Australia’s farmers have started harvesting $44b of crops including grain, oilseed, pulse products, cotton and sugar. Unfortunately, every year crops and combines are lost as a result of fires sparked during harvesting. Growers can’t relax until the crop is in.
As El Nino arrives, the harvest fire danger risk is accelerating. It’s tragic for farmers. Having invested in fertilizer, diesel, and seed, the last thing they need is the crop go up in flames.
Nationwide, fire brigades attend harvest related fires almost every day, and many are caused by sparks generated from the Combine itself.
“We heard of a harvest fire started by an overheated bearing on a John Deere harvester,” said Aussie Pumps Regional Manager Michelle Anderson. “A passer-by happened to be the local Aussie Pumps dealer! He raised the alarm, a water cart was brought in and the crop and harvester were saved.”
“Having a water cart and a high performance pump on hand to douse spot fires can be the difference between a minor incident or catastrophic crop and equipment loss,” said Michelle. “We recommend a diesel powered pump under these extreme conditions. With a lower ignition point, diesel fuel is safer to handle when there are embers or hot equipment around.”
CROP PROTECTION
The Aussie Mr T twin 2” impeller pump is regarded as a market leader in its class. It can deliver flows in excess of 200 litres per minute at 65 metres head. A tanker version of the Mr T is supplied on a stainless steel base plate with anti-vibration mounts ready for easy installation on the tanker’s platform.
“There is no point in having a 10,000 litre capacity water cart if the pump isn’t powerful enough to use that capacity effectively,” explained Michelle. “An added bonus is the pump’s ability to draft water from creeks and dams. It has an unequalled vertical suction lift of 7.6m, ideal for filling the water cart.”
Aussie Pumps developed the big 3” high pressure pump as a village fire protection unit. The company claims that this 3” pump is the first of its kind to provide genuine ‘knock down’ performance — high volumes at high pressure, of up to 1,000 litres per minute.
“We’ve accelerated production of our Yanmar powered fire pumps ahead of the fire season this year to support farmers and homeowners. Conditions are set for a horrific summer and we want to help protect crops, livestock and lives,” said Michelle.
BUSHFIRE SURVIVAL GUIDE
Aussie Pumps has printed huge quantities of their FREE Aussie Bushfire Survival Guide . It shows a wide range of actions that can be taken to minimise the risk to property and livestock. Contact your local Aussie Gold dealer, or Aussie Pumps, for your FREE hard copy.
