"The label limits you to five post-petal fall sprays/season. Is it legitimate to count two sprays as one if they occur "close enough" together?" Hi Mark, Unfortunately the # of sprays per season on the label is for the total number of sprays (whether they're washed off or not). One of the factors the EPA considers in their methodology in determining maximum seasonal applications is leaching potential of the compound. They limit the number of applications to reduce leaching, so the max amount of a.i., or max number of applications per season is determined partly in order to limit the impact on the environment. In terms of how long a spray solution remains potent in the tank depends largely on compound in question and the quality/pH of water. Some compounds (like carbaryl and Imidan) are naturally unstable and break down fairly rapidly in the tank (especially if the pH is high- which is common with tap water). For compounds such as these it is generally recommended the water be buffered to lower the pH so that the water is slightly acidic. I couldn't find anything definitive on Triazicide stability in water, but did find information on the stability of lamda-cyhalthrin, which is very close in chemistry to Triazicide. According to the fact sheet (see link below) lamda-cyhalthrin has a half-life of 7 days in alkaline water and is very stable in neutral or acidic water. My inference is if you are using tap water and left Triazicide mixed in the tank for 3 or 4 days, you would still have 75% of the active ingredient you started with. If you could buffer the water to neutral or slightly acidic, you'd probably still have close to 100% active ingredient in the tank after 3 or 4 days. Here is a link that might be useful: NPIC-Lamda-Cyhalthrin

Thanks so much for your replies. I haven't had a chance to come back for follow-up. aliceinwonderland_id, the company swaps the tank. They refill carbon and disinfect the tank in their lab. andy_c, is it possible to get carbon myself and refill it? If so, where can I get the carbon? Just trying to see if there is anyway to cut the cost. I've done my homework on this forum and haven't heard anyone talked about the carbon replacement cost. Most of Kinetic users say the system is maintenance free. It puzzles me a bit. Also, other than the 4040 quad system, I'm considering the option of having a dechlorinator and a softener separately. The total cost would be about $1,000 higher than the 4040 system. Because the water in our region has high chloramines (around 4ppm), Kinetico's CRS 1100 is designed to remove chloramines. If we have separate system, we have the option for the CRS unit plus a softener. What's your opinion on this? Thanks.

Yes, use a wick. You should be able to find perlite in any big box store. The coarser the better. Ideally, the particles would be larger than 1/8" and smaller than 1/4. You can also screen what you find through a kitchen strainer with mesh about the size of insect screening. Use the coarse fraction and mix it 50/50 with your current soil. If you employ a wick, a hole through the bottom of the pot at the edge is best. After watering, tilt the pot at a 45* angle with the wick/drain hole down. That will help you drain a LOT of excess water. If your planting is small enough, you could employ the strategy of moving the pot downward, then sharply upward to drain even more excess water from the soil - another tip touched on in the link I provided above. See B and E below. Al

I think many people who use 5-1-1 the first time, including me, are concerned about how much you need to water in the beginning. What I found is that my bark was too dry when I made the mix. The first summer I grew tomatoes in 25-gallon containers of 5-1-1, it took a couple weeks outdoors for the containers to get to the point where I didn't need to water every other day. Since that time I've made an extra effort to wet the bark before mixing and to really drench the mix before planting. Now I find that I don't need to water more than once a week in the first six weeks or so if we are getting at least an inch of rain a week. Once the plants are big and producing fruit, I do have to water every two or three days unless we have a lot of rain. But I used to have to do the same under the same conditions when I used a peat based mix. Most of my house plants in larger containers of 5-1-1 don't need as frequent watering in the summer because they don't grow as fast as tomatoes.