Ideas For Not Getting Stuck

We often get asked what some keys are to keep center pivots from getting stuck.  We also ask farmers this question.  I think if you ask 5 farmers this question, you will get 11 different answers for what they think is key.

Some options we have used include the following: Radial tires, hard or solid tires, changing the sprinkler pattern at the tower, and adding tires to the span.  I will discuss some advantages and disadvantages of each of these options.

Radial tires allow you to run a lower psi, which allows the tire to “squish” out and have a greater contact surface with the soil.  This is a cool short video from YouTube that demonstrates this; https://www.youtube.com/shorts/skCAWeSOogk.  Radial tires are more expensive than bias ply tires.  Radial tires will generally make less of a track to start, but they can get stuck also.

Hard or solid tires are an option.  They usually create a larger footprint for the tire and should sink in less.  They also may have lugs which can be useful for digging out of the mud.  Downsides include hard tires can make deep, very wide pivot tracks.  They also don’t have the give that pneumatic tires have and can be harder on gear boxes.                                                                                            

We can change the sprinkler pattern at the tower.  You can add directional sprays, which only spray to one side of the tower.

We can also use drag hoses where the water outputs on the ground several feet behind the tower.

Directional sprays and drag hoses do change the water output pattern at the tower and can have some bad effects on crop performance.  They both tend to overwater in some areas and underwater in others.

Boom backs are an attempt to move the sprinkler heads behind the tower, without disrupting the sprinkler pattern.  They work well but are expensive and unless they are added to both sides of the tower you are limited to one direction of travel when running wet.

A quick method we have used to have good effect is to raise the two sprinkler heads on either side of the tower.  When using a spray head this tends to put the water pattern over the tire, so it doesn’t hit the wheel and run directly into the track.  It also may help “wash” mud off the tire and help increase traction.

The best solution we have found for persistently stuck drive towers is the three-tree base beam.  This is not the least expensive option, but it does solve the problem.

Three-wheel basebeams can be ordered with a new pivot, or they can be added to a current system.  The existing tires, gear boxes and center drive are reused.  A new base beam is used, as well as a dual input gearbox and new, shorter drive shafts and shields.  We can easily convert a tower in a couple of hours.