Great Northwest Community Improvement Association, Inc.

Community Manager's Corner, Kathy Smith, PCAM, LSM

Sep 26, 2003

ET Phone Home

In our ongoing effort to maintain a high level of service we have joined with HydroPoint Data Systems in making our irrigation system servicing the Silver Creek Soccer fields a ?“smart?” system. Okay, it can?’t really phone home but with the installation of a new ?“WeatherTRAK ET Controller?” it is able to combine local weather station data, information from NOAA weather satellites and simple pager technology to operate more efficiently. With the ET controller, it will no longer be necessary for the Great Northwest maintenance staff to make ongoing adjustments to the watering schedules due to rain and other seasonal changes.

HydroPoint Data Systems, manufacturer of WeatherTRAK, selected Great Northwest Community to receive the donated controller because we are the largest property owner association in Central Texas and have a history of setting the pace for other communities in our state. It also provides HydroPoint with the opportunity to display the benefits of this new technology through out our great state. The unit installed to service our soccer fields is the same product that can be used with your residential irrigation system. It will soon be available for purchase by homeowners through many local irrigation contractors. The benefit of our replacing our existing irrigation controller is the savings of staff time and water.

What is ET? Sounds like a science fiction movie doesn?’t it? ET, or evapotranspiration, is actually the amount of water lost by a plant and its soil due to transpiration and evaporation caused by weather conditions. The WeatherTRAK ET controller with the use of its unique scheduling software is able to maintain an individual watering schedule for each zone on the irrigation system. Watering schedules will vary, depending on type of sprinkler, soil, water application rate, slope, plant type, sunlight exposure, root depth and other variables. This is of great benefit to us here in the Great Northwest where our soil has a great deal of clay. If water is applied to heavily it simply runs off with little benefit to our turf. The controller is set for our soil type and will cycle through each of our zones watering for the appropriate amount of time and will go through this cycle three times each day, or as needed. This will allow the water the opportunity to soak into the ground.

The irrigation controller is set up and based on local weather station data will adjust the watering schedule daily. This means if we suddenly get a cold front, the irrigation system won?’t continue operating on a summer schedule and will adjust the watering to fit the present weather conditions. HydroPoint downloads weather data from NOAA weather satellites and other weather data sources. Next, HydroPoint computers calculate ET information. Once the ET value is calculated, the information is sent to the controller box via satellite pager technology and schedules are adjusted for each zone on the irrigation system.

During early September, representatives from HydroPoint and I met with Calvin Finch, and other San Antonio Water System (SAWS) staff to tell them about the upcoming installation of the ET controller. SAWS staff were pleased to learn about the installation at our soccer field, they are familiar with our Community. They recognize that sports fields and commercial landscapes consume a great deal of water. With the Silver Creek Soccer Field having a dedicated irrigation meter, we will easily be able to monitor our water usage ?– comparing usage to previous years of irrigation.

Water officials from California and other Western states have seen success with the water savings obtained using the WeatherTRAK ET controller. They see it as a device to help homeowners ?“kick the habit?” of using too much water on their lawns and gardens. Although San Antonio residents have reduced their overall water consumption from the early 1980s through the present, there still is a great deal of water wasted with landscape irrigation. And now, with regulated limits on how much water can be drawn from the Edwards Aquifer, it is more important than ever for San Antonio residents to conserve water.

Results of pilot studies at the Irvine Ranch Water District in Southern California are an indication of what we can expect at the Great Northwest. Irvine Ranch had a 16 percent average reduction in landscape water use, much higher in some instances. The homeowner participants liked the convenience of never having to set or change their watering schedule. In fact, 39 out of the 40 participants said their landscape looked good or better than before the study.

An Environmental Protection Agency study at Irvine Ranch documented a 71 percent reduction in water runoff from sprinkler systems. In case you did not know, water runoff from sprinkler systems is a major source of water waste in the San Antonio area. This runoff also washes fertilizers, pesticides and animal waste into our streams and aquifer.

With effective use of our resources we are able to maintain beautiful landscapes in our Community and private homes. This all adds to the value of our property and quality of our life here in the Great Northwest. If you have questions about the WeatherTRAK ET controller technology, you can check out HydroPoint?’s Web site at www.hydropoint.com or send an email to rreaves@hydropoint.com. Once the company?’s distribution is set up in Texas, you?’ll be able to purchase your own WeatherTRAK ET controller through local irrigation contractors. If you are looking for more information on water conservation go to the San Antonio Water System Web site at www.saws.org. SAWS offers several rebate programs Great Northwest residents can take advantage of.