I have the Rocket sprayer and like it very much.

Thanks for the recommendation. Where did you buy yours? I googled it and see it comes with 15' of hose--do you think it would be difficult to replace the hose with something a lot longer?
Thanks!

I am sure everyone has their own opinion, but as far as I am concerned Spotshot is the one to buy and have.

Haven't heard of Filco. I'll need to look that one up. Roseman, could you please tell me more about why you feel Spotshot is best? I'm trying to understand more about the features that make a sprayer great. Thanks!

The Rocket Sprayer will put out 10 gal. of spray on one charge...probably adequate for everyone here. It is also powerful enough for trees up to 10 feet and the coverage is very good. In three years I've never had any clogging problems or leaking or even problems with the control sticking. In short, no problems and I'm completely satisfied with it so far but I've not had to change the battery so what that involves I don't know. I would mention that I've had problems with every other previous sprayer including plastic tanks cracking which I think is from being left out in the sun. Clean the sprayer after each using and don't leave it out.

I had problems with Rocket sprayers in the past. First one died after 3 months of use (once in 2 weeks spraying). I was following all the directions, no sprayer abuse of any kind :)I complained to manufacturer and got another one. The second sprayer died after two uses. No more Rocket Sprayers for me.
Olga

My experience with the Rocket was along the lines that Olga stated. When working, it was a great sprayer and the people who sold it were nice to deal with. It just was not reliable for me.

If you are handy or know someone who is, you can construct your own sprayer. The Fimco 10 gallon sprayer(designed to mount on a ATV) was on sale for $69 at Fleet Farm this spring. You can mount the sprayer in a garden cart with a small battery and you are in business at a considerable saving of money.

The disadvantage is that the garden cart takes up more storage floor space than the ones that look like they are mounted on a hand truck.

Regards,

Charles

Olga, what sprayer do you use now? Charles, I am afraid I am not that handy and another major issue for me is needing to get the sprayer up a flight of stairs to spray the containers on my deck. I could manage this with a trolley type sprayer, but not anything bigger.

No battery sprayer. Most of my roses are no spray now. Few divas I decided to keep get sprayed by Gilmour hose end sprayer. It is quite precise.
Olga

Here is a link that might be useful: Gilmoure sprayer

The transformer plug failed on my Rocket so I replaced it. For those who had Rockets that failed, what exactly do you mean? Was it fully charged but the compressor didn't work or was the the battery dead? I suspect it was probably the latter and that the transformer plug was faulty as it was on mine. The plug that came with the Rocket was not water tight and moisture got in it because I left it plugged in outside. On the Rocket if the red light doesn't go on when you flip the switch the battery is dead. If you plug it in the red light should go on and it should work. If it doesn't, the charging plug and/or the connection to the sprayer are bad.

Henry, do you think it would be easy to replace the 15' hose with 30' of hose? I'm concerned it make break the seal or something (I told you I'm not handy--hope you know what I mean)

I wish I could go no-spray. I will try if I move!

Odissey3, going no spray is not simple. Basically for me I found only three repeat blooming roses that can be grown no spray and stay healthy.There are few more (less then 10) that can be grown with approx 50% leaf loss. But moajority of my garden is once bloomers now, this the price for no spray. In SC you should have more choices then me. Based on reports some Chinas and Teas are more resistant to BS in your climate. Here in mid atlantic they require spraying to keep leaves. The same with Noisettes, polianthas and some others.
Henry, for me in both cases it was compressor that failed with fully charged battery.
Olga

I don't know the problems that other people have had with
the Rocket, but the only thing I've had to replace was the battery, which was actually my fault. The battery was very
easy to replace and cost $12. Believe me, I'm no Mr. fixit, so if I can do it anybody can. I bougth mine
on ebay for $125 If you take care of this sprayer, it will last you a long time and is money well spent. As with any sprayer, you have to thoroughly clean it after every use, and recharge the battery after every use. I didn't maintain the battery charge, during the winter, and the battery died on me. I won't make the same mistake this winter. I highly recommend the Rocket sprayer.

Ray, I did take care of this sprayer and it failed twice for me. So I wouldn't say "If you take care of this sprayer, it will last you a long time". Looks like you can have mixed results depending on particular sprayer.
Olga

Odyssey: You say you are not 'handy'. That seems to me extremely important re SpotShot and some of these other sprayers. I go beyond not being handy; I am utterly inept, and this has meant that every time my SpotShots (I currently have 3 of them for this 1000+ rose garden, plus trees)have the slightest problem I am at a loss to diagnose it. That would mean little if it were just me, but two guys who work for me and who repair small appliances have also at times found this machine hard to fix. Recently all three were off, and it took me two weeks to locate someone who could figure out what was wrong (a different thing with each machine). When these machines work, they're terrific, but as one of my guys said, 'They're finicky'--especially for inept people like me. Obviously I like them or I wouldn't have three, but I'd be happy to find a more reliable machine.

Anyone have more info on Fimco?

henryinct,

I had several problems with the Rocket, but the most frustrating was the external charging connector that was determined to corrode and prevent charging the internal battery. What did you replace yours with?

FWIW The Rocket Sprayer Web site indicates that they are only selling an upgraded model of the sprayer now. It has a bigger battery and a better pump and heavy duty wheels. If they fixed the connectors, I would put it back on the consider list.

The price is also now up in the same range as the Spot Shot.

Regards,

Charles

Odyssey, I have no idea about replacing the hose. It is easy to pull the sprayer around so I've never considered a longer hose. You can also put it in a wagon to make it a bit less cumbersome. Chefcdp, the charging plug has all the specs on it so you just get another one exactly like it at a place like Radio Shack. I like the power of the Rocket. I just stand back and spray over a large area.

I've had two Rocket Sprayers and all I can say is they are like the girl with the curl: "When she was good, she was very very good, and when she was bad, she was horrid". My first Rocket Sprayer came at a nicely discounted price from Sam's. It was the original model. I used it for one gardening season and had zero problems. It was stolen out of our shed that winter. I then ordered a "reconditioned sprayer" from the Manufacturer to save $$. That was 4 years ago. The first year we replaced about 1/2 the working parts. The 2nd year we replaced the other half. It has now gone almost 2 seasons without a single problem. We replaced the battery twice, the pump (upgraded to the more powerful one now offered)and the whole charger. My DH also had to re-attach the battery with something more secure then the rubber bands that had originally held it in place. If they still sell "reconditioned" sprayers I'd say to save your $$. Would I buy another new one again? Yes.

henryinct,

The last thing I want to do is replace a plug that has a bad habit of corroding with another just like it. I was hoping you had a source for a weather proof connector.

I looked at auto supply places for weather proof connectors , but did not see one that could be mounted without more modification of the sprayer or the plug than I cared to contemplate at the time.

Odyssey,

Most hoses are connected to the wand and the pump with standard hose clamps that would take only a screwdriver to loosen and tighten after replacing the hose. However, I have seen a wand that was permanently fixed to the hose. You would have to find out from the seller to be certain that you could replace the hose without buying a new wand.

You might have a unique need for a 30 foot hose, but with small sprayers generally it is desirable to work with a shorter hose. You waste the amount of spray that is contained in the hose because you need to shut off the pump when the tank is empty and that leaves the hose full of spray.

Regards,

Charles

We saw the problems a friend was having with a Peco so we built our own.
I've gotten to the point of not wanting anything plastic here. With sprayers, that translates to as few plastic parts as possible.
You might want to ask at southern states or the equivalent of your farmer's co-operative about sprayers there, because that's where you'll go for replacement/upgraded parts.