5 Best Electric Atv Sprayers For Under 500 For Small Acreage
Discover the top 5 electric ATV sprayers for under $500. Our guide helps small acreage owners choose an affordable, efficient model for property care.
That five-acre pasture you love is slowly being taken over by thistles, and the thought of tackling it with a 2-gallon pump sprayer is exhausting. An electric ATV sprayer transforms this daunting chore into a quick afternoon task, giving you a powerful tool for managing weeds, fertilizing food plots, and maintaining fence lines. Choosing the right one under the $500 mark means matching the machine to your specific property and jobs, not just buying the biggest tank you can find.
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Choosing the Right Sprayer for Your Acreage
The first thing people look at is the tank size, and that makes sense. But the "best" size isn’t always the biggest. The real decision is a balance between capacity, the size of your ATV, and the terrain you’re working on.
A 25-gallon sprayer sounds great because it means fewer trips back to the barn for a refill. On a flat, 3-acre food plot with a full-size ATV, it’s perfect. But strap that same 200-plus pounds of sloshing liquid to the back of a smaller 300cc machine on a hillside, and you’ve created a serious stability problem. A 15 or 16-gallon tank is often the sweet spot for maneuverability and safety on varied terrain.
Think about your primary job. Are you broadcast spraying a new clover plot or spot-treating invasive buckthorn along the wood’s edge? Broadcast spraying requires a boom or boomless nozzle and a pump with decent flow (gallons per minute), while spot spraying depends on a good wand and enough pressure (PSI) to reach your target. Your main task should be the deciding factor in the features you prioritize.
FIMCO 25-Gallon Sprayer: High-Capacity Choice
When your main goal is covering ground, the FIMCO 25-gallon sprayer is a workhorse. It’s built for those who need to spray two to five acres at a time without constantly stopping to mix another batch. This is the sprayer for establishing a new pasture or applying liquid fertilizer to a large garden area.
Its primary advantage is efficiency. Fewer refills save a surprising amount of time and hassle over the course of a morning. The pumps on these units are typically well-matched to the tank size, providing adequate flow for a small boom attachment, which is often sold separately or included in slightly higher-priced kits. This setup lets you cover a consistent swath with each pass.
The tradeoff is weight. A full tank is a heavy, dynamic load, and it absolutely requires a mid-to-full-size ATV (think 450cc and up) to handle it safely. On steep or off-camber ground, that weight can make the ATV feel top-heavy and tippy. If your property is mostly flat and open, it’s a fantastic choice; if you have tight trails and rolling hills, a smaller tank is a safer bet.
NorthStar 16-Gallon: Broadcast and Spot Spraying
The NorthStar sprayer often hits the perfect middle ground for a small farm. It’s designed as a versatile, all-in-one system that can handle both wide-area coverage and targeted applications without any modifications. This is the model you get when one day you need to spray your half-acre lawn and the next you need to kill poison ivy on a fence line.
Most models in this price range come equipped with both a rear-mounted broadcast nozzle and a handgun sprayer wand. You can cover a 10 to 14-foot swath for general application, then simply switch a valve and grab the wand to hit individual weeds or spray around obstacles like trees and buildings. The 16-gallon tank provides enough capacity for meaningful work without dangerously overloading a smaller ATV.
NorthStar puts a lot of emphasis on the durability of their pumps and the chemical resistance of their tanks. The tanks are often thicker and more opaque to prevent UV degradation of the contents. This focus on build quality means it’s a reliable tool that’s ready to work when you are, which is exactly what you need when you only have a Saturday morning to get the job done.
Chapin 97600 15-Gallon Mixes On Exit System
Spray efficiently with the Chapin 97361: its dual tank design mixes concentrate on demand, eliminating premixing. Featuring a 15-gallon water tank, quick connect pump, and triple filtration, this USA-made sprayer easily attaches to your ATV/UTV.
The Chapin Mixes On Exit sprayer addresses a problem many small-scale farmers don’t realize they have until it’s too late: what to do with leftover chemicals. Instead of pre-mixing 15 gallons of solution, this system keeps the water and chemical concentrate in separate tanks. It mixes them as you spray.
This is a game-changer for flexibility and reducing waste. If you only need to spray seven gallons’ worth of area, you don’t end up with eight gallons of mixed herbicide to store or dispose of. It also makes cleanup a breeze. Since the main tank only ever holds water, you can switch from an herbicide to a fungicide by simply swapping out the small concentrate tank and flushing the lines, not triple-rinsing the entire system.
