Spreaders & Sprayers
Quick Answer
Fertiliser, seed and lawn treatments are all prescribed as a rate per 1,000 square feet. A spreader or sprayer is the instrument that turns that number into something that actually lands on the lawn, and hitting a rate by hand is guesswork that shows up as stripes for the rest of the season.
This is the least glamorous category on the site and the one where a modest tool, calibrated, beats an expensive one used carelessly.
Which Type Do You Need?
- Open lawn, want it done quickly → broadcast spreaders
- Narrow strips, close to beds or paving → drop spreaders
- Small lawn or spot work → handheld spreaders
- Spot-treating weeds → pump sprayers
- Treating a whole lawn in one pass → backpack sprayers
Our Top Picks
Reviews in progress
The Types, Briefly
Broadcast Spreaders
Throw product in an arc. Fast, wide, and imprecise at the edges.
Drop Spreaders
Release straight down in the width of the hopper. Precise, slower, unforgiving of a missed pass.
Handheld Spreaders
Small hopper, crank or battery driven. Suits small lawns and patch work.
Pump Sprayers
Hand-pumped pressure for spot treatment and small areas.
Backpack Sprayers
Larger capacity carried on the back, for whole-lawn applications.
Hose-End Sprayers
Dilute from the tap. Convenient, and the least precise way to hit a rate.
How to Choose a Spreader or Sprayer
The specification that matters is not capacity — it is whether the tool can be calibrated and then repeated. A spreader is only as good as its ability to deliver the same amount on the second pass as on the first, which comes down to the gate mechanism and how positively it locks. Cheap spreaders drift open under load, and a gate that moves halfway through the lawn produces exactly the striping people blame on the fertiliser. Calibrate once against a known area and mark the setting; that single habit outperforms any upgrade.
| Specification | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Gate or rate control | Must lock positively and return to the same position. Drift under load is the main cause of uneven application. |
| Hopper capacity | Match to lawn size so you are not refilling mid-pass. Refills are where consistency is lost. |
| Spread width (broadcast) | Determines pass spacing. You need the number to overlap correctly, and it varies with product density. |
| Edge guard | Keeps product off paving and out of drains — which is a water-quality issue as well as a waste one. |
| Tank material and seals (sprayers) | Some products degrade seals. Check chemical compatibility rather than assuming. |
| Nozzle set (sprayers) | Fan nozzles for coverage, cone for spot work. The nozzle changes rate as much as the pressure does. |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
What to ignore
- — Published spread widths quoted without a product density — the figure changes with what is in the hopper
- — Pneumatic tyre marketing on small lawns, where it adds weight for little benefit
- — 'Calibrated' settings printed on a product bag as though they transfer between spreader models — they do not
Common mistakes
- — Never calibrating, then blaming the product for stripes
- — Using a broadcast spreader near water or paving without an edge guard
- — Applying at full rate in one pass instead of half rate in two perpendicular passes, which is far more forgiving
- — Leaving product in a sprayer between uses, which degrades seals and cross-contaminates the next application