NOW THAT IT’S finally, really, almost spring where I live in Minneapolis, it’s time I got serious about my yard. Experts have told me that watering consistently is the only way to get a lush, green lawn. As I planned a tech-enabled automated watering system, I had visions of walking across my property like Jason Day evaluating his next putt at Augusta, not a single weed in sight.
There are several devices you can use to schedule regular, consistent waterings. The most effective is an in-ground sprinkler system. The exorbitant cost—around $2,000, including equipment and labor—gets you a system that stays hidden and is very efficient. You can also get an Internet-connected controller box that can be set by an app on your phone. The controllers like the ones from Rachio, Skydrop, and Blossom can even gather weather data and pause your watering schedule on rainy days.
There are ways, however, to get the benefits of a connected sprinkler system without spending thousands of dollars and digging trenches through the grass. I decided to put one such method to the test. By pairing Iris by Lowe’s Smart Home Hub with two Orbit Iris Hose Faucet Timers, I aimed to create an Internet-connected above-ground system that allows me to water my lawn using regular hoses and movable sprinklers, all controlled by taps on an iPhone screen. Total cost: well under $200.
Installation Fun
The hub and controllers are all part of the Iris smart home platform. It’s a Lowe’s product (yep, the hardware store), and the company sells dozens of devices made by different manufacturers that can all talk to each other. The hub acts like a traffic cop, relaying your commands and keeping everything working together. You can install things like smart power outlets, smart door locks, and motion-sensing security alarms, connect them to the hub, and control your entire house through the Iris app. The tiny Iris hub ($60) is required, and so is the free Iris app—though downloading the correct app is important. There’s a first-generation version of the Iris app and a new version, but both are in the store. It’s hard to tell the difference; both apps use a similar Iris logo, but one app is clearly marked first-gen. You want the new one.
The Orbit faucet timers ($40 each) have an in nozzle, an out nozzle, and a dial for setting watering schedules manually. You connect your sprinkler hose to the out nozzle, then turn on the faucet and leave it on. The timer regulates the flow from there.
To get them online, you connect them to the Iris hub using ZigBee, a short-range wireless protocol that’s very similar to Wi-Fi. You plug the hub into your Wi-Fi router using an Ethernet cable, install the app on your phone, then, after registering for a free Iris account, start building your network of devices. The hub beeps three times each time you connect something new.
If you have a large house or, like me, you’re trying to talk to devices outdoors, you may need a $30 Iris Smart Plug. This acts as connected outlet that you can switch on and off with your phone, but it also doubles as a repeater, creating a stronger ZigBee connection so the hub can talk to devices further away.