Water metering in a greenhouse is needed not only for saving. It helps you understand how plant consumption is changing, where mistakes are being made, and why one area requires more attention than another. Without a log, watering seems to be going "about as usual" until the tank starts to dry out, overflows, or has strange flow rates.
GrowerHub should show not only the current humidity, but also the history of the water: how much was lost, when, for what reason, in which zone, automatically or manually. Then watering becomes a controlled process, rather than a series of pump activations.
What to count
Minimum: volume of water in the zone, number of irrigations, duration of pump operation, manual irrigation, limit activation and emergency stops. If there is a flow meter, the data is more accurate. If it is not there, you can calculate by the measured flow rate of the pump: how many milliliters or liters it produces per minute.
It is important to consider manual steps. If a person added water with a watering can, but the entry was not included in the log, the automatic watering schedule will be incomplete. Then the system will show low consumption, although the plant received water separately.
Consumption by zones
Comparing zones helps find problems. If two similar beds suddenly consume different volumes, check drippers, sensors, planting density, light and ventilation. If one area constantly requires more water, perhaps the temperature there is higher or the substrate holds moisture less well.
For several boxes, it is better to look at the flow rate next to the microclimate graphs. So it is clear that the growth of water is associated not only with plants, but also with conditions. The article monitoring multiple boxes shows how to organize zones.
Limits and anomalies
Water metering helps not only analysis, but also safety. The daily limit stops a series of erroneous waterings. A sudden increase in flow rate may indicate a leak or a popped tube. No flow when the pump is on may indicate an empty reservoir, a clogged line, or a malfunction.
Safety scenarios are described in the article safe automatic watering. For a greenhouse, it is important that the limits are different by zone, and not general for the entire farm.
Cycle report
At the end of the growing cycle, water consumption becomes part of the final report. How much was spent on the zone, when were the peaks, how is the consumption related to the yield or quality of growth, what accidents occurred. This data helps plan the next cycle: tank, pump, maintenance intervals, water reserves.
For a mini-farm, such reports are related to resources and results. Read more in the article reports on harvest and resources.
Conclusion
Water accounting makes irrigation transparent. Capture volume, zone, cause, manual actions and accidents. Compare consumption with the microclimate and condition of the plants. Then GrowerHub helps not only to water, but also to understand where the resource is going and what needs to be changed.