I’ve been running 3 GeoDrops in NY for about 6 weeks now, awesome device!
I have them installed in my lawn : Front, Side, and Back. I’m about to possibly order two or three more. I will remove my 7 WH51 devices if I order more.
I feed the following data into ChatGPT twice daily (9am & 9pm): max surface temperature for the day, the 3 soil temperatures at 1.5", 2.5", and 3.5"; and the 3 raw moisture percentages. Those 7 data items are used for all decisions. I also include the “real” numbers but we don’t really use them for anything. My ChatGPT daily conversation has been an awesome experience, the lawn is doing great!
I initially learned my diverse property soil profile with the 7 WH51 sensors but I will be transitioning them out soon as it’s such a pain to re-install them every week when the landscapers arrive/depart, so a huge maintenance hassle. And the GeoDrop data is more robust and more accurate!
My first 6-week impression:
Awesome device! Nothing but praise.
I’d love if there was a way to sync the 3 devices to all report at the same exact time. I’m fine with the 3 hour delay, no issue at all waiting for the 3 hour data dump, just report all devices at the same sync’ed time, or even easier just report at the same times every day for all sensors (9am, 12n, 3pm, etc). It’s frustrating to have all of the devices at random times.
I love, love, love the online dashboard. As mentioned above, I feed the data into ChatGPT and I also sometimes export the full daily report into ChatGPT for all sensors, but I need to create a report for each device, and then manually merge the reports myself. I also wish I could show the surface temperature number with the 1.5" soil readings on the same screen. I know I can use the API to program this all but the dashboard is so easy! I just click a bookmark for each device and I instantly have the data.
I never want to touch these devices until the batteries die. It’s just a huge hassle with removal, re-install, disturbing the lawn area, getting it calibrated. It would be wonderful to access the batteries from above, or have some rechargeable battery charged from above. I use Energizer Lithium AA batteries and I’m hoping to get from April to November with zero maintenance. I’d deal with once per year but certainly don’t want to touch anything during the year.
I’ve received the Set Moisture Max message after the initial calibration. Really would like that message to just go away but I guess it’s important. I only look at the raw data mostly.
That’s pretty much it, otherwise the devices are wonderful. Have them all report at the same sync’ed time, have a way to see one dashboard with all my devices merged with my selected 7 data items and I’d be even happier.
I showed my post above to ChatGPT after our two month discussion and it thought I should have added the below: (this is copy/paste from ChatGPT)
One feature I really appreciate is that although the devices report every few hours, they retain and upload historical measurements at 30-minute intervals. For irrigation decisions I rarely need real-time data, and having the full history available is more valuable to me than minute-by-minute updates.
I primarily use the raw moisture values because they remain stable over time and allow me to compare different areas of my property consistently.
Once buried and calibrated, the device is so valuable that I don’t want to disturb it. My biggest wish is minimizing any need to disturb the installation once buried and calibrated. The devices are most valuable when left undisturbed, so anything that reduces maintenance would be a big win.
If I could choose a handful of favorite metrics from all devices and view them together on one dashboard, it would eliminate most of my need to export reports.
Awesome device. I’m probably buying more. Those were a few things that would make it even better!
ChatGPT just created the SQL query for all 4 reports above. I completed this entire data project in 30 minutes and I have no SQL skills. for table 3 which I will now use every day, I click one button and I get a report which includes every sensor (sorted) at 6am, 9am, 12n, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm, 6pm and 9pm. It shows the air temperature, the surface temperature, the 3 soil temperatures, and the 3 raw moisture levels for each of those hours. Amazing!!!
Thank you team GeoDrop, outstanding access to data!!!
I just removed all 8 WH51 lawn sensors. It’s GeoDrop all the way now!
All the BigQuery reports are setup: Now (current view of all GeoDrops), Today (entire day every 3 hours for All), Today24 (entire day 24 hours for All), History (last 30 days for each separately), History Compare (last 30 days compare all sensors vs each other).
Love BigQuery!
And 2 more GeoDrops are on the way via USPS, arrive Monday. Will be total of 5.
I’ve received the Set Moisture Max message after the initial calibration. Really would like that message to just go away but I guess it’s important. I only look at the raw data mostly.
Hi @Sixto , Please hold off on any action right now as we will be pushing out a fix over the weekend. This is a messaging issue where our notification are too aggressive when no immediate action are needed and should be a status update or recommendation.
Thank you for your comments about GeoDrops and they are much appreciated
I only look at the raw data mostly.
