More and more, communities and clients are requiring landscapes that are both attractive and environmentally sustainable—particularly when it comes to efficient water use.
Smart Water Application Technologies, including “smart” irrigation controllers in particular, are a key component of any water-efficient irrigation system. A good irrigation design using conservation tested products can deliver proven water savings while maintaining—and often enhancing—the health and beauty of any type of landscape.
What are “smart” irrigation controllers and how do they help reduce water use?
Unlike traditional irrigation controllers, which are really just timers, “smart” controllers work by monitoring and using information about site conditions (such as soil moisture, rain, wind, slope, soil, plant type, and more), and applying the right amount of water based on those factors—not too much and not too little—to maintain healthy growing conditions. Once the “smart” controller is installed and set up, the “smart” controller automatically takes care of seasonal weather/site specific adjustments, and does not require ongoing monitoring.
“Smart” irrigation has an extensive history of scientific and field documentation. Golf courses, parks and athletic departments have used climate-based irrigation systems for more than 20 years. Now these scheduling technologies are available to your clients as “smart” controllers.
How Smart Water Application Technologies add value to your business
Smart Water Application Technologies—beginning with “smart” irrigation controllers, and expanding in the future to include other third-party conservation tested irrigation products—provide a new, high-profile opportunity for irrigation designers, architects and specifiers to expand and specialize in the growing area of water-use efficiency and conservation. Because a well-designed and installed irrigation system is a critical part of any water-efficient landscape, end-users are looking for irrigation designers and landscape architects who specialize in water efficiency as the "experts" to guide them to the best solutions, often justifying the designer's fee with anticipated long-term water savings and the avoidance of water system development charges. And that means greater business opportunities for you.