The system does require a bit more attention to detail. You have to ensure your concentrate-to-water ratio is dialed in correctly on the selector. This design is ideal for the owner who uses multiple different chemicals and values precision over sheer simplicity. It prevents the costly mistake of contaminating a sensitive crop because you didn’t get all the weedkiller out of your tank from the last job.
Master Manufacturing 15-Gallon Spot Sprayer
Sometimes, you don’t need all the bells and whistles. The Master Manufacturing 15-gallon spot sprayer is a prime example of a tool that does one job and does it exceptionally well. It’s built for targeted application, and by stripping away the complexity of booms and broadcast nozzles, it delivers reliability and affordability.
This is the perfect sprayer for managing pastures, orchards, and property lines. When you need to eradicate a patch of Canada thistle without harming the surrounding clover, this is your tool. The system is simple: a tank, a pump, a hose, and a wand. With fewer components, there are fewer things that can clog, leak, or fail.
Its 15-gallon capacity is more than enough for hours of dedicated spot spraying, and the lighter weight makes it suitable for nearly any size ATV. For property owners who already have a pull-behind broadcast spreader for fertilizer, this dedicated liquid spot-sprayer is the perfect companion. It fills a crucial niche without forcing you to pay for features you’ll never use.
Agri-Fab 15-Gallon Tow Sprayer for Versatility
Not every spraying solution has to sit on your ATV’s rack. The Agri-Fab tow-behind sprayer offers a different approach by putting the tank and components on their own set of wheels. This design opens up its use to a wider range of vehicles, including lawn tractors and UTVs that might not have sturdy cargo racks.
The biggest advantage is weight distribution. By towing the load, you aren’t compromising the stability or suspension of your prime mover. This makes it a much safer option for smaller ATVs or for use on uneven ground where a high center of gravity from a rack-mounted tank could be a hazard. It’s simple to hook up to a standard hitch and go.
The downside is maneuverability. A trailer is inherently harder to navigate in tight spaces than the ATV itself. Weaving between trees in an orchard or backing into a tight corner can be frustrating. However, for open lawns, pastures, and long fence lines, the tow-behind design provides excellent capacity and stability without requiring a large, heavy-duty ATV.
Key Sprayer Features: Pump, Tank, and Nozzle
Beyond the brand name, three components determine how a sprayer performs: the pump, the tank, and the nozzle. Understanding them helps you see past the marketing. The pump is the heart of the system, defined by its GPM (gallons per minute) and PSI (pounds per square inch). A higher GPM is crucial for broadcast spraying with a boom, while higher PSI helps the wand create a fine mist or a stream that can reach distant targets.
The tank itself is more than just a container. Look for UV-resistant polyethylene, which prevents sunlight from breaking down the plastic and your chemicals. A critical but often overlooked feature is the drain. A sump or channel leading to the drain cap ensures you can get every last drop out, which is vital for cleaning and winterizing.
Nozzles determine how the liquid is applied. Broadcast sprayers use a fan-style nozzle or a set of "boomless" nozzles to cover a wide, even pattern. Spot sprayers use an adjustable wand nozzle that can go from a wide cone for nearby plants to a straight stream for reaching into a brush pile. Having the right nozzle for your primary task is essential for effective and efficient application.
ATV Sprayer Maintenance for Long-Term Reliability
An ATV sprayer is not a tool you can use and put away dirty. The chemicals we use, from gentle liquid fertilizers to aggressive herbicides, are often corrosive and will destroy a pump and clog lines if left to sit. Proper maintenance is non-negotiable for long-term use.
A simple cleaning routine after every use is the most important thing you can do. It doesn’t have to take long, but it has to be done.
- Triple-rinse the tank. Fill it partway with clean water, slosh it around, and spray it out. Repeat two more times.
- Flush the system. After the final rinse, run several gallons of clean water through the pump, hoses, and nozzles until it runs perfectly clear.
- Check the filter. Most sprayers have a small screen filter between the tank and pump. Pop it out and clean it to prevent debris from damaging the pump’s diaphragms.
Before the first hard freeze, you must winterize the unit. After a final, thorough cleaning, drain every drop of water you can from the tank, pump, and lines. Then, pour a small amount of RV antifreeze into the tank and run the pump just long enough for the pink fluid to come out of the nozzle. This simple step prevents leftover water from freezing, expanding, and cracking the pump housing, saving you from a costly repair come springtime.
Ultimately, the best ATV sprayer is the one that fits the unique landscape of your property and the specific jobs you need to accomplish. By looking past the gallon number and focusing on features like pump type, nozzle configuration, and overall design, you can find a reliable partner for managing your acreage. A little bit of research now will pay off with years of efficient and effective land stewardship.
