What is the difference between a multi-use sprayer and a professional farm and field sprayer?
Shown above are two Chapin 48oz sprayers – model 1002 for the multi-purpose sprayer, and model 1003 for the farm and field sprayer.
They both have adjustable nozzles for delivering fine to coarse streams, white plastic bottles, and anti-clog filters.
Advertisement
Looking online didn’t help – they look to be the same product but with different model numbers.
With industrial spray bottles, different descriptors often indicate a difference in chemical resistance. Other times, bottles might be labeled according to chemical for user convenience.
Lab wash bottles, for example, will usually be labeled and color-coded to reduce the potential confusion between water, alcohol, and acetone.
I spoke to someone at Chapin International – I called their technical support line – and they couldn’t find any obvious differences either. The bottles (poly) and seals (nitrile) are made from the same material, and the nozzles offer the same fine-to-coarse adjustment and flow rate at 0.4 to 0.5 GPM.
So what’s the difference?
The prices are usually about the same, but sometimes one is on sale for lower than the other.
Advertisement
At the time of this posting, the farm and field model is less expensive.
Chapin advertises the 1002 multi-sprayer as being suitable for “weed and pest control, fungus control, fertilizing”, and the 1003 farm and field sprayer as being suitable for “weed and pest control, fungus control, fertilizing, general purpose cleaning”.
If Chapin’s tech support couldn’t tell the two products apart, maybe there’s no difference?
I would guess the farm and field sprayer could be the same exact product, but with a label that makes such users more comfortable about chemical suitability.
MM
I can’t speak to these two sprayers specifically but many times there is a difference in the types of seals and O-rings used, with different materials being compatible with different chemicals. Sometimes the seals are nitrile, sometimes Buna-N, sometimes EPDM or Viton…it all depends on what it is meant to spray. Likewise the nozzles, tubing, or tank may be made out of different materials but usually it’s just the seals. My first guess would have been there was some difference in that regard but it sounds like they both have nitrile seals? And to add even more confusion, there’s also the model 1009 which seems similar as well?
Stuart
I don’t know about the 1009 wallpaper sprayer, but the 1002 and 1003 mentioned above have the same bottles and nitrile seals. Chapin lists this in website specs, and their tech support agent confirmed the same over the phone.
JR Ramos
Traditionally it was just oil-resistant seals since so many pesticides and herbicides use a petroleum carrier, but in this case if Chapin says they’re the same then they probably are. Not uncommon for products to be rebadged into a different marketing line and Chapin certainly does that with several of their other products like spreaders.
I like the Delta brand in these mini sprayers (and somehow they are still made in the US and the company still sells all parts as spares so you can rebuild these as needed instead of chucking more plastic into the landfill). The similar looking Harbor Freight models are junk, not the same pump at all…they work but I would not trust them if the contents are hazardous and/or you don’t use protective gear.
I’ve had and extensively used I think seven of the Delta models. Had one that gave up the bottom seam, which they replaced for free, but all of the others have had no issues at all, surprisingly, no matter what was in them or when I’d let it sit pressurized for months on end.
Cristobal+Figueroa
I hesitate to state the obvious but isn’t the answer that they differ in appearance only. A diesel fuel can and a gasoline fuel can from a given company are generally constructed in identical fashion but one is painted green and one is painted red so you can quickly identify which one is which. I would posit that this is a similar situation given the information available. While some may see this as an odd curiosity, the explanation seems self-evident to me. While I would recommend that people label the contents of their sprayers regardless of which model they are using this just provides an easy way for users to differentiate between two sprayers of this this particular spec. There could be a marketing angle to it like the way Excedrin extra strength and Excedrin Migraine are the same drug with different labeling but seems like much ado about nothing. I guess the joke is on me because I took the time to read this post, but I really miss the more substantive/informative articles. As a long time reader of the site, I am beginning to feel more and more that there is a lot of filler content, rehashing of available marketing information, and information regarding sales instead of thoughtful commentary on the actual use of tools. This is not necessarily meant as a criticism, but instead a suggestion.
David Brock
Diesel cans in the US are Yellow, not green. Might be green where you are located though.
Cristobal+Figueroa
Yeah you’re right thanks for the correction, green is what oil/fuel mix? I am in the US so I can’t use that excuse lol, it was just a mistake.
