer is only giving me a little over 30 psi, not 60. Just trying to see if any of you is really getting 60 psi.

Additional information that I found
On the QAs page of the product on HD, they said the output GPM of this sprayer is 0.24-0.4 GPM. They don't specify whether those numbers are with or without nozzles. 
But I tested without any nozzle attached. It took 1.21 mins for 1 gal; so gpm is = 1/1.21 = 0.82. It is double than what they say. I called tech support, picked up by a lady and she blatantly said they have no information on GPM and then I got transferred to a voicemail. Not a very good customer experience there.

Question/Help that I need from you
- If you could, could you do a bucket test (wo any nozzle attached) to see how much GPM you are getting? I know it is not PSI but I want to compare yours with mine.
- I am thinking of attaching a pressure gauge to the wand. Did anyone of you try to do that with this sprayer and get 60 psi?

Thank you!


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## corneliani (Apr 2, 2019)

When I did the bucket test on my old sprayer it gave me 0.375 gpm. The static pressure measured with a gauge gave me psi readings of 70+

The advantage to using your AIXR tip on this sprayer is that it reduces the misting (and hence, drift) that the high psi pump creates by creating larger droplets, giving you better control.


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## mwemaxxowner (May 30, 2020)

Either the pressure, or the flow is not as high as advertised. When I test a given teejet nozzle, I do not get the listed flow for 60 psi according to the charts.

That said, I still love mine and after calibrating it it works well for me. I put Prodiamine on about .7 acres with it.

https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=23376


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## kk07 (Sep 2, 2020)

mwemaxxowner said:


> Either the pressure, or the flow is not as high as advertised. When I test a given teejet nozzle, I do not get the listed flow for 60 psi according to the charts.
> 
> That said, I still love mine and after calibrating it it works well for me. I put Prodiamine on about .7 acres with it.
> 
> https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=23376


Thanks for the link to your post. Good information there about the sprayer and different teejet nozzles you used. You mentioned you have AIXR red tip. Were you able to do the bucket test with that and what gpm you got?

I also have AIXR tip but one level higher (maroon color: AIXR11005). It took 2.1 min for 1 gal, so the GPM is 1/2.1 = 0.476 gpm. But TeeJet specs says for this tip @60 psi, the GPM is 0.61. @40 psi, the GPM is 0.5. Does that mean, the backpack sprayer is giving me roughly 40 psi instead of the advertised 60 psi?

Like you, I'd like to buy the correct tip based on the PSI but if the backpack is not honoring that 60 psi, it's hard to find the right tip and l will need to do many trials and errors to calibrate.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

kk07 said:


> ...if the backpack is not honoring that 60 psi...


It is more likely you're just not testing it under the same conditions they did.

It is common for pump manufacturers to rate the max pressure of a pump at minimum flow and the max flow of a pump at open flow (no pressure). Every pump is going to have a pump curve where operating pressure decreases as flow rate increases. Where you land on the pump curve depends entirely on your sprayer setup, including your nozzle orifice size.

For example, here is a pump curve for an Everflo EF1000 1 gpm pump. Note that max pressure is at minimum flow and max flow is at minimum pressure. During operation the system would reach equilibrium at some point along that blue curve, depending on your nozzle selection and other factors.


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## mwemaxxowner (May 30, 2020)

I don't think I bucket tested the aixr. If I did I don't remember the results. I preferred the turbo nozzle so I focused on that. I measured .25 gpm with it.

I'd select nozzles based on published specs, but at the end of the day you'll have to calibrate it with water and that's what will really matter. As long as you get a good spray pattern and even coverage.

I tried calibrating with formulas and math based on my measured flow rate, walking speed, and width of pass measured on a test strip. That turned out to be woefully inaccurate.

So, I marked off 1000 square feet, put 4 gallons in the backpack, and made a few calibration runs on it with water in the tank. Practicing even pacing, even spacing, and keeping my height above the ground consistent. I suspect there is no other way to get it spot on.

If you got .476gpm out of it consider yourself lucky. It's only rated at 60psi and 0.4 gpm. You did better than published specs.


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## kk07 (Sep 2, 2020)

Thanks guys for the replies and insights.

@Ware , thanks for the graph. It makes sense and I wish Ryobi published how they get this 60 psi that they stated in the manual. Because I can't reproduce it. Intuitively, I should be able to reproduce it with the OEM set up (their own wand and one of the nozzles they provide such as the fixed red fan tip) or without any nozzle attached. I am not trying to get it perfectly 60 psi but like within +/- 5 psi or so. Either way, I can't get it nearly close to 60 psi. It is very misleading to say the least by Ryobi.

@mwemaxxowner Thanks for the tips. Yes, I did my water calibration tests and I still have to get better at it. I either have to walk really slow to cover 1000 sqft in one pass or walk very fast to cover it in two passes (North-South and East-West walks). I am still trying to get it better. I want to leave almost next to nothing in the tank after I am done spraying but that's not happening at the moment.


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## mwemaxxowner (May 30, 2020)

What do you mean you have to walk slow to cover it in one pass, or you have to walk fast to cover it in two?

*Edit- I think I see. You're trying to work it all out to where you are calibrated to use exactly 4 gal on whatever size plot you need to spray. I think that might be making this more complicated for you than it has to be. * If you're having trouble making this happen on one pass because you have to walk too quickly, try a smaller nozzle, one that will flow fewer gpm at 60 psi.

You should be able to walk whatever pace is comfortable for you for one pass if that is your wish, and see how much water you use. After you test spray the plot, determine how much water you use per 1000 ft, then you mix 1000 ft² worth of herbicide into that much carrier. Be it half a gallon, or a gallon and a half.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, or perhaps I don't understand exactly what you're saying.

