Power: Solar versions
The solar panel must be plugged in at all times, to keep the battery in good condition.
The solar panel should be mounted outside the greenhouse or polytunnel; try to position it so
that it catches the most sun possible.
The built-in battery will provide enough power for up to ten minutes of watering, and will
recharge fully within a few hours on a sunny summer day; more than enough for most
greenhouses and polytunnels.
Power saving (sleep)
The control unit will go to sleep when it is not doing anything, to save battery power. It wakes up
every 30 minutes to take readings, and to turn on the water pump if required.
To change settings, or override the watering,
the control box needs to be awake
.
To wake the unit up
press the watering button on the top until you hear a rising tone.
If the system is operating in offline mode, you can now connect to the control system WiFi
network (harvst-xxxx). In online mode, you can use the Harvst web app to control the unit
directly
as long as your phone or tablet is on the same WiFi network as the system
. The control unit
will still need to be woken up.
Winter commissioning
When you set up your system for the first time, youʼll want to run the pump to test your pipes and
fittings. This will probably run the battery down - when the battery is low, you will hear a falling
tone from the control unit and the pump wonʼt run for long, if at all.
In the winter, with overcast skies and a low sun, your battery may not recharge fully within a few
days. You can either wait until you have more sun, or you can buy a top-up / trickle charger to
take the place of the solar panel over winter.
Power: Mains versions
Plug the power supply into an indoor power point, or an outdoor waterproof power point. The
power supply comes with 5m of cable. If this is not enough to reach your greenhouse or
polytunnel you will need to get a qualified electrician to install a power point.
WARNING : Do not use a temporary extension cable
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