Irrigation Flow System

[rgsparber]

When a home irrigation system develops a leak, it can cost hundreds of dollars before the problem is noticed. My last leak cost me $300. That was enough to stimulate developing a system that monitors irrigation water flow and shuts down problem zones. It also sounds an alarm plus drives a display to tell me what is wrong. The cost of this system was around $150.

I see this design saving a great deal of water and my hope is that someone picks it up and brings it to market. I do not seek nor will I accept any money from them.

If you are interested, please see

http://rick.sparber.org/electronics/FMC.pdf


Your comments are welcome. All of us are smarter than any one of us.

[extropic]

I think you've got an excellent idea here. Also, the work that went into documenting it is a major contribution to those of us with less skill developing that type of device. Thank you for sharing your work.

I downloaded your .pdf and intend to study it.

[rgsparber]

I think you've got an excellent idea here. Also, the work that went into documenting it is a major contribution to those of us with less skill developing that type of device. Thank you for sharing your work.

I downloaded your .pdf and intend to study it.

Thanks for the encouragement. Although this took about 9 months to develop, it is the easy part. The hard part is to turn it into a product and market it. I'm hoping others pick up the ball and run with it. As a society, we must find ways to save water. Preventing irrigation leaks is both painless and cost effective.

[Jon]

Congratulations rgsparber - your Irrigation Flow System is the Homemade Tool of the Week!

Very useful tool, and great documentation too. This system can save water, prevent damage, and eliminate the constant stress of an impending high bill.

Other nice entries this week:

Lantern Chuck by jjr2001
Tailstock Uncenter by Captainleeward
Lathe Spindle Handwheel by jjr2001
Clutch Push Rod Modification by olderdan
Replaceable Tip Screwdriver by Captainleeward
Vise Restoration by Vyacheslav.Nevolya
Lathe Spindle Spider by jjr2001
Action Camera Holder by Make Everything

rgsparber - you'll be receiving a $25 online gift card, in your choice of Amazon, PayPal, or bitcoin. Please PM me your current email address and gift card choice and I'll get it sent over right away.

We'll be adding your tool entry to our All Homemade Tool of the Week winners post.

This is your 2nd Homemade Tool of the Week win. Here's your last winning tool:

CNC Controller by Rick Sparber

tags: CNC, controller

[wb8nbs]

I did something like that a couple of years ago, my box just checks flow rates and quantity. Had a terrible time finding out what the standards were for setting the K factor and offset.
https://wb8nbs.wordpress.com/2015/10...-flow-sensors/

[rgsparber]

I did something like that a couple of years ago, my box just checks flow rates and quantity. Had a terrible time finding out what the standards were for setting the K factor and offset.
https://wb8nbs.wordpress.com/2015/10...-flow-sensors/

Very nice write up. Clear and easy to follow.

I also looked at using a turbine to sense flow. They are very low cost and generate a nice pulse. However, I felt that they would not be accurate enough, especially at low flow rates. At high rates, they also become inaccurate.

The Badger Model 25 is a very common water meter used by water departments and has been around for a long time. I compared it to the city's water meter and found that each revolution of its "nutating" disk equals 0.028 gallons. If it wasn't accurate, there would be law suits. The big down side of using this meter is the adapter I had to build in order to pick up the disk rotation and turn it into a pulse.

Rick

[PJs]

Rick, that is an exemplary write up on your complex system and impressive R&D to a working system. Thank you and congratulations on tool of the week. I LOL'd on the spaghetti code as I have had to untangle of number of those plates on PLC stuff back in the day...it takes time but worth it on efficiency and memory space. From your write up people may also get some clarity as to why R&D isn't cheap but so worth it in the long run to do it right! Perhaps Jon might consider this project for a longer term higher award as it's truly impressive IMHO. ~PJ

P.S. Nothing like a diamond back to get your attention first thing in the morning!! Wow

[rgsparber]

PJ,

Thanks for the very generous words. I'm sure glad I didn't have to document all of my rework of the software!

I see that you found my "Easter egg" ;-)

We live in the desert and it always bothers me to see gushers running for hours on end. Recently, there has been a fire storm of angry people complaining about their water bills. In most cases, I think they are due to irrigation leaks. Some bills jumped over $2000 in one month.

[Jon]

You have to wonder about the economic incentives at hand. How do cities generally handle water sales? Public? Private? Subsidized?

I've heard the thousand-dollar horror stories as well. But I wonder what the average citizen pays each month for water leaks. And what does the average city profit each month in water leaks?

Are there any incentives present for municipal water suppliers to address leaks? Or is it in their best interest to just look the other way, and to profit generously from homeowner water leaks?

[rgsparber]

You have to wonder about the economic incentives at hand. How do cities generally handle water sales? Public? Private? Subsidized?

I've heard the thousand-dollar horror stories as well. But I wonder what the average citizen pays each month for water leaks. And what does the average city profit each month in water leaks?

Are there any incentives present for municipal water suppliers to address leaks? Or is it in their best interest to just look the other way, and to profit generously from homeowner water leaks?

Here in Phoenix the water comes from the city. No way to know if they make a profit from it. However, when people get this giant bills, the public anger is high and at least one local politician uses it to his advantage. He sides with the "wronged" public and beats up the water department. All the water department can say is that they have verified their billing system is accurate. If in doubt, people can read the meter themselves. I did that for about a year and our numbers always matched.

One thing people do not understand is that the city owns up to and including the meter. Any leak after the meter belongs to the owner of the property. Leaks before the meter do not register and are fixed by the city. No surprise there except to those irate customers.

We have many organizations both in local government and in the community that work hard to reduce our water usage. They understand that if we run out of water, the city will be abandoned. The water we get from the Colorado River comes from Lake Mead which is dangerously low.

My goal is to have this Flow Monitor and Control turned into a product and to have every home in the Phoenix Metro area running one. I hope that who ever brings it to market make a lot of money. I'd just be thrilled to have an impact on our water problem.