.png)
Smart watering devices are here, and now is exactly when to install them to save money as we head into August. Most of the major players in the sprinkler space like Hunter, Orbit and Rainbird have released smart watering devices, from sprinkler timers to hose timers. Having tried them out for the last year, I can attest that they’re all pretty awesome, but you have to mix and match to get the best out of them.
What is a smart watering device?
Until a few years ago, sprinkler timers went off at set times, rain or shine. Generally a little hard to program, they were reliable and in some cases, came with a “rain delay,” which meant you could hit a button and delay the sprinkler for a day or two if you knew water was about to fall from the sky. Then came timers for your hose, which allowed you to run a sprinkler or hose with roughly the same controls—set a timer and punch a button for a rain delay.
But in 2023, every major player in the sprinkler market has dived into smart systems, and with some gentle comparison, you can use these improved smart watering devices to save money and save yourself from having to race to the timer in the rain and fight spiders to turn your sprinkler off.
Smart devices have two differences from regular non-smart devices. First, they can be controlled by your phone, and let’s not kid around, you can’t undersell this benefit, since no one likes to nose around in a spider-filled box outside, particularly in the rain, which is when you usually need to hit “rain delay.” Online interfaces are easier to use than the button UI on most timers. While these apps allow you to create schedules, just as the timers do, they also allow you to control the sprinklers manually, like a remote. So you can independently turn on one zone for a one-time watering. The second benefit is that some of these timers can actually predict how much watering you’ll need based on the weather, and adjust your watering accordingly.
The difference between bluetooth and wifi enabled smart timers
Smart timers come in two flavors: bluetooth and wifi. Bluetooth timers generally do not require a hub, but require that you be within range of your timer to control it with your phone. To do so, you’ll use an app; every single player in this space has multiple apps, and they don’t often play well with each other. Remember, with a bluetooth device, you can’t control it when you’re away from home. Go on vacation and see that it’s raining—and you can’t turn the sprinklers off.
Once you add a wifi hub to a wifi-enabled device, you get two benefits. First, you can access and control the timer remotely, like when you’re away from home. The second and best reason to use wifi is that it allows the timer to speak to a local weather station, so the timer can choose whether to water or not based on hyperlocal weather.
Check out these smart sprinkler timers:
Smart hose timers:
Smart wifi timers and evapotranspiration
Being a simple human, I see water falling from the sky and think, “rain good.” My smart timer is, well, smarter. It understands that water not only falls from the sky, but is transferred back to the atmosphere from the ground based on the weather, and the name for that is evapotranspiration.
It uses the local weather to calculate how much to water based on rain, moisture in the air and water leaving the ground. What’s more fascinating is to see how many hyperlocal weather stations there are—I have one mere blocks away. It’s useful to have a weather station nearby, since you have microclimates even within your neighborhood, and all of these smart timers access private weather stations, not just public ones, so you’re more likely to find one nearby. To find out your local weather stations, go to Wunderground and search for your closest station.
Smart sprinkler timers cost about the same as traditional sprinkler timers
For all the functionality they bring, you’d think smart timers would be much more expensive, but they’re all still pretty affordable. An eight-zone timer by Hydrawise is $108, the exact price as their traditional timer, without wifi functionality. Rachio, which also offers an eight-zone wifi controller, is $186. They don’t cost more to install, either, because the installation is precisely the same.
Configuring one of these devices takes 10-15 minutes, and can be handled by any layperson. You generally download an app, connect the wifi hub to the app, and then connect the device to the hub. If you’ve ever used a smart device, you’ll find this comparable.
Mix and matching systems
In my front yard, I’m using a Hunter Hydrawise timer, and have been very happy with it. This year, I wanted to add on a smart timer in my backyard to my hose. I was shocked to learn that even though Hunter had a smart hose timer, it would use a completely different app than my timer in the front yard. Without the benefit of sharing an ecosphere, I figured I might as well go with any hose timer I wanted. Ultimately, I kept the Orbit B-hyve system, which, just like my Hydrawise, connects to a local weather station and is controlled via wifi, not bluetooth. I chose it because I could control two zones instead of only one. B-hyve allows for much more fine tuning of the smart timer, running you through questions about what kind of watering devices you’re using, what the soil is like, and what you’re growing.
from Lifehacker https://ift.tt/ISEfoim
0 comments:
Post a Comment