They’re Killing Weeds With 40-Ft. Electric “Zapper”
Two Missouri brothers are killing weeds with 14 kV of electricity. Their Weed Zapper is catching on with organic and conventional farmers. The amazing machine kills weeds in minutes, exploding weed cells from tip to root with an electric charge. However, if it hadn’t been for FARM SHOW, the Weed Zapper might not exist.
“When my brother Mike first suggested using electricity, I laughed,” recalls Ben Kroeger, Old School Manufacturing. “Then he pulled out an old issue of FARM SHOW (Vol. 5, No. 2) with a story about the Lasco Lightning Weeder.”
The brothers and their dad Tony own a heating and electrical business. However, Ben and Mike each also run organic farms on the side. Weed control is a big issue for them.
After locating a Lasco weeder and renting it for a season, the 2 were sold on the concept. About the same time, they heard about 2 brothers in Illinois who had been working on a similar weed-killing machine.
“They had a prototype, but it still needed some work,” says Kroeger. “We bought the business and the prototype, added safety features, a flex boom and other improvements. We also made sure all parts were off the shelf. If a problem develops, the local hardware store can keep the farmer going.”
Safety features for the high-voltage Weed Zapper were key. The Kroegers put on their electrician hats and added 4 safety systems. A seat sensor kills the power if the operator stands up. When the system is shut off, there is no residual power left in the contact bar. If grounding coulters under the boom leave the ground, power to the boom is shut off. Finally, if the tractor’s forward motion stops for even a short time, power is shut off to the boom.
Seeing what a proven and improved prototype could do, the brothers and other family members went into production. This past season they had 18 machines in the field. They expect to deliver as many as 60 to buyers by May 1, 2019. The machines are going about as fast as the brothers can find time to build them.
“By early October we had 40 of the 60 we plan to build this winter sold,” says Kroeger. “An Iowa co-op has 2 they lease to customers and have ordered 3 more this year.”
The Weed Zapper comes in 4 models ranging from the 12 1/2-ft. Annihilator 6R30 that covers six 30-in. rows, to the 16R30 with its 40-ft. spread. Recommended tractor size starts at 135 pto hp. Each unit is built to order for front or rear mount with optional trailer tow packages and wide row configurations.
The boom with its copper electrodes mounts to the front of most tractors and is powered by rear-mounted, pto-driven generators. Depending on size of the booms, they range from 100 kW on the 6-row machine to 200 kW on the new 40-ft. model. All top out at about 14 kV.
When current traveling down the bar touches a weed, it flows into the stem and boils the water in the cells, bursting them. The more moisture in the plants, the more effective the Weed Zapper is.
“Grasses take longer, and as weed stems get woody, they are harder to kill,” says Kroeger. “However, we’ve killed year-old saplings in fallow fields.”
A slick feature of the Weed Zapper is its versatility. The rear-mounted generator is 3-pt. mounted in the field. However, since it was designed by farmers for use on their farms 35 miles apart, transport ease was key.
“We needed to be able to take it down the road behind a pickup, including through a city of 20,000 people,” says Kroeger. “The generator has transport wheels that flip down and lock into position, turning it into a trailer with a tongue that also flips down and locks in place.”
Hooks on the rear of the generator allow the folded up boom to be carried during transit. They also allow the boom to be used as a rear-mount system, if desired.
When folded up, the 40-ft. boom will have a transit width of just under 12 ft. and a height of 9 ft. above ground. Pricing for the Weed Zapper ranges from $35,000 for the 6-row unit to $58,000 for the new 40-ft. unit.
Kroeger says the Weed Zapper is ideal for preseason and in-season weed control, catching weeds that emerge above the canopy. However, it also works great as a burn down system for cover crops prior to planting.
“We’ve had great success with a wide variety of cover crops,” says Kroeger. “All you need is contact with the bar.”
Kroeger says he and his brother are working on larger machines for future introductions. While initially intended for organic acres, conventional farmers struggling with herbicide resistant weeds also are ordering machines.
“The introduction of Roundup led to the demise of the Lasco Lightning,” notes Kroeger. “Now weeds resistant to Roundup and other herbicides are making the timing right for the Weed Zapper.”
