- Posted on
Fri May 04, 2018 7:31 am
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Colorado4Wheeler
offline
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- Posts: 2794
- Joined: Jul 20, 2009
- Location: Colorado
I've considered this many times and figure that when I do it I'll likely do it with an Arduino or RPi. The reason I haven't is because the soil sensors are both expensive and not extremely accurate. I've looked into the pre-built systems out there that work over WiFi and they are reviewed mostly 2-3 stars at best because affordable soil sensors are just not very reliable.
I take a lot of RV trips in the summer and I can tell you what I'm doing, totally no tech, that works perfectly and that's just letting the plants wick. I just have coffee cans (I've also used pots, old plastic jugs, etc) and fill them with water and run a thick shoe lace (plastic ends cut off) from the water to the plant and bury the string 4-5 inches below the service. When the soil gets dry it wicks water into it. I come home after a long period away and the soil is moist and the plants are happy - no HA required. I haven't lost a plant yet.
My Modest Contributions to Indigo:
HomeKit Bridge | Device Extensions | Security Manager | LCD Creator | Room-O-Matic | Smart Dimmer | Scene Toggle | Powermiser | Homebridge Buddy
Check Them Out Here