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Smart lawn watering system?

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  • May 13th, 2019 3:50 pm
Sr. Member
Mar 7, 2008
721 posts
196 upvotes
Leask

Smart lawn watering system?

My house has underground spinkers and I am interested in making it smart enable (connect to my iPhone) so I can remotely control it.

I see Eve has one that’s HomeKit supported. Cost a lot... anyone has experience?

Any other brand out there?
5 replies
Deal Addict
Nov 25, 2002
2769 posts
1331 upvotes
I think Rachio 3 is probably the best HomeKit if not the only HomeKit compatible irrigation system.

Been waiting for it to go on sale to convert my old toro command unit.
Deal Guru
User avatar
Mar 23, 2008
13006 posts
10009 upvotes
Edmonton
Depends on your needs. There's a number of "current gen" controllers that can be controlled either through HomeKit, some form of Z-Wave system (SmartThings, etc), or an app. For the ones that use Z-Wave or an app, there's very likely to be an iPhone interface.

For example, I went cheap with mine and got a b-hyve controller. That was last summer... Haven't gotten around to installing the sprinklers, so I can't give you a review. But it has an iPhone app.

C
Deal Fanatic
Jan 15, 2004
7631 posts
2175 upvotes
I have Rachio 2. Amazing.
Deal Addict
User avatar
Dec 18, 2002
3127 posts
320 upvotes
GTA
I have a b-hyve controller. Cheaper than the rest and works fine for me. It has smart watering functions and you can control everything from your phone.
Deal Addict
User avatar
Oct 14, 2010
1879 posts
1407 upvotes
Barrie ON
I have been looking into this myself, and these are my observations based on Internet research. Anyone with personal experience with these devices please let me know if I have made any errors.

I do have a Home Automation system, but I can't think of a reason why I would want to link my irrigation system with it. Perhaps if a camera detects motion at night, I could turn on the sprinklers to deter a prowler, but I don't anticipate that happening often. As a result, integration with Home Automation did not enter into my search for an Irrigation system.

My search has been narrowed down to either the Rachio or the Orbit B-Hyve.

After watching many YouTube videos, the Rachio seems to have the simplest phone app to navigate, but the B-Hyve has almost all the same capabilities if you take the time to find them on the app. Rachio has a couple of minor features which are lacking on the B-Hyve, and vice Versa.

The big differences are that the B-Hyve systems rated for Indoor/Outdoor, have manual controls under the cover, which the Rachio does not. As far as I can tell the B-Hyve indoor only models do not have these manual controls. You can make manual changes on the control panel, and the phone app will be updated automatically with these changes. I need an 8 zone timer, but Amazon only has the 8 zone indoor timer, so I will have to purchase the 12 zone indoor/outdoor timer to get the manual controls, which is only $33.00 more.

On the topic of indoor/outdoor, the Rachio requires an optional weatherproof case for outdoor mounting, while the B-Hyve indoor/outdoor models include the weatherproof case.

Perhaps the most important feature to me, is the the B-Hyve will continue to work like a standard controller if the Internet fails, or the company goes out of business. Of course the weather data will not be available, nor will smart phone access be available. But at least it doesn't become a brick like the Rachio would.

The 12 zone B-Hyve costs $157.47, and the 8 zone Rachio costs $292 for version 3, and $227 for version 2. So the B-Hyve easily wins with regards to cost.

Both devices will work with Amazon Echo and Google Home.

Once again, I welcome your personal experiences with either of these devices.

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