Add this rain sensor to your Rain8 Irrigation controller so that it doesn't water your garden if it has already been raining.
Description:
Don't be a Wally with water! There's not many things more wasteful than an automated irrigation system that runs when it doesn't have to - in the rain. A rain sensor is a device or switch that overrides the automatic irrigation system when sufficient rainfall occurs. The sensor shuts off a system if it is operating during a rain shower, or is scheduled to run the following day and it has recently rained. It will also return the system to its regular operation during normal weather conditions.
The RS001 rain sensor shuts sprinklers off in a storm and keeps them off, automatically compensating for the amount of rainfall that occurred. The RS001 can be used with our Rain8 irrigation controller, or most other electronic irrigation systems.
How it works:
Disks absorb water and then expand proportionally to the amount of rain that fell (e.g., a small cloudburst would result in little absorption, a thunderstorm with 100mm of rain would lead to more absorption and thus more expansion). As the moisture-laden disks expand, they eventually activate a switch that interrupts the circuit from the controller to the solenoid valves. Once dry, they contract and release the switch. Thus, the sensor automatically resets without ever affecting your controller.
This logical "don't water when it's raining" device can save from 25-40 percent in outdoor water use, maintaining this precious resource and reducing your water bills.