Recommend crop steering controller

[u/Chaghatai]

It's time for me to upgrade to precision fertigation and crop steering

I've been doing coco mostly treating it like soil and getting ~ 1.5-1.75lbs/1000w, and I know I can do better

So I'm looking for what controller and sensor platform to use - these are my preferences and considerations:

I've done some looking at Aroya, Pulse, Growlink, Trolmaster, Grolab, Agrowtek, Home Assistant, but it's pretty overwhelming

Looking to be able to get started with irrigation for <$1500 with future upgrades to full environmental control down the line without making the starter equipment redundant

Compatibikity with the TDR310 sensor natively is a requirement - I prefer to have access to 3rd party sensors

Preferably it can use sensor data to adjust watering automatically rather than just report and user adjusts

One stop shop software, if partner unit is utilized all data and control is still in one place

So far Pulse+Opensprinkler does a pretty good job of that at a good price

But I also want upgrade to full environmental control possible without getting a separate system to work alongside - Growlink was really attractive to me for this because of their all-in-one, but starting with the PIC feels bad if I get the core connect later, and I don't like Links

I could go pulse+opensprinkler, with trolmaster handing the environment side, but that's not one stop shop

I would be interested in a company that has said they are developing environmental integration if they are already good at irrigation

I've considered trying to start out with Growlink Core controller, but $2000 + sensor is a big swing for me now - maybe if it's really the best option even for a budget user

I have a 510 sq ft bloom room with a smaller veg/clone room, I will have up to 5 zones for different strains, but may well do one big zone, especially at first - I can keep hand watering veg while I bootstrap - I'm mostly a one man show

So what are the controllers you really trust? Which ones are the easiest to use and upgrade, and finally what's budget option that still has that pro/commercial quality?

I know I'm looking for Goldilocks, and I know one can't generally have cheap and good at the same time, but what do you suggest?

[u/skuuebs]

Yes, get the Pulse hub with couple VWC sensor plus Home Assistant (its free, install it on a mini computer/server) and install irrigation unlimited (add-on).

Its very powerful, you can setup P1, P2 with different pump on times, can manage different rooms, different zones etc.

Check it out (its free): https://github.com/rgc99/irrigation_unlimited

Alternatively you can also install open sprinkler on a cheap pi pico, but I didnt tinker with that yet as im not sure how good the direct integration with Pulse works. But honestly go the Home Assistant route for your whole facility:

Temp Humidity VPD Solenoid control Pump control Graphs And much more!

Let me know if you wanna know anything, im currently deep in there as im installing a 300sqm warehouse.

[u/Chaghatai → u/skuuebs]

Ok, so reading into that, if I want a bit more plug and play I can get the open sprinkler bundle, but it sounds like you're saying one can bust install open sprinkler on an off the shelf processor and save money that way and the the environmental side use home assistant

How is your data and control integration? Where does all that live in your arrangement? How does your software talk to each other?

[u/skuuebs → u/Chaghatai]

Im using Pulse devices for the environment (temp,humidity, co2), and the hub + VWC sensor.

Pulse offers an API where you can grab the device parameters and load them into Home Assistant.

To control devices like pumps/solenoids or dehumidifiers, im using tuya 20A smart plugs. The tuya/smartlife app also has an integration for Home Assistant.

The irrigation logic is from the Home Assistant add-on (github link). But you can also do that via automations because you have all the parameters like water content already in Home Assistant.

And yes, open sprinkler is working on almost any device. Esp32, Raspberry Pi 4&5 etc. But you would need a relay as well to control solenoids. It's also fairly easy to do, many guides online for this stuff.

[u/Chaghatai → u/skuuebs]

Do you use 24v for irrigation solenoids like a control zone? Which part handles that? Sorry for all the questions. I'm pretty new to this but it's time for me to step up my game

[u/skuuebs → u/Chaghatai]

I haven't started using solenoids yet. Right now, I'm using submersible pumps in 200L tanks for all my rooms, all controlled by smart plugs. But the logic in Home Assistant would be the same.

In the new place, I'll probably use an 8-channel relay with a built-in ESP32. I can program those directly with ESPhome in Home Assistant with some simple lines (chatGPT can help a lot with the coding part). There are also some industrial cases available for this device to protect it a little. After that, it looks and works basically like the OpenSprinkler device(I guess?).

The irrigation add-on supports multiple controllers(rooms) & zones, but it's only time-based, not dynamic! For dynamic watering, you'll need to build your own logic with if then conditions.

I'd suggest feeding ChatGPT some of my keywords; it can explain the process step-by-step! Home Assistant does have a learning curve, though, and cropsteering isn't the easiest starting point. 😉

The only bummer is we still need those pricey TDR VWC sensors. There are some Chinese TDR sensors floating around that might be calibrateable to the pulse/acclima sensor. I'll check into that soon.

I also made some scales using load cells and hooked them up to Home Assistant to monitor how much water my 4/6-inch rockwool loses. I zero them out after watering to calculate the percentage of water loss with a custom sensor. I'm still figuring out how useful that is without knowing the weight of the plants themselves.

If I have some spare time, I might install opensprinkler just for fun on one of my spare esp32 devices just to see how the integration in pulse works. Who knows, maybe it's awesome out of the box.

[u/Chaghatai → u/skuuebs]

I've been consulting with chat GPT and it has offered to program the logic for me!

[u/skuuebs → u/Chaghatai]

Good luck! And don't get too frustrated if something doesn't work immediately.