Irrigation Irritation

Smart Irrigation Technologies Transforms Water Usage Techniques

By Lex Mason, President of Weathermatic

The average landscape maintenance contractor manages 150 irrigation systems for clients. Some teams manage up to 1,000. This is especially common in areas with less irrigation, like the South. In most cases, irrigation control boxes are scattered on properties across town, and crews monitor them by driving to each individual system. This time-consuming task quickly weighs on a busy team. The systems also suffer when boxes aren’t adjusted to factors like rain, sunlight and time of year. Above all, though, this design wastes a lot of water. In just one year, the water wasted at an average commercial property is the same amount that would provide clean drinking water to 200 families in a developing country. A Texas-based company wants to end this habit and create a new standard for irrigation.

Save water. Give life. This is the purpose behind Weathermatic, a worldwide provider of automated water management solutions. The company manufactures irrigation control tools, like weather sensors, sprays and nozzles, and rotors that can be controlled from any location. Weathermatic has installed more than 600,000 systems across 85 countries, in total saving 20 billion gallons of water. The company has been a key player in the irrigation industry since it launched 75 years ago. It developed tools like the first reverse flow valve, MPR spray nozzle, commercially available companion electric controller and soil moisture sensors for irrigation. Marriott, LinkedIn, JP Morgan Chase and Arby’s are a few Fortune 500 companies that Weathermatic serves, helping each company reduce their water usage.

“Our goal probably started more as a purist,” says Weathermatic’s President Lex Mason. “We want to help fight the world water crisis. Our initial proposition was to say to a landscape owner, ‘The cost of water is skyrocketing across the U.S. as more infrastructure issues happen. We are a water management company with an answer.’”  

Smart irrigation control systems use wifi and cellular technology to allow one person in one location to manage numerous irrigation systems. Remote teams can communicate with sprinkler heads, rotors and actual controller boxes. These types of systems save water and an enormous amount of time. Now, landscaping teams can avoid the traditional technique of visiting multiple sites a day to adjust multiple systems on that site.  

While the environmental benefits of smart irrigation systems are immense, Lex says the cost and labor savings are the icing on the cake. 

“The running joke is, people call it ‘irrigation irritation,’” Lex explains. “If we can solve a small irritation aspect of irrigation, we can help elevate the industry business. It makes the service better. It makes the work better. It improves personal earnings. It even helps attract top talent because they aren’t having to worry about those basic services."

"There are so many different potential
improvements for the landscape
industry as a whole."

Time, cost and labor are all saved from this sustainability-based idea. Smart irrigation can even save human lives. The Weathermatic team has helped 25,000 people in 65 communities throughout the world with partnerships with nonprofit foundations. Sustainability-focused techniques are not only solutions to climate and conservation challenges. They have unlimited potential to improve our businesses, our communities and our people.

Get In Touch

Lex Mason
President of Weathermatic

Phone: (888) 484 –3776

www.weathermatic.com