Donate a sprayer, and the tanks have to be rinsed first

Where donated sprayers come from

Farms that moved to custom application. Hiring a co-op or a custom applicator is common now and it leaves an owned sprayer with nothing to do.

Operations upgrading. A self-propelled sprayer gets replaced on a cycle and the older machine is fully functional.

Estates and farm dispersals, and growers who reduced acres enough that a large sprayer no longer fits the operation.

The rinse requirement, stated plainly

Before pickup the tank, the plumbing, the boom lines and the nozzles must be triple-rinsed with the rinsate applied to a labeled crop or handled according to the product labels. Remove and dispose of the filters and screens properly. Leave the tank lid open so it can dry.

We ask you to confirm on the form that this has been done. A sprayer arriving with product residue in the tank is a hazard for the driver, the yard and the eventual buyer, and it can turn a saleable machine into a disposal problem that costs the cause money rather than funding it.

If there is product still in the tank and you have no way to apply it, tell us before anything is scheduled rather than after. Do not drain it on the ground. Your co-op or extension office can point you at the right disposal route, and we would rather wait than take a machine that has not been handled properly.

What decides what a sprayer brings

• Self-propelled or pull-behind. Entirely different machines and markets. Self-propelled sprayers are major capital items.
• Boom width and tank capacity. The two defining specs.
• Boom condition. Straightness, fold operation, nozzle bodies and whether any sections are bent from a fence post. This is the most commonly damaged part.
• Pump, plumbing and rate control. Whether the pump works, whether the rate controller functions and whether the plumbing is sound rather than patched.
• Guidance and section control. Common on these and worth real money. Tell us whether displays and unlocks transfer.

Makes we accept

Sprayers are named by machine and boom width.

• Self-propelled: John Deere 4700, 4830, R4030 and R4045, Case IH Patriot 3230, 4430 and 4440, Apache AS series, Miller Nitro, Hagie STS, AGCO RoGator, New Holland Guardian.
• Pull-behind: Demco Conquest, Hardi Navigator and Commander, Fast, Bestway, Sprayer Specialties, Redball, Top Air, Wylie.
• Components buyers ask about: Raven and Ag Leader rate control, TeeJet nozzles and section control, Hypro and Ace pumps.

Manufacturer names appear here so you can find your own machine. No manufacturer sponsors, endorses or is affiliated with this program.

The paperwork, and what you can deduct

Farm equipment is not titled. Ownership is established with the purchase invoice, a bill of sale, a farm asset record, or a lien release if it was financed. Find the serial plate and photograph it. If the machine is part of an estate or a farm partnership, whoever signs needs authority to sign for it.

Giving Center sells the sprayer and your deduction is the gross sale proceeds on Form 1098-C. A running self-propelled sprayer clears $5,000 by a wide margin, so a qualified appraisal and Form 8283 Section B are effectively certain. A pull-behind tank sprayer usually lands between $500 and $5,000, where Section A applies.

An older pull-behind with a cracked tank and bent booms can fall under $500. Most farm equipment is a depreciated business asset, which makes a conversation with your accountant worth having before the pickup. Farm business property follows different rules than a personal donation.