Hi, I have never used a commercial-grade soil moisture probe. But a "simple" soil moisture sensor is very common and heavily used by DIY electronic projects. I use the term 'simple' not because it is inaccurate but because it is very basic electronic product (a circuit board without any protection from elements). Because of the simplicity, you need to BUILD the entire system using microcontroller.
It can cost only about $15 for a sensor and microcontroller if you use this product: link <https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/soil-moisture-sensor-hookup-guide> It can cost about $60 for a waterproof sensor and microcontroller using this product: link <https://www.adafruit.com/product/1298> No matter what kind of sensor you use, you will need to use microcontroller to control the sensor (send a command, receive data). To make sure that a sensor is reading with high accuracy, I would build one and compare results with other expensive commercial products. Using a microcontroller for science is getting popular (my paper <http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13157-016-0801-4>) but can be little challenging for beginners. There are many instructions out on the Internet (search for "arduino, raspberry pi, moisture sensor, irrigation system" example <http://www.instructables.com/id/Arduino-LCD-Soil-Moisture-Sensor/>). Please let me know if you have any question. Best, Dong Yoon Lee Postdoctoral researcher Department of Biological Sciences Florida International University On Fri, Apr 28, 2017 at 11:39 AM, liz mcgovern <[email protected]> wrote: > Hello, > > I have had several people inquire if anyone has provided me with soil > moisture probe recommendations. Unfortunately, I have not received any yet. > > Can anyone recommend a durable, accurate, and inexpensive (under $ 200) > portable soil moisture meter? > > Thank you, Liz > > On Tue, Apr 25, 2017 at 8:28 AM, Scaife, Charles Isaac < > [email protected]> wrote: > >> Hi Liz, >> >> I'm curious what you hear from other people. We're in the market as well. >> Our current probes cost around $1,200! >> >> Thanks, >> >> Charles >> >> -------- >> Charles I. Scaife, M.A. >> Ph.D. Student, Department of Geography >> University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill >> [email protected] >> >> ________________________________________ >> From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news < >> [email protected]> on behalf of Liz McGovern < >> [email protected]> >> Sent: Monday, April 24, 2017 3:40:01 PM >> To: [email protected] >> Subject: [ECOLOG-L] Can anyone recommend an inexpensive portable soil >> moisture meter? >> >> >> Hello, >> >> I am working on a project on the impact of weather and climate on >> blacklegged tick survival. Can anyone recommend a durable, accurate, and >> inexpensive (under $ 200) portable soil moisture meter? >> >> Thank you, Liz >> >> Elizabeth McGovern >> Research Specialist >> Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies >> [email protected] >> > >