Franco
Saw this online…
RED: Gasoline (Flammable) Widely associated with danger and risk of flame, red metal galvanized cans are used to hold gasoline. …
BLUE: Kerosene (Flammable) …
YELLOW: Diesel (Flammable) …
GREEN: Oils (Combustible)
MM
I’ve seen the red, blue, and yellow used in that manner as long as I can remember, but I’ve never seen green used for oils. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a green “gas can” unless it was a military-style “Jerry can” painted OD green. I’ve been in a lot of small engine shops and I always see red containers being used for 2-stroke mix. Likewise I’ve been in many machine shops and industrial shops where various oils are in use and I’ve never seen those in green containers either. Normally the new oils are in whatever container they came in, be it a can, 5-gal bucket, or drum with no particular color code, and waste oil or oily materials would be stored in red safety containers.
I poked around on Google a bit and I did see a few examples when I searched for “green fuel can” but I think the standard must be from outside the US as every example was either the camo green military version or it was marked “Petrol”.
Franco
I just did a Google search for “fuel can colors”, and this was one of the results. I have also seen the yellow red and blue cans, but like you never seen the green one, except for this one which I have 1 of…
https://www.scepter.com/products/military-products/military-fuel-water-containers/military-fuel-container/5-gallon-20-litre-military-fuel-container-05552/
I just did another search and found this…
https://www.justrite.com/news/avoid-mistakes-with-color-coded-justrite-safety-cans/#:~:text=What%20Are%20the%20Standard%20Colors,can%20with%20a%20yellow%20band.
this…
https://wavianusa.com/blogs/news/gas-can-color-designations
this…
https://medium.com/@wbcaoutreach/the-quick-guide-to-colors-on-safety-cans-dbf4f7b5db12
and this…
https://www.horizononline.com/fuel-storage-cans-getting-the-color-right/
So, I have never seen a green can (except the military kind), but it sure likes they are recognized.
Stuart
I spent time trying to find an answer, and the tech at Chapin seemed just as confused and couldn’t see any obvious differences.
In a lot of pump and more sprayer products, there usually are subtle differences. Bleach, for instant, usually requires Viton seals.
Farm chemicals and fertilizers have a higher specific gravity and might have more suspended matter than dissolved, which I would expect to require different sprayer characteristics.
Use the wrong sprayer, and you can expect subpar performance, early failure, or both.
I felt compelled to ask, even if the answer is simply that the labels are different. It seems inconsequential, but if there’s a difference, maybe a reader must know.
Maybe questions like this one could be consolidated and saved for a questions post.
In terms of substance, more brands now answer questions about “how does that feature work and why” with “it does feature stuff,” and the same then treat test samples as rewards for positive hype.
News is still news. If it’s interesting, it’s interesting, even if there’s not much to say past face value.
Injuries have kept me away from my test bench and out of the workshop for a bit, and I’ve been cycling between chipping away at pebbles and moving boulders. PT’s helping and I’ve been moving more boulders than pebbles.
I’ve turned down or delayed a lot of test samples until I can clear my backlog. Testing everything has been too much; I don’t need to have a personal hands-on opinion about everything all the time. If there are questions in a news post, that’s indication a tool should be added to my request or shopping list.
I absolutely appreciate suggestions. If you don’t mind, email me a list of 5 posts you particularly enjoyed.
Garrick Moe
There is a local hardware store near me (Parkrose) that has both…i sat and stared at these for the longest time a few weeks ago trying to figure it out. They also had a model with a brass nozzle which atleast is an apparent difference. Not sure if it’s better or worse for weed killer tho!
Nathan
For those hand held ones I suspect nothing is different. Due to size. In fact I’m surprised the one is labeled farm as opposed to garden.
In larger sizes. 2 gallon etc. Typically an industrial model has metal tube and better seals to stand up to harsher chemicals like acids. Industrial being spraying muriatic acid as an example
But I find in modern devices of say the last 10 years the line is blurred. I had trouble sorting it out when I bought my last 2 gallon. Until I found the parent company website. And I saw that anything but the cheapest model was made the same. And the most expensive models were hard industrial with 5 year plus warranties and or metal bodies etc.
So today I doubt it means much.
