Micro Plow's 2-In. Tile "Better Than 4-In."

Micro Plow s 2-In Tile Better Than 4-In CROPS New Techniques A new tile plow designed specifically for 2-in tile was introduced at the recent Power Show Ohio in Columbus Ohio The 3-pt mounted Richland Micro Plow is designed to lay small 2-in dia poly tile only 2 ft deep The unit was designed by Mark Martin of Shiloh Ohio who uses it to do custom tiling in his area His nephew Elton Zimmerman who has 15 years of experience working in a machine shop builds the plows “We use the machine to install 2-in tile spaced 20 ft apart on fields that have never been tiled ” says Martin “We’re excited with the results we’ve seen We built a special shoe on the tile plow in order to accommodate the narrow tile ” Although 2-in tile is smaller than conventional 4-in tile Martin says it drains just as well “Even though 4-in tile is normally spaced 40 ft apart we find that it’s more cost effective to use 2-in tile on 20-ft spacings That’s because the tile itself is less expensive and because installation costs are lower as the plow costs less and can be pulled by a smaller tractor A tractor with 150 hp will usually do the job Also you get much quicker drainage with 2-in tile on 20-ft spacing than with 4-in tile on 40-ft spacing ” Martin says that in Europe 2-in tile has been widely used for years because it works “We think that using 4-in tile is overkill especially in rolling ground where you hardly ever find more than a 1/4-in of water in the tile unless it’s a main Also 2-in tile has a sharper profile which gives the water more velocity As a result the tile is more likely to stay clean than 4-in tile which has a wider bottom and therefore tends to collect more sediment ” He says farmers have asked him to install 2-in tile as laterals between their existing 4-in tile lines However he hasn’t done that yet “One problem is that it’s often difficult to find the old tile so we don’t know where to go between ” he notes The basic plow sells for $6 500; an interchangeable 4-in boot is also available and sells for $800 The plow comes with a pvc frame that serves as a water level However it can also be used directly with GPS to keep grade An Intellislope control system is available and sells for $9 995 and a GPS Hemisphere A320/321 base station sells for $13 500 Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Richland Micro Drainage 8105 Malone Rd Shiloh Ohio 44878 ph 419 896-3623 or 419 895-1585; sales@richlandmicrodrainage com; www richlandmicrodrainage com

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