Near Intersection of I-35 & I-90 Southern Mn. | The picture of the applicator that he used as a reference appears to have a Hiniker system on it. They are based in Mankato Minnesota. The white cylinder is what they use for a heat exchanger. A heat exchanger is necessary to keep the NH3 in a liquid state so the flow meter can accurately measure the flow.
For many years, Hiniker used a combination paddle wheel/Servo assembly. This was a single assembly that contained both a paddle wheel to measure the flow and send pulses to the controller and a servo valve to restrict the flow. The controller would calculate the applied rate based on ground speed, width and a meter cal. It would compare this value to the desired target rate that the operator had entered. The system would open or close the servo valve slightly if the applied rate was not in close agreement with the target rate.
The ON/OFF function was handled by a separate ON/OFF valve before the flow split to go to the various knives. This was often a hydraulic shutoff.
Later, Hiniker went with a separate flow meter and control valve such as Raven used all along.
The Hiniker heat exchanger was adequate for a rig of this size but did not have adequate cooling capacity for large rigs running at higher speeds with higher rates in colder weather.
Edited by tedbear 3/9/2026 09:02
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NH3 Bar Components?
