6.3 Mixing, Loading, Container Disposal & Professionalism

6.3 Mixing, Loading, Container Disposal & Professionalism

Mixing and loading carry the highest risk of handler exposure, because the pesticide is at full concentrate strength. DEEP's operator manual says pesticides "are most poisonous when they are in the concentrated form, just as they come from the manufacturer." Chapter 10 of the national core manual covers planning an application, safe mixing and loading, container rinsing and disposal, applying correctly, cleanup, and professionalism. This section works through those steps in job order.

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Before You Mix: Select and Review

Before buying or applying a pesticide, read the label to confirm:

• the safety measures required;
• where the product can legally be used (target sites);
• when to apply it — pest life stage, weather, preharvest or grazing intervals, and replanting intervals;
• how to apply it — equipment, setup, spray quality (droplet size), and application method;
• special restrictions — REIs, banned methods or equipment, environmental conditions, setbacks, buffers, and drift warnings.

Check whether the label requires an adjuvant, and whether any planned tank mix is allowed. Mixing products is illegal when the label expressly prohibits it. When a tank mix contains products with different signal words, treat the whole mixture under the most restrictive label (Section 3.3 covers jar tests and mixing order).

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Safe Mixing and Loading

Pick the right spot

• Mix outdoors or in a well-ventilated, well-lit place away from people, animals, food, and other items that could be contaminated.
• Mix and load as far as possible — at least 50 feet — from wells, lakes, streams, rivers, and storm drains. Mix at the application site when possible, but don't use the same spot repeatedly. A permanent mixing site should be a containment pad.
• DEEP's operator manual adds: avoid mixing in a customer's house or yard, and never near a pond or stream.

Protect the water supply

• Keep a distinct air gap between the fill hose and the tank's liquid surface, at least twice the diameter of the discharge pipe, so tank mix cannot back-siphon.
• When pumping directly from a water source, use a check valve, anti-siphoning device, or backflow preventer. Connecticut requires one on any hose drawing from a water supply where reverse flow could let pesticide into the hose (RCSA § 22a-66-3).
• Never leave the tank unattended while it fills.

Wear mixing PPE

Wear all PPE the label requires before even opening the container. For mixing, the core manual specifically recommends:

• a bib-top chemical-resistant apron (butyl, nitrile, or foil laminate), with built-in gloves and sleeves for extra protection;
• a face shield to keep splashes and dust off the face while pouring;
• eye protection (shielded safety glasses or goggles, or a face shield) and the respirator with the NIOSH code the label specifies.

Open, measure, and transfer carefully

• Open paper or cardboard bags with a sharp knife or scissors instead of tearing them, then clean the tool and keep it for pesticide use only. Close containers after each use.
• Measure liquids (and some granules) by volume and dusts, powders, and most dry products by weight, using an accurate scale and glass or plastic measures from 1 cup to 1 gallon. Avoid metal measuring utensils, because some pesticides react with aluminum and iron. Mark the utensils, keep them locked in pesticide storage, and wash them after use.
• Pour below face level, standing so wind cannot blow the product back at you. Rinse the measuring container and pour the rinsate into the tank.

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Container Rinsing

Follow the label's container-handling instructions. Not every container must be rinsed, but when rinsing is required, do it immediately after emptying — residues that dry are hard to remove — and put the rinsate into the spray tank whenever possible.

Disposal of empty containers

• Refillable containers go back to the dealer or manufacturer according to the label. Never tamper with them.
• For nonrefillable containers, the label says whether to recycle, recondition, or dispose of them. Never reuse pesticide containers.
• Puncture rinsed containers so they can't be reused (DEEP's operator manual says to "puncture the cans and crush them"), but never puncture aerosol cans, which can explode.
• Recycle through a program such as the Ag Container Recycling Council (ACRC), or dispose of containers in a sanitary landfill as the label allows.
• The operator manual adds: empty containers should never be disposed of on site. Take them back to the office or warehouse, and ask your supervisor about leftovers in the tank. Don't leave containers unattended at mixing, loading, or application sites.
• Connecticut law: no one may discard a pesticide or container in a way that pollutes a waterway or endangers life, and no pesticide may be discarded into a public sewage system (RCSA § 22a-65-1).

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Applying Correctly

The core manual's application checklist:

1. Clear people and pets from the area. Remove toys and pet dishes, and cover garden furniture, pools, and birdbaths — even for crack-and-crevice work. If the label gives no reentry statement, keep people and animals out until sprays have dried or dusts have settled.
2. Make sure the pesticide reaches the target, and sweep granules off sidewalks and other nontarget surfaces.
3. Apply evenly. Avoid puddles and piles, especially where equipment turns or pauses, and check early in the job that the right amount is going out.
4. Keep the mix uniform. Suspensions need continuous agitation, and granules and dusts should stay dry and unclumped.
5. Check hoses, valves, nozzles, and hoppers often.
6. Turn equipment off when you pause, keep agitating suspensions, and depressurize the tank and nozzles when you stop.
7. Follow post-application label steps, such as watering in or soil incorporation.

High-exposure applications — mist blowers and air-blast sprayers, aerosol and fog generators, high-pressure sprayers and power dusters, and overhead work into tree canopies or eaves — call for extra protection. Use chemical-resistant gloves, hooded coveralls, sealed footwear, and a full-face respirator, or a half-face respirator with sealed goggles. Enclosed spaces such as homes, restaurants, warehouses, and greenhouses raise inhalation risk. When walking, back out of the treated area rather than walking into the spray.

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Cleaning Up

• Clean equipment inside and out, including the whole spray system: tank, eductor, valves, hoses, filters and screens, boom sections, nozzle bodies, and tips. Wear the application PPE plus a chemical-resistant apron and eye protection.
• A strong rinse is 8 to 16 ounces of detergent in 30 to 40 gallons of water, circulated for several minutes. Then remove and clean the nozzles and screens, and flush the system twice with clean water. Some labels require triple rinsing.
• Rinsate must never go into sinks, floor drains, storm sewers, wells, streams, lakes, or rivers. Apply it to a labeled site at or below the label rate, or use it as diluent for a later mix — but only if the pesticide is labeled for that site, the combined amount does not exceed the label rate, and the products are the same or compatible. Rinsate containing bleach, ammonia, or incompatible materials may not be reused; dispose of it as waste pesticide.
• Don't wash equipment repeatedly in the same spot without a containment pad.
• For storage, run 1 to 5 gallons of light oil through the system before the final flush, store tips and screens in light oil, winterize against freezing, and store the sprayer under cover.
• Shower and change clothes immediately after cleaning up. Waiting until the end of the day allows more absorption. Then record the application while the details are fresh. Connecticut requires these records for five years (Section 1.4).

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Professionalism

The core manual describes professionalism as "the skill, good judgment, and polite behavior that is expected from a person who is trained to do a job well." For an applicator, it means using good judgment where the label and the law are silent.

• Ethics: don't take shortcuts that could harm customers, the public, or the environment. Give honest, knowledgeable advice, and use IPM so pesticides are applied only when needed.
• Communication: use plain language rather than jargon. Reach out to neighbors and others concerned about nearby sensitive sites, and tell them you are certified and trained.
• Connecticut practice: professionalism in Connecticut is also a legal duty. Give customers the required label information before contracting, notify registered neighbors, post signs, respect school and day care restrictions, and follow written instructions exactly. DEEP's operator manual also tells applicators to warn people who may be subject to drift so they can bring in laundry and children's toys — "Not only will this ensure everyone's safety, but it will prevent angering customers or neighbors who will most likely file a complaint with the DEEP."