Hussat

With built-in long life internal batteries and underground telemetry, the Terrasonde can operate without wires or solar panels – those nuisance additions that ultimately get damaged during farming operations such as harvesting, sowing or spraying.  In the dryland model, the primary lithium batteries has a lifetime of >10 years and the probe samples once per day. However, for application in horticulture, especially in drip irrigated crops, more data is required and hourly readings are typical.  Such a high energy use would drain the internal battery in 2 years, but there is a solution – replaceable primary batteries. The horticultural model of the Terrasonde is 120cm long and has eight sensors spaced apart at 10cm intervals. The top sensor is 20cm under the cap so that it can make the first measurement at 10cm depth.  This probe model is ideal for row crops, cotton, nuts, grapes, citrus, veges.  It is installed […]

The first soil moisture probe that Hussat built was installed in 2016 in our family vineyard at Farm 1396 in Hanwood, near Griffith, NSW, Australia.  It was the 160 cm long dryland model (Model No. S08L16) with sensors every 20 cm and an internal primary lithium battery. It was installed with the top sensor at 10 cm below the ground, directly beneath a dripper and flush with the ground surface. It remains there today, although an auxiliary battery pack (6 x AA) was added to prolong the life of the lithium battery as the probe was set to make hourly measurements which would have otherwise depleted the internal battery in 2 years. The moisture data has been very important to the smooth running of our irrigation schedule.  Early in the season we irrigate every third night, then later every 2nd, then in peak season we irrigate every night for 9 […]