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There are a few things about weather data for your smart irrigation controller you should consider. Should you use free or paid data sources, on site (local) or off site (remote) weather stations?

Probably the first thing people look at is the cost of the weather data. These are the paid services that will deliver the data to your smart irrigation controller. The companies that provide this service are in business to make a profit. That is why there is a charge for this service. Typically they charge you either monthly or yearly. Over time the cost of this service can be more than what you originally paid for your smart irrigation controller. Are they selling you the controller or the data? What would happen if the company that supplied you with their data went of our business, changed their pricing or just didn't want your business? How would you use your smart irrigation controller?

Then there are the free data sources that can be used with your smart irrigation controller. They are free in that they don't charge a fee and are usually accessible to anyone with a computer and Internet connection. Don't be miss led with these free ones, they are run by qualified people, many are funded by tax payers and other special interest entities. Their goal is to help people use only the water they need and not to waste it. In some cases the money saved with the free weather data may pay for the smart irrigation controller. Not all smart controllers will allow you to use free weather data but there are ones out there that do.

There is also on site data that is provided by a weather station that is located in the same area as the smart irrigation system. This is an excellent solution as you would have the weather data that is representative of your location. There is the purchase cost and some up keep with these weather stations but this could be offset by the water savings on larger irrigation systems. Keep in mind that your weather station will require a solar radiation sensor.

There are also the off site weather stations that can supply data to your smart controller. Many times these are part of a large network with many weather stations in them. They are great for obtaining water loss data over a good size area but rainfall can vary a lot over this same area. That is why it is nice to have a on-site tipping bucket rain gauge so that accurate and meaningful rainfall can be used by the smart controller.

So before going out and purchasing a smart irrigation controller be sure to look at the weather data options and ongoing cost.

To learn more about smart irrigation timers and weather data solutions from Gwytech Systems Inc.

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