you could use a wheeled cart, but then how would you reach the handle to pump it? i bought a 15 gallon tow behind sprayer for my lawn tractor. hook it up to 12 volts and it sprays away. if i am doing the whole lawn i use the spray boom, and if i am doing spot treatments i just use the wand. if the straps are cutting into you, wrap them with a soft towel at the point where they meet your shoulders. this works wonders. also, make sure they are adjusted properly. the straps should be snug enough that the weight is on top of your shoulders without cutting in, but is balanced in feel. if it is too loose the whole thing will try to fall backwards as the weight is hanging down and back.

egghead2004, I'm surprised it took you 4 days to spray your yard?? Before I made my boom sprayer, I used a 5 gal back pack for spraying my yard. My lot is on average, 230ft X 190ft. Similar to you, I dont have a square property. My technique for even coverage was a bit simple but it worked. I used 2 rolls of luminous yellow builders string, 300ft rolls that can be wound up like a fishing pole. I have 6ft markers evenly spaced along at the top and bottom fences of my yard. I attach the string to the bottom of one marker and walk the 230ft to the opposite side of the yard and attach it to the matching post, down low. I repeat this with the second posts alongside. The string lies on the ground and clearly marks the correct area to be sprayed. My yard is not nice n square so I would keep with the parallel lines and when I got to the tapering bits I'd have to pay a bit more attention! My backpack sprayers got a twin head nozzle. I found my optimum spray pattern with the wand was 6ft moving the wand left to right comfortably, so that determined the spacing of my string marker. I would walk in between the string, dead on centre and walk at a set pace along the 230ft. When I got to the end I would move the string on to the next pair of marker posts and repeat. It took a while, but I figured out the correct walking pace, the optimum wand movement and the consistent pumping action of the hand pump. I found actually humming/whistling a marching song was the way to 'enjoy' the spraying experience and keep in sync!! Typically I would have to fill the 5gal sprayer 5-6 times to do my entire yard. I never took more than maybe 2 hours to do the lot? I am wondering is your sprayer giving you trouble? Not misting the liquid perhaps maybe or are you applying too much? Having said all above..... I no longer use the back pack. I found the weight of the 5gal pack to get tedious and no longer enjoyed it. So I made my 30 gallon tank & boom sprayer so I can use the tractor to drive up and down using the tire marks on the grass as my marker... I prefer this option, 30 mins to spray the yard in the comfort of my tractor seat... nice. Nowadays, I use the 5gal for spot spraying. To the original poster... buy a tow along sprayer, its sooooo worth the extra money...

If you are like most of us, you have a beer budget. A new machine that is truly capable of doing all the things on your wish list will cost you ten to twenty grand. Deere only makes one garden tractor series and that's the X-700's. Go to Deere.com and look at the MRSP's for the BASIC models and then add on the cost for a loader, hitch and all the implements you desire. The top Sears tractor is over seven grand and the costs to fit it out will mount equally as fast. According to you, the property is ONE ACRE TOTAL in size. Subtract the foot print for the driveways and buildings plus any planted areas and you likely have a half acre of grass to cut. To use a garden tractor in your garden effectively, you need lots of open area on all four sides of the garden so that the tractor can leave the garden area on each pass and turn around on the lawn for the next pass. Most of the experienced gardeners cross-till the soil and some take it further by finishing on the bias. I think that your needs would be better served in the garden by way of a quality walk-behind, rear-tine tiller from Honda or BCS from the used market. After all, most people only conduct a full-till once or twice per growing season and then spot-till during the season for weed control and re-seeding of fast growing crops such as radishes, onions, lettuce etc. You already own a Mantis and those are perfect for spot-tilling. I think that your other needs would be well-served by way of a quality, used garden tractor that is simple for you to maintain. A Case 444 would fit that bill. As good as Deere and Simplicity tractors are, they are also a royal PITA to work on. Do some research by visiting the site below and learning more about what a Case can do for you. Here is a link that might be useful: link

i mounted one behidn my L130. i had soem scrap angle iron laying aroudn and fabbed up a platform sticking off teh rear. sat the tank on it and strapped it down. it works like a charm. if i had to do it over the one thing i would change is i would mount it lower. on steep hills heading back up the steering gets just light enough you can't turn sharp. but otherwise it is fine.