The Waterminder

Idea:

Plants are extremely essential to human life and without them the earth would be inhabitable. Creating a project that, on a small and achievable scale, helps increase or achieve sustained greenery. The Sustainable Development Goals in our focus are SDG 13 and SDG 15.

Problem Statement:

A problem statement that we devised was related to the watering of pots in households. It is estimated that over 30% of household potted plants die every year due to lack of water. So we needed to make a device that reminds a person to water their plants. That too at the correct time. A device that recommends a person as to when to water a plant.

Constraints:

• The device had to be waterproof. All circuitries should be enclosed.

• It had to be portable, so that it would be easy to stick into any potted plant.

• It had to be sturdy and durable, to withstand pressures from watering of the plant.

• It should be aesthetically appealing as an ugly circuit inside a plant is never appreciated.

• It must be able to stand in the soil without support.

Final Solution:

We came up with a project that has a soil moisture sensor connected to an ESP8266 circuit board. Based on the moisture readings, it determines whether the soil is underwatered or perfect and then flashes LEDs and messages you on Telegram.