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Old School Manufacturing, 3127 S. Ingram Ave., Sedalia, Mo. 65301 (ph 660 851-8800; info@theweedzapper.com; www.theweedzapper.com).
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They’re Killing Weeds With 40-Ft Electric “Zapper” CROPS Insect Control Two Missouri brothers are killing weeds with 14 kV of electricity Their Weed Zapper is catching on with organic and conventional farmers The amazing machine kills weeds in minutes exploding weed cells from tip to root with an electric charge However if it hadn’t been for FARM SHOW the Weed Zapper might not exist “When my brother Mike first suggested using electricity I laughed ” recalls Ben Kroeger Old School Manufacturing “Then he pulled out an old issue of FARM SHOW Vol 5 No 2 with a story about the Lasco Lightning Weeder ” The brothers and their dad Tony own a heating and electrical business However Ben and Mike each also run organic farms on the side Weed control is a big issue for them After locating a Lasco weeder and renting it for a season the 2 were sold on the concept About the same time they heard about 2 brothers in Illinois who had been working on a similar weed-killing machine “They had a prototype but it still needed some work ” says Kroeger “We bought the business and the prototype added safety features a flex boom and other improvements We also made sure all parts were off the shelf If a problem develops the local hardware store can keep the farmer going ” Safety features for the high-voltage Weed Zapper were key The Kroegers put on their electrician hats and added 4 safety systems A seat sensor kills the power if the operator stands up When the system is shut off there is no residual power left in the contact bar If grounding coulters under the boom leave the ground power to the boom is shut off Finally if the tractor’s forward motion stops for even a short time power is shut off to the boom Seeing what a proven and improved prototype could do the brothers and other family members went into production This past season they had 18 machines in the field They expect to deliver as many as 60 to buyers by May 1 2019 The machines are going about as fast as the brothers can find time to build them “By early October we had 40 of the 60 we plan to build this winter sold ” says Kroeger “An Iowa co-op has 2 they lease to customers and have ordered 3 more this year ” The Weed Zapper comes in 4 models ranging from the 12 1/2-ft Annihilator 6R30 that covers six 30-in rows to the 16R30 with its 40-ft spread Recommended tractor size starts at 135 pto hp Each unit is built to order for front or rear mount with optional trailer tow packages and wide row configurations The boom with its copper electrodes mounts to the front of most tractors and is powered by rear-mounted pto-driven generators Depending on size of the booms they range from 100 kW on the 6-row machine to 200 kW on the new 40-ft model All top out at about 14 kV When current traveling down the bar touches a weed it flows into the stem and boils the water in the cells bursting them The more moisture in the plants the more effective the Weed Zapper is “Grasses take longer and as weed stems get woody they are harder to kill ” says Kroeger “However we’ve killed year-old saplings in fallow fields ” A slick feature of the Weed Zapper is its versatility The rear-mounted generator is 3-pt mounted in the field However since it was designed by farmers for use on their farms 35 miles apart transport ease was key “We needed to be able to take it down the road behind a pickup including through a city of 20 000 people ” says Kroeger “The generator has transport wheels that flip down and lock into position turning it into a trailer with a tongue that also flips down and locks in place ” Hooks on the rear of the generator allow the folded up boom to be carried during transit They also allow the boom to be used as a rear-mount system if desired When folded up the 40-ft boom will have a transit width of just under 12 ft and a height of 9 ft above ground Pricing for the Weed Zapper ranges from $35 000 for the 6-row unit to $58 000 for the new 40-ft unit Kroeger says the Weed Zapper is ideal for preseason and in-season weed control catching weeds that emerge above the canopy However it also works great as a burn down system for cover crops prior to planting “We’ve had great success with a wide variety of cover crops ” says Kroeger “All you need is contact with the bar ” Kroeger says he and his brother are working on larger machines for future introductions While initially intended for organic acres conventional farmers struggling with herbicide resistant weeds also are ordering machines “The introduction of Roundup led to the demise of the Lasco Lightning ” notes Kroeger “Now weeds resistant to Roundup and other herbicides are making the timing right for the Weed Zapper ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Old School Manufacturing 3127 S Ingram Ave Sedalia Mo 65301 ph 660 851-8800; info@theweedzapper com; www theweedzapper com