I think you're expecting too many gpm out of it. The fact that you got 0.475 gpm out of it is already an accomplishment for it. The flow rate for the nozzles on the chart will be something like 0.5 gpm at 60 psi. That's IF your sprayer is capable of 0.5 gpm. This thing is rated for a max of 0.4 gpm at 60 psi. It simply can't give you more regardless of the rating on the nozzle. I think you may need a smaller nozzle.

I would imagine by having a nozzle too large, that requires more gpm than it can deliver at 60psi, you're going to have a pressure drop AND You're going to be disappointed with flow as well. Ryobi rates it at 60 psi and 0.4 gpm max, so expecting 60/0.6 just isn't going to happen.


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## Huff (Oct 22, 2018)

kk07 said:


> Thanks guys for the replies and insights.
> 
> @mwemaxxowner Thanks for the tips. Yes, I did my water calibration tests and I still have to get better at it. I either have to walk really slow to cover 1000 sqft in one pass or walk very fast to cover it in two passes (North-South and East-West walks). I am still trying to get it better. I want to leave almost next to nothing in the tank after I am done spraying but that's not happening at the moment.


I had the same problem getting a good pace. Started using a metronome app to train myself to get the right pace. I settled on 80 beats (steps) per minute to get good coverage with my spray rig. You can adjust your pace up or down according to your own circumstances.


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## kk07 (Sep 2, 2020)

> think you're expecting too many gpm out of it. The fact that you got 0.475 gpm out of it is already an accomplishment for it. The flow rate for the nozzles on the chart will be something like 0.5 gpm at 60 psi. That's IF your sprayer is capable of 0.5 gpm. This thing is rated for a max of 0.4 gpm at 60 psi. It simply can't give you more regardless of the rating on the nozzle. I think you may need a smaller nozzle.


For the AIXR tip (maroon color: AIXR11005) that I tested with this sprayer, its TeeJet spec sheet says:

@60 psi, the GPM is 0.61.

So my expectation was that given that this sprayer PSI is 60, if I test with this nozzle, I should see the GPM is 0.61 (or close to it).

Instead, I am getting 0.476 gpm with this nozzle. So my hypothesis is that this sprayer is not really giving me 60 psi, but much lower.

But my final aim is to be able to spray 1 gal/1000 sqft. And I am trying to find the correct walking pace to achieve that, but I need more practice because if I am doing just one round (either going North-South or East-West), I have some left over in my tank. But that leftover is not enough for me to do another round. So I tried to walk faster so that I can do two complete rounds, but I am falling short a bit there as well.

However, I *think* I see your point to just walk whatever pace I'd like and then see how many gallons I used for the area I want to cover. Then put in herbicide at 1000 sqft rate. So for example, I have 3000 sqft area. I used 1.5 gallons to cover that area (at the walking pace that I am comfortable). Say the herbicide says 0.2 oz per 1k sqft. So I should put 0.2*3 = 0.6 oz into the backpack sprayer with 1.5 gallons of water. Correct?

But sometimes, I see the herbicide label uses per gallon rate, that is, it says use 0.2 oz/1 gallon of water (instead of 0.2 oz/1000 sqft). In that case, I should use 0.2+0.1 = 0.3 oz for 1.5 gallons of water?

TIA!


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## mwemaxxowner (May 30, 2020)

I still don't think you completely understand.

If you expect the sprayer to give you rated specs for a given nozzle, then you MUST select a nozzle that falls within the capabilities for pressure AND for flow of the sprayer. In this case 60/0.4 as a maximum limit. Select a nozzle rated there or less, or it won't perform as advertised.

It CAN'T give you 60 psi and 0.6 gpm. The pump can't flow 0.6 gpm. Period, regardless of the nozzle chosen. The only way you can know what your pressure is is to test it with a gauge. It can be low on either pressure OR flow and not give you full rated specs.

You can't expect 0.6 gpm out of a nozzle that can't do it.

I'm working on designing an irrigation system right now. My water source can only supply 7 gpm. So I can't somehow demand 10 gpm from it no matter what's on the other end of the pipes. Same concept.

If you're going to expect rated performance from a nozzle, you have to pair it with a pump capable of doing so. They have a rating for psi and for flow. It can't give you infinite flow at a given psi just because it's capable of producing that much pressure.

In this instance the pump is not underperforming. You can't expect 0.6 gpm from a pump rated for a maximum of 0.4 gpm.

Your last two paragraphs are what I was explaining for how to calibrate your sprayer. There is a LOT of good information here about calibrating a sprayer properly.

When I sprayed mine, if I had any left over, I would spray that out in an inconsequential area where I didn't mind if I stunt the growth of anything.


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## mwemaxxowner (May 30, 2020)

When I calibrated my sprayer, I marked off 1000 square feet. I walked over that 2 or 3 times spraying as consistently as possible with the nozzle I decided to use. Trying to keep my pace even, heigh above the ground even, and overlap consistent.

I found that I was able to pretty consistently use 0.8 gallons with one pass each time.

Say I'm using an herbicide that calls for 1 oz to treat 1000 square feet.

I was spraying 0.8 acres so I would just mix mine a full tank at a time. 4/0.8 gave me enough to treat a full 5000 square feet each tank. So I would mix 5oz of this hypothetical herbicide to 4 gallons and spray.

If I continue walking and spraying in a manner consistent to when I calibrated, each tank should treat 5000 square feet for me.

Some odd shaped areas that were hard to measure and get an accurate square footage required me to just trust my pace and overlap to apply the correct amount with each pass.

Doing it this way the flow of your nozzle doesn't matter that much. As long as you know how much carrier you use each 1000 square feet. You mix accordingly.

It's not as daunting as it seems once you get to it. Amd I suspect we'll get better with each application.


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