Not sure whether to invest in a slurry tanker for your farm? They are efficient, make good financial sense, are a great asset and they produce a lot of grass for your farm.
We sell both slurry tankers and irrigators, but we do love our slurry tankers. Because we sell both, we’ve heard all the questions that farmers have wanted to ask over the years, so hopefully, you’ll find the answers to your questions here.
Isn’t it more time-consuming?
There is a perception amongst some farmers that a slurry tanker is a slow way to spread effluent and that couldn’t be further from the truth. Slurry tankers are incredibly efficient systems. It takes three minutes to load 12,000 litres of effluent into a tanker and it takes three minutes to spread the contents of that tank. Let’s say you have ten minutes travelling time to and from the paddock, which means you could spread up to 80,000 litres in an hour.
An electric system might do 20,000 litres an hour and that first hour is great because it switches itself on but now you have to set it up for another run and how much time does that take to drag the irrigator and hoses into place; an hour, an hour and a half? To do three runs you have to do three set-ups, you end up spending the whole day moving stuff around and you’ve only got 60,000 litres on your paddock, while if you are using a tanker, there is no setup, there is no mess, you control everything from the cab of your tractor. You just drive up to your pond, top-up and you’re off.
Why do I need a tanker if I’m just spreading effluent around the cow shed?
The easy answer to that is you probably don’t, but you could be missing a trick. It’s quite common for people to spread effluent close to the cowshed, so they only cover 15-20% of the farm. Whether that is due to pump capacity, power availability or the length of their irrigation mainline, it means that over 80% of their farm is missing out from this valuable resource your cows are producing every day.
Effluent is rich in nutrients and with a slurry tanker you can reach every corner of your farm. This can save you thousands in fertiliser costs. You can also target the fields you have just grazed. Following your herd rotation will give the grass and soil the maximum time to reap the benefits of early fertilisation. This works out particularly well in Spring, a generally wetter time of year, when you have to move your cows more often. With an electric system, it is hard to create time to move the irrigators but with a slurry tanker it is easy to make it part of your daily routine and follow the cows.
Will a tanker damage my tracks?
All of our tankers have large floatation tyres that are braked and have tandem axles. The weight is spread evenly over the surface of the track, so there is minimal compaction. The tandem axles also have a steering rear axle that prevents scuffing; there is no skidding or dragging of the wheels. This makes the tankers highly manoeuvrable to help you navigate your farm, allowing you to access all those irregular-shaped paddocks that an irrigator can’t get to. The tankers are also fitted with the world-leading ADR suspension system. This is not only more comfortable for the driver, it means the trailer is not bouncing over potholes. Large baffles within the tank, prevent the contents sloshing around and surging, so the weight is more consistent, making them very easy to tow.
An irrigator has a 40m spread, why is a tanker better?
There are a couple of answers to that. Firstly, accuracy; you know exactly where you are spreading with a tanker. The tanker has a 12m spread, 4-5 metres either side of the tractor. That increases to 17m with a double rainwave spreader. To achieve a 40m spread, an irrigator creates micro dropplets. This mist is very difficult to control, it is thrown high in the air and is subject to wind drift and creates more odour. The tanker allows you to get to every part of your farm, closer to boundaries and waterways.
Wherever your cows go, the tanker can follow, creating grass for them to eat. The second advantage is the result of droplet size. The smaller particles that an irrigator creates are not only subject to more wind drift but also alight onto the foliage, which can result in foliage burn. The Nevada spreader creates heavier droplets that penetrate to the soil. This creates less odour, but more importantly, is better for soil health. The fert reaches the grass root zone and creates stronger, healthier plants.
Isn’t an automated system better?
An automated system is literally a sunk cost, you are burying your capital expenditure. You can’t re-sell it and have to live with where it is and what it can do. If you buy a neighbouring farm you're going to need more investment. A slurry tanker is not a fixed investment, it has a high resale value, if you have more land to service it is much easier to buy a bigger tanker. You can hire it out or go halfsies with your neighbour.
Maintenance is also much lower on a tanker. For a start, it is galvanised, and built to last. The pumps in a tanker work in a vacuum and are driven by compressed air, whereas the pumps in an irrigation system are in contact with the effluent, which is abrasive and very tough on machinery. Yes, an automated system works at a flick of a switch, but you have to take into account the time you need to set it up. Moving those irrigators into position is not only a lot messier, it also takes much more time.
The better choice
For us, the arguments are quite clear. A slurry tanker is a great investment. It allows you to get more fert onto your paddocks, saving you thousands on artificial fertiliser. It is very efficient and simple to operate, and at the end of the day, it will produce a lot more grass. And having too much grass is a headache we’d all like to have.