Umbilical slurry systems can be a very effective and efficient effluent spreading solution, but they’re not for everyone. Effluent equipment and systems are a long term investment, so to help you decide if a umbilical slurry or drag hose system will suit your operations, consider these things:
Storage Size
Umblical slurry systems are an efficient way to spread for farms with effluent storage capacity over 500,000 litres. There’s a bit of setup involved with an umbilical system, so it’s often not worth the setup time for smaller storage situations.
Operational Requirements
Umbilical slurry systems suit operations where you want to get in and get the job done all in one go.
You’ll need to devote a whole day to the job, and to maximise efficiencies, it’s realistically a 2-person operation.
For the person who gets to do the spreading, they’ll need to be a reasonably skilled operator, and someone that enjoys driving a tractor…after all, they’ll be doing it all day!
The system will require the use of multiple tractors, meaning the tractors will be tied to the job for the day. Depending on the setup, tractors will be required for reeling and spreading, and you may also require them for pond stirring and pumping.
Usage
Aside from being able to spread large volumes of effluent in one go, umbilical slurry systems are an excellent choice for farms with slopes, odd-shaped paddocks, or areas you wouldn’t be able to get to with other spreading methods. With an umbilical system, you can take it anywhere you can drive a tractor while maintaining good control over your spread.
Umbilical slurry systems can be ideal for cropping, allowing large volumes of effluent to be evenly applied over a short amount of time prior to cultivation.
If you have softer soils, draghose systems with lightweight applicators can be a good solution.
Also, for farmers and contractors working over multiple farms an umbilical slurry system can be a real winner because the equipment can be easily shared between farms.
Finally, if you’re a farmer or contractor that sees value in effluent nutrients, you won’t be disappointed with a umbilical system. They make great use of the resource, and you’ll be getting good value from your nutrients.