Bubbler Cleans Leafy Greens For Market CROPS Miscellaneous Jean-Martin Fortier has a lot of greens and other produce to wash and says he couldn’t do it without his Bubbler and spinners The author of The Market Gardener Vol 38 No 5 grosses around $140 000 from an acre and a half of farmland Fortier estimates that half the workload on his micro-farm is washing produce “The Bubbler is simply a big tub lined with perforated pvc pipes connected to a Jacuzzi pump ” says Fortier “When turned on the water in the tank gets agitated mixing the greens and removing dirt and debris ” Fortier credits fellow greens growers Sandy and Paul Arnold for the concept He adapted it using a 5 000-gal milk tank for his Bubbler It uses a 1 1/2 hp Jacuzzi pump to create the bubbling action He installed an automatic shut-off valve to prevent overflow The pressure washing is so effective that it eliminates the double or triple washing needed in the past to clean and crisp his greens “The Bubbler allows us to streamline our process letting us wash dry and bag up to 100 lbs per hour ” says Fortier “That is twice as fast as before ” While washing the produce is vital removing excess water is as well Fortier adapted 2 ordinary washing machines to spin away the excess water They are mounted on casters making them easy to rearrange as needed Here too he relied on the expertise of another grower “Michael Kilpatrick a friend of the Arnolds and a former farmer helped me with our design and setup ” says Fortier “He has put a complete tutorial online on how to create your own washing station It is available for a $40 fee and well worth the cost www inthefieldconsultants com ” Check out the videos of the Bubbler and the washing machine spinners at FARMSHOW com Visit Fortier’s website for referrals to other great tools and market gardening ideas Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Jean-Martin Fortier jm@themarketgardener com; www TheMarketGardener com

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