We are nearing the release of the latest WaterMate controller update, and would love to have some of you early-adopters help with final testing. The main change is non-functional ( we've made some changes to our development process ) ... and we want to be 100% sure that there are no functional changes or bugs introduced before we roll it out to all users.
In addition, we have added a few things:
- "battery too low to pump" now only activates when charge is LESS than 40%, it was previously LESS THAN OR EQUAL ... and with charge state being measured in lumps of 10% you were missing out on possible pumping time.
- There's a new "5 minutes" button for manual override ... if you want to use one of your zones in the greenhouse or polytunnel for hand watering ( Pro pumps only ). If you have a hand gun on the hose, when the gun is closed, the pro pump will stop due to the high pressure cut-out.
- Removed support for legacy wired soil sensors which used to use the 4-pin connector. We are working on a generic wired device system which will use the same 3-pin connector as the temperature sensor; in theory this can support soil sensors so that may be an option for the future.
- Fixed bug where "battery too low to pump" was showing for mains boxes ( though this did not prevent the box from pumping ).
- Calculate battery health on first power-up ( checking Internal Series Resistance, supported on V9 and later boxes only )
- Attempt to detect a failed ( open circuit ) pump: if there is no current drain within the first two seconds of pumping, show a red alert on the Device Control Panel. Pro pumps used with a ball cock ( or other physical means of stopping the flow ) will show zero current when the trip switch cuts in ... but that should always be AFTER 2 seconds of running to build the pressure up. If this technique proves reliable, we will connect it to the server for email alerts.
- Device now sends more information which will allow us to show which zone has watered on the dashboard charts.
- Faster and more robust WiFi connection, including display of the WiFi state; one of OK, TEST, AUTH FAIL, TIMEOUT, or NO AP ... If WiFi fails to connect for 3 times, WiFi state will change to one of the fail modes above. It won't try again until the next day. This is to improve the interaction when setting up WiFi after a change of SSID / network, and improve interface response times when WiFi is struggling to connect.
- When stopping the pump due to high current drain ( emergency shutdown ), unit will do a single long low beep after the pump stops, and a red message is shown on the DCP.
- Security modifications for PSTI compliance.
- Removed unnecessary select options on settings screen ( valve type, sensor type ).
- Factory reset now sets device into OFFLINE mode not online mode ( there is no SSID! ).
- Removed float switch settings; for tank-to-tank we recommend a ball cock and the pro pump with a high pressure cut-out.
- Device logs more information to local memory. Logs are purged on firmware update, or when requested from server. Max rolling 7 days of data.
Let us know on this thread if you are happy for us to update your Sprout or WaterMate to the latest beta firmware. Once we've migrated the majority of control units to this version of the firmware, we have some exciting news for you - but that's for later ; )
I’d be more than happy to test. I’ve replied on another thread about my water mate not turning on after winter but if you can see my device and update remotely I’d be happy to test.
Hi, I've updated Scope6, gingerdan [when it comes online] and Adrian to the latest version which is 2024042600. I've also updated the first post in this topic with more info. Full detailed notes will come soon.
Was running two solar water mate Pro systems on Wi-Fi up until the 29/04/2024, since updating on to Firmware 2024042600 can only keep one connected to the Wi-Fi all the time, second unit will connect after rebooting, then drops out anything between 2 & 6 hours later, have also re-setup the Wi-Fi & password, plus rebooted my router with the same results, now not sure what to try next?
Regards Paul
Hi Paul - thanks for the feedback - I will get the logs from your device ( remotely ) and see if we can determine what's different in the setup that's not keeping the connection. They both use the same wifi chip. It's your newer model that won't stay connected - are there any other differences between your two in terms of hardware connected ( eg sensors ), or distance from router?
Hi Chris,
Yes, it’s the newer one playing up and is about another 10 feet further away from my router and currently has no sensors connected, as borrowed the silver wired temp sensor for my Poly as the old little white wired temp & humidity wouldn’t work after the update. ( which we had already spoken about )
Regards Paul
Thank you, Chris. The control unit has stopped displaying temperature readings, both on the device page and the data graph page, although it says it is continuing to take readings. Could you take a look at it, please?
Just a bit of extra info: the temperature in my greenhouse has passed the temperature at which Zone 1 is set to water ( 25C ), and the zone has just watered. So, the control unit is obviously receiving temperature data from the temperature probe and responding correctly - i.e. it is simply a display problem, not a functional problem.
Hi Chris
Control unit readings now restored, but not sure whether that is something which you did, or something which I did! 😊 I tried doing an off/on switch as suggested in your email, but I’m not sure whether I did turn the unit off. I pressed the power button until I heard a series of beeps, but the over-ride button kept flashing green. Was it off? Then I pressed the power button again until I heard a series of beeps -no obvious difference! Should the power button be glowing or flashing green when it’s on? If so, mine isn’t! 😊 If not, that’s something you might want to consider when you next update the hardware. Also, having just scoured through all the WaterMate documentation, I can find no instructions for how to do a simple on or off ( only instructions for a first-time start – Power Button + Override Button pressed together ), and no instructions on how to tell whether the unit is on or off.
Hi Chris
The power button is on the right; it's latching ... down for on, up for off. No light on the power button. If the unit is on and awake [solar boxes] the green light on the override button ( left one ) is flashing.
Hi chris, I have my control system back up and working again. Thanks for sorting so quickly. I can see that I have the latest firmware set up. I can manually water by connecting to the control box directly but I can’t seen any data coming through to check if the timed automatic set up is working? I’ve also noticed that the battery reading is showing red on the initial screen but battery is fully charged. Just wanted to feed back here as I’m not sure if this is still beta or has been rolled out yet.
