RainMachine Mini User Manual
2.
HOW IT WORKS
An irrigation controller is a device to operate automatic irrigation systems such as lawn
sprinkler. Controllers have means of setting the frequency of irrigation, the start time, and the
duration of watering.
While most sprinklers have a fixed duration of watering (e.g. 1 minutes per zone, as defined
by the user), the RainMachine automatically adjusts your
base watering duration
by lowering
it on rainy or colder days and increasing it on hot summer days.
Because the system dynamically adjust the watering duration the RainMachine not only
saves water but it also protects your plants.
2.1. Base Watering Duration
The Base Watering Duration is the duration of watering required for each zone,
during a
normal, summer day
, as defined by the enduser.
Initial calibration efforts using complex formulas that take in consideration soil type, inclination
and hypothetical solar irradiation amounts are possible, but they are not practical. Variable
city water pressure as well as uneven water distribution among all sprinkler heads, coupled
with local shading conditions create an impractical and inaccurate model in gauging what’s
best for your garden.
Note: Our device guarantees seasonally and daily water savings based on calculations that
take in consideration vegetation type, variability of the weather and time of year, but it cannot
prevent water waste, should you set the Base Watering Duration to something much higher
than normal.
Given a Base Watering duration per each zone, as decided by you, the RainMachine will then
dynamically adjust the watering duration, up and down, as needed. These adjustments are
the result of Evapotranspiration calculations based on your vegetation type (Lawn, Bushes,
Flowers, Vegetables, Citrus, etc) and feedback from meteorological data such as:
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