On our latest IoT Podcast, Marty called our voice helpline with a question about smart irrigation products. He is looking for a multi-zone solution, preferably with HomeKit support, as well as a smart timer to go with it. There are a few products that are worth considering for this situation.
If Marty can live without HomeKit support, an option would be $ 199 Flume for water monitoring. This is less of a smart irrigation product and more of a water use device. Flume helps you save water by tracking usage and looking for leaks, so it may not be ideal. However, it works for both indoor and outdoor plumbing.
Rachio is a real smart sprinkler option that can be more suitable for Marty's use case.
The $ 149 Rachio 3e smart sprinkler controller uses WiFi to give you control and information about your sprinklers. Because it has an internet connection through your home network, it uses local weather data to provide more water on dry days or do not use water on rainy days. You can also schedule your sprinklers with the Rachio app.
Rachio recently added HomeKit support to this device, but there are still issues with the integration it's working on:
There are known issues with HomeKit integration, including disconnection, reconnection difficulties, "no response" notifications, and mesh network connections. The team is working with Apple and testing a new firmware version to resolve these issues.
If you find these HomeKit issues too daunting, there are two other options available.
The B-Hyve smart timer from Orbit costs $ 59 and works well based on my tests.
There are scheduling options, weather-based watering optimization and remote access to control flow. The downside, apart from being a single hose solution? Does not work with HomeKit.
The $ 99 Eve Aqua works with HomeKit, and even better in my opinion, it just won Thread support this week.
I haven't tested this device yet, but I recently received a review unit, so stay tuned for my thoughts. If it works as well as the other products supported by Thread by Eve, it would be worth considering.
However, this is also a unique solution, rather than a complete irrigation system.
To hear Marty's full question and discussion about it, sign up for the IoT Podcast below:
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