Have got the control unit running from my own solar panel and batteries in my allotment just got the unit reset to see it say battery too low however system is running at 14.8v can you rest mine please both unit. Tried pump and is working from my own power supply but not through control unit
I’ve just installed a WiFi mesh at home and been able to get both my devices connected up to it. Previously both my devices were in offline mode. I’d love to get them upgraded to the latest version of the firmware if possible?
Amazing thanks Chris. Out of interest do you happen to know if my device has been watering but just not recording the data? I’ve turned it off and on again and can see the updated firmware so will keep an eye on it to see if it’s recording again. Thanks again.
@chris unfortunately I’ve reset my WiFi and restarted my control unit, I can see the firmware has been updated but I’m not getting any water data through on my app. Is there any way you can see if the timed watering is taking place? If so I’m not concerned about the data in the app showing but I’m currently not sure if the watering is happening. Thanks Dan
Hi Dan- it looks like you don't have a temperature sensor or solar panel plugged in, and we're not receiving battery level information either. Is the box installed back in its usual place? Also, can you confirm the ID on the back of the box for me?
Hey Chris, the unit is 2234 / 70CC3229E748. I don’t have a temp sensor on my unit but I can confirm the solar is connected. I noticed the battery indicator was and has been permanently on red since I received it back, even after a full charge over night from the mains.
Not sure if you have done anything but I can now see some data coming through on the graph from yesterday. Hope that helps with some diagnostics. Cheers Dan
Thanks Dan - yes another firmware update today to 2024052903. We're almost ready to release updates to the wider network now. Thank you to all our beta testers!
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We are nearing the release of the latest WaterMate controller update, and would love to have some of you early-adopters help with final testing. The main change is non-functional ( we've made some changes to our development process ) ... and we want to be 100% sure that there are no functional changes or bugs introduced before we roll it out to all users.
In addition, we have added a few things:
- "battery too low to pump" now only activates when charge is LESS than 40%, it was previously LESS THAN OR EQUAL ... and with charge state being measured in lumps of 10% you were missing out on possible pumping time.
- There's a new "5 minutes" button for manual override ... if you want to use one of your zones in the greenhouse or polytunnel for hand watering ( Pro pumps only ). If you have a hand gun on the hose, when the gun is closed, the pro pump will stop due to the high pressure cut-out.
- Removed support for legacy wired soil sensors which used to use the 4-pin connector. We are working on a generic wired device system which will use the same 3-pin connector as the temperature sensor; in theory this can support soil sensors so that may be an option for the future.
- Fixed bug where "battery too low to pump" was showing for mains boxes ( though this did not prevent the box from pumping ).
- Calculate battery health on first power-up ( checking Internal Series Resistance, supported on V9 and later boxes only )
- Attempt to detect a failed ( open circuit ) pump: if there is no current drain within the first two seconds of pumping, show a red alert on the Device Control Panel. Pro pumps used with a ball cock ( or other physical means of stopping the flow ) will show zero current when the trip switch cuts in ... but that should always be AFTER 2 seconds of running to build the pressure up. If this technique proves reliable, we will connect it to the server for email alerts.
- Device now sends more information which will allow us to show which zone has watered on the dashboard charts.
- Faster and more robust WiFi connection, including display of the WiFi state; one of OK, TEST, AUTH FAIL, TIMEOUT, or NO AP ... If WiFi fails to connect for 3 times, WiFi state will change to one of the fail modes above. It won't try again until the next day. This is to improve the interaction when setting up WiFi after a change of SSID / network, and improve interface response times when WiFi is struggling to connect.
- When stopping the pump due to high current drain ( emergency shutdown ), unit will do a single long low beep after the pump stops, and a red message is shown on the DCP.
- Security modifications for PSTI compliance.
- Removed unnecessary select options on settings screen ( valve type, sensor type ).
- Factory reset now sets device into OFFLINE mode not online mode ( there is no SSID! ).
- Removed float switch settings; for tank-to-tank we recommend a ball cock and the pro pump with a high pressure cut-out.
- Device logs more information to local memory. Logs are purged on firmware update, or when requested from server. Max rolling 7 days of data.
Let us know on this thread if you are happy for us to update your Sprout or WaterMate to the latest beta firmware. Once we've migrated the majority of control units to this version of the firmware, we have some exciting news for you - but that's for later ; )
If you are "removing support for legacy wired soil sensors" will there be something else we can use this port for?
Regards Paul
Yes, it’s the newer one playing up and is about another 10 feet further away from my router and currently has no sensors connected, as borrowed the silver wired temp sensor for my Poly as the old little white wired temp & humidity wouldn’t work after the update. ( which we had already spoken about )
Regards Paul
Control unit readings now restored, but not sure whether that is something which you did, or something which I did! 😊 I tried doing an off/on switch as suggested in your email, but I’m not sure whether I did turn the unit off. I pressed the power button until I heard a series of beeps, but the over-ride button kept flashing green. Was it off? Then I pressed the power button again until I heard a series of beeps -no obvious difference! Should the power button be glowing or flashing green when it’s on? If so, mine isn’t! 😊 If not, that’s something you might want to consider when you next update the hardware. Also, having just scoured through all the WaterMate documentation, I can find no instructions for how to do a simple on or off ( only instructions for a first-time start – Power Button + Override Button pressed together ), and no instructions on how to tell whether the unit is on or off.
The power button is on the right; it's latching ... down for on, up for off. No light on the power button. If the unit is on and awake [solar boxes] the green light on the override button ( left one ) is flashing.
Not sure if you have done anything but I can now see some data coming through on the graph from yesterday. Hope that helps with some diagnostics. Cheers Dan