These 5 Best Smart WiFi Sprinkler Controllers in 2018 Gardens Need

Sprinklers are used by a majority of people who have a lawn or a garden in their backyard or front yard. Today, there are smart home sprinklers that can detect the moisture and weather around you to offer the right amount of water without requiring manual irrigation.

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We’re going to talk about five of the best smart Wi-Fi sprinkler controllers today. All of these come with smart features enabled, but some of them might differ significantly. So let’s have a look.

5 Best Smart WiFi Sprinkler Controllers

RainMachine Touch HD-12

This is a top of the line smart WiFi sprinkler and can save up to 80% of your weekly or monthly water costs thanks to smart features onboard. Using weather information from sources like NOAA, METNO and Wunderground, the sprinkler can cleverly judge the amount of water needed to keep the lawn fresh. Weather data is gathered every six hours, ensuring a steady stream of information for the sprinklers. This ensures that there’s no excess water going to your plants, which can sometimes be the case with standard sprinklers.

Compatibility with PC, as well as Android smartphones is an added advantage here as you can conveniently check on your sprinkler from anywhere in the world. The sprinkler is certified by EPA WaterSense, which makes it eligible for rebates from your local municipality. Despite its use case, this sprinkler system with a touchscreen display is only meant for indoor use. You can get all the details on your sprinkler right within the device, or from your smartphone if you so choose. This smart sprinkler is compatible with Amazon Alexa, so you can conveniently use your voice to pull up data from the sprinkler.

This is one of the more expensive variants out there and you will have to shell out $240 for this product. It comes with excellent ratings and customer reviews, so you can buy it with confidence.

Spruce

Yet another EPA WaterSense smart sprinkler system, the Spruce sprinkler system can be controlled using the Spruce Irrigation app for Android. The company also has a web-app so you can use it from any computer. Depending on the kind of landscaping you have, you can customize schedules as per your convenience. Since this is a smart sprinkler, it will pull up localized weather data to skip or use more water depending on the forecast. This can help you save a lot of money on water bills. For example, the sprinkler can automatically know when the weather will reach freezing temperature and it will stop watering the lawn accordingly.

The company also makes soil moisture sensors to give an even more in-depth understanding of how much water your lawn really needs. However, these have to be bought separately, although they will work with the aforementioned Android app as well. Since sprinkler systems have their range split into zones, the Spruce has 16 of them, allowing you to control a vast area of sprinklers across your home. Although it needs to be connected to your sprinkler’s wiring, it isn’t meant for outdoor use. So be sure to read the instructions carefully before going about the setup process.

This state-of-the-art smart sprinkler system is currently priced at $209.99 on Amazon

Orbit 57950 B-hyve

Yet another smart sprinkler system for your home, the Orbit B-hyve detects the soil conditions to cleverly judge the amount of irrigation required to keep your lawn going. It works with Amazon Alexa as well, making it ideally suited for voice commands. However, something like a sprinkler is expected to be more hands-on than hands-free. There is a dedicated smartphone app here as well, allowing you to check the watering status from anywhere. The scheduling feature is handy, and can be activated from the app or from the unit directly.

Installation is offered by the company for an additional $126, which I feel is not worth it especially when the company claims the setup process to be easy. The unit comes equipped with a weather resistant case on board, so there’s no real concern about weather damage despite keeping it outdoors. One of the marvels of smart sprinklers is that it can cleverly judge the amount of water needed at a particular time, offering the best results in the long term. The Orbit B-hyve is currently priced at $109 on Amazon.

Rachio

This is a simple to use sprinkler system, and it’s no surprise that this is Amazon’s highest rated smart sprinkler system. The companion smartphone app is expertly designed to help you navigate every corner of your garden, ensuring proper irrigation of your plants and/or lawn. You can input details like plant type so that the sprinkler can automatically assess the amount of water needed for its growth.

Given the ease of use and simplicity pitched by the company, it’s no surprise that this is one of the highest rated smart sprinkler’s out there. A quick read through the Amazon customer reviews will tell you why people love this product. However, at $223, it’s not the cheapest smart Wi-Fi sprinkler out there. But that’s not a concern when you’re considering the purchase of a quality product that will stand the test of time.

GreenIQ Smart Sprinkler Controller

As the name suggests, this is designed to keep your garden green, and without spending too much money on water bills. By checking weather reports, it can skip water cycles if there’s rain forecast in the near future. This way, customers can stand to save a fortune in the long run. It will simply replace your existing sprinkler controller and start fresh. The company mentions that setting it up barely requires 30 minutes, so expertise isn’t required to use this.

The controller is meant for outdoor use, which is why the company has been wise enough to offer water resistant body (IP55 certified). The product works seamlessly with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, so there are no dearth of smart features here. This product has been priced at $199.99 on Amazon, so it’s not exactly cheap.