JoeM
I’ve seen similar model number labels on other things, for precisely the reason given in your article. Purely because they put a different set of words on the product, or made it a different colour for easy differentiation.
There are “Canadian Editions” of certain books, where the language is switched to Canadian English, rather than American or Australian dialects. On tool sets, I’ve seen the label be different because it’s written in both English and French, due to Canadian language laws. So I definitely believe this is that situation.
Why does one go on sale more often? Having lived on a farm before, I can think like a farmer on examination. Having one labellled “General Purpose” can indicate it was bought, in the case of a farm, as a watering can only. Maybe there’s an herb garden by the house, and the herbs don’t need chemical, or natural, fertilizers mixed in, they just need water. So, to reduce the chance you accidentally grab one of these pressure sprayers that once held anything other than water, you get the “General Purpose” ones for things like Water, Lemon Juice, Citronella, Tea… that kind of purely water based product. All the other things this exact same bottle can hold, are difficult to fully wash out. And sometimes, they’re products made of the same chemical components as the polymer the bottle is made out of, so they stick there permanently. Which means, for ease of use, you only use “All Purpose” for things water-based, and “Farm and Field” for things that aren’t safe if sprayed on what needs pure water-based products.
After that differentiation… I can only guess that the particular shade of white used on them both, are for writing the contents on the bottle for further differentiation. Could this spray turpentine? Great… let’s not keep the one labelled “Turpentine” anywhere near the Kitchen, where it might become gasseous, and cause an ignition. And so on, and so forth.
Now look at how many farmers and workshops use the products from Farm and Field, versus General Use. Which would get sold more often, to the biggest demographic? Wait 6 months, and ask yourself “Do they need to clear out some of the inventory of the one they don’t sell much of, in order to make room for more of the one that does sell well for them?” Or, even better, “Do they need to clear one out more often in certain areas where the other sold quickly, and the supplier requires a minimum order of both types to maintain their contract?”
There’s a lot of reasons for the two to be considered separate models, even though they’re identical. Look at the Makita pick-your-colour series of impact drivers that regularly show up. They have different endings to their model number, but they’re all identical until the colour code. Don’t quote me, but I believe I’ve seen more than one Makita sale go on, where a new model of driver gets the Choose-Your-Colour treatment. It’s nothing new, or harmful, and this isn’t a complaint. Just saying… the likelihood of them being different due to the writing on them is really high, considering the fluids they’re designed for. No different than Makita, or Canadian editions of tool kits, or even special editions of high-end collectables and comics. There isn’t a difference in the product. It’s the demographic buying them that needs the difference for their own reasons.
David+VandeBerg
Marketing? Where they are sold to each application? If you are selling to a homeowner, the Multi-use sprayer would affirm him/her they are getting a sprayer for their application. If it said “Professional…..” the average homeowner might look for a general purpose sprayer (might be cheaper in their mind) not knowing they are the same thing.
Steve
They have different letters and numbers on the front. That’s the only difference.
MtnRanch
If you can get a replacement parts list, compare the part numbers. I did this when comparing a 3/4 ton pickup with a 1 ton pickup and found that the only significant difference was the springs. Everything else in the driveline was identical.
Mike
I was doing some quick research before buying a sprayer and had same questions, what is really the difference. Besides seals and whatnot, the main difference I seen in the descriptions is the type of pump being used. They are commonly piston pump or diaphragm pumps, some excel when being used in different applications. Here is a copy and paste of a quick google search:
“Piston pumps work best with lighter chemicals, such as herbicides and insecticides. Diaphragm – Diaphragm pumps don’t deliver as much pressure as piston, making them ideal for use in close application scenarios such as weed killing. But the diaphragm pump is more durable to chemical damage”
And also a quick youtube video explaining the difference. https://youtu.be/K6QmPTuqrF8
I’m sure there are more in-depth articles to read as well.
TomD
Go back in time – it is likely that at one point one of them was different (cheaper?) and over time they changed to be identical, but they haven’t consolidated the part numbers for any number of reasons, one being different customers/stores buying them, or people wanting different ones around.
Jr3
Farmers are astute buyers. Placing the word farm on it is indicates it’s likely a better deal
spark
Kind of strange as it’s costing them money to create two items and stock them on shelves. They should just rebadge it as Professional Farm & Garden Multi Use Sprayer and combine segments.