The five major features unique to the Autopot System are:-
- Water Efficiency. Every drop of water that goes via the Smartvalve to the growing container is available to the plant. The single minimal wastage of water is through evaporation from the surface of the container. There is no run-off and no recycling of water.
- Watering According To Demand. The Autopot dictates that the amount and frequency of water provided is exactly as the plants require
- Electricity Supply Not Critical. The automating forces of the Autopot System are either gravity in the case of a tank fed system or tap pressure in tap fed systems. Absolutely no electricity or battery driven devices are necessary.
- Inexpensive To Buy And Maintain. There is no expensive outlay in electrical connection, pumps, computers and piping. All the water connections are by a 4mm thick soft plastic tubing that is joined or junctioned by simple press-in types of plastic joiners that are very inexpensive. This small diameter tubing is practical simply because the valves operate independently and seldom will more than one be open at a time. Therefore the demand for water is spread throughout the day. Running the tube over or through walls, under paths, across rafters or wherever it needs to go is very simple compared to the problems and expense of achieving this with polythene, copper or galvanised piping that also normally requires a plumber to install. The thin tubing is normally held in place by simple, inexpensive plastic saddle clamps.
Self-scheduling. Conventional irrigation requires expertise in scheduling an irrigating cycle. It relies on human judgement for interpretation of the needs of the plants and at best can only satisfy the needs of the average plant. The Autopot System caters exactly for the plant’s ever changing needs throughout the year, winter and summer.
