Field Capacity per Zone and more granular
I have different soil types in my property so one system setting does not work well.
An option to override a system setting per Zone would be great.
Also, more granular setting (Hours or Days decimal) can help to fine tune.
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Official comment
Al,
In the next update we have changed functionality of zones to include not just Field Capacity per zone but Soil Type as well, and sprinkler head type.
You can beta test this update if you like by enabling settings>system>"Beta Quality Updates" from the web interface at my.rainmachine.com
It will also have EPA guideline estimates as well.
Thanks again for your time and input.
Brandon M
RainMachineComment actions -
Thank you Brandon, this is great news!
Please don't forget drip-line zones.
I would also encourage you to shift from blind time-based program approach to a program setup based on an actual plant needs-based approach: water in inches per week, optimum water penetration depending on a root depth and to shift from time-change to frequency-change based on soil, ET and rain. This would work great for drip-line zones too.
Perhaps you can start with a suggested default watering plan per zone based on above mentioned parameters.
Further, there may be an easy way to fine-tune a zone's capacity & ET by using manual spot moisture tester and analyzing changes. (This is short of implementing automated moisture sensors as some other users suggested).
It seems that the industry is moving away from old time-based approach to a need-based approach and I hope we can join them soon too.
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Well said AL FOX! I was just looking through the forum to see if anyone had any API/SDK code that could be run periodically to update my drip-line zones for fall and winter (ie run less frequently but run a little longer).
It looks like reducing time is actually hindering the drip-line's ability to fully saturate the root zone.
After looking through the vast information in the log files, it appears there is so much data behind the scenes that is not being used to its fullest potential.
Definitely hoping for a frequency-change option in the future, not only for drip-line, but also for grass!
Thanks!
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I completely agree with Al's comment. My fruit trees desire the same amount of water each irrigation, but the frequency varies from every few days in the summer to every few weeks in the winter. RainMachine support for soil depletion-based watering as Al describes would be phenomenal!
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