PCO Invents Mounts for Small Flashlights

© credit Don Nilan

SHELTON, Wash. – When Don Nilan, owner of Bayside Service, Shelton, Wash., would apply liquid pesticides using a tank and sprayer in dark areas, he kept encountering the same frustration. “I needed to use a flashlight to see where I was spraying, but I had my tank in one hand and the sprayer in the other,” Nilan recalled.

The proverbial “lightbulb” went off in Nilan’s head. Let’s figure out a way to outfit the tip of a sprayer wand with a small flashlight, he thought. Nilan enlisted the assistance of George Burger, a friend who has a tool and die shop in Montana..

In researching the market, Nilan did find another small flashlight mount, but it was not created specifically for tank and sprayers. Nilan found it difficult to get this mount on and off. Also, because of where it is situated on the wand (at the elbow); he observed that it didn’t direct light exactly where it was needed.. 

© Don Nilan

The bait tube mount in use.

 

It took a few weeks of trial and error, but Nilan and Burger were able to create two different types of mounts to assist technicians: one for bait tubes (FireFly Universal Bait Tube Flashlight Mount) and another that attaches to the tip of a wand (FireFly Universal Wand Flashlight Mount). The wand mount has a double clip at the bottom, so it can be used on two different wand dimensions: ½-inch or 3/8-inch diameter, which means it can be used for numerous types of sprayers. 

“We had to work out a few kinks, but the mounts turned out great. Even with the battery ours weighs an ounce or less, and you’re not using it a lot, so the battery lasts forever,” he said.

These mounts save time and keep technicians safer in their daily route work, Nilan said. Nilan said he has sold about 80 of the mounts to fellow PCOs in the Pacific Northwest and abroad, by partnering with Connor Duffy of FlowZone, manufacturer of battery powered sprayers, to help with distribution. Learn more about these products at Bayside Service’s website or contact Nilan at at don@baysideservice.net.