I am having someone come out to give me a bid on a sprinkler system for my yard. I would like to know where to start to research the possiblity of automating the sprinkler systems with Home Automation. I have a cpu built that is dedicate for my Home Automation needs and it is running Homeseer. I will go to their forums to figure out the software side, but I first need ideas on the hardware needed.
From what I gather, I would have contracted out the entire sprinkler system, but the controll is the one piece I would request a different type, as that is what I would be controlling.
So, that's about as much as I know for terms of HA for a sprinkler system. Can someone guide me in the right place with literature to read or give me some ideas on what to look for?
This spring I did the same exact thing you are doing now. While getting the quotes together I made them aware of my home automation system and they were very accommodating to my needs. The wire bundle that controls the valves is strung alone the main supply pipe in your yard. This wire is typically put in your garage with a controller to control your zones. I wanted to keep this functionality in case I ever sold the home they would have a simple (cheap) controller to control the system from the garage. Haveing my automation controller in the garage wasn't going to work for me because I decided on EtherRain (more on that later). The installer had a great idea and spliced the bundle of wire and put a second feed of that wire into my basement so I could have my automation system control the valves as well. He just spliced into it mid way where it comes close to my utilities and put a bunch of extra wire outside and then I fed it into my basement next to my gas line. He did this as part of the standard install for me.
For my controller I am using EtherRain. I LOVE this product. So simple to use and has a built in rain detector for local rain detection. There are many ways to schedule your controller.
1.) Comes with software for Windows or Mac to control it
2.) Homeseer driver.
3.) User lawncheck.com to program it
4.) Write your own controller using their well documented API
I'm in the processes or writing my own controller in PHP (because I find that fun) and until I finish that I'm using their website lawncheck.com to control my scheduling. As long as EtherRain is hooked up to your router and has access to the internet it can be controller from lawncheck.com. This site takes into account forecasting and temperature to determine your schedule.