operations and maintenance manual · the garden conservepumptm takes over when the weather is not...

Operations and Maintenance Manual

Garden ConservepumpTM - Operations and Maintenance Manual

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Garden Conservepump

PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE MANUAL BEFORE STARTING ANY INSTALLATION!

Rainwater is the best and most plentiful source of water for your garden. When enough rain falls at the right time during your growing season and the weather is perfect your garden is watered automatically and you don’t have to do a thing. The Garden ConservepumpTM takes over when the weather is not perfect. It automatically waters your garden during periods of no rainfall. The Garden ConservepumpTM knows to stop watering when your garden has had enough, and if you are using stored rainwater, automatically switches to house water if there isn’t enough rainwater to keep the garden satisfied. This means that you can leave the ConservepumpTM to water your garden automatically, maximizing the use of free natural rainwater and generally reducing the amount of well or city water that you would otherwise consume.

1 System Capabilities

Irrigation is controlled by the Garden ConservepumpTM using a soil moisture sensor and a daylight sensor, which feed data to an advanced irrigation algorithm. It then determines if and how much watering is required. The ConservepumpTM can be powered either by a plug-in transformer, or by a photovoltaic solar panel. The Garden ConservepumpTM provides the pumping necessary to irrigate with your existing (or planned) rainwater collection/storage system. As a rainwater irrigation system pump-station, it will operate up to 200 - 1 gallon per hour drippers, or any combination of dripper volumes that equals 200 gallons per hour or less. The Garden ConservepumpTM can also be easily adapted to operate conventional irrigation networks via its internal automatic valve, or can serve large areas using an exterior irrigation zone valve of any size. While ConservepumpTM can run all types of sprinklers in all types of applications, the most efficient way by far to use your precious irrigation water, and the way to serve the largest possible area, is via a drip irrigation system.


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2 What the Garden ConservepumpTM does

The heart of the Garden ConservepumpTM is its advanced control system that can operate either a pump or a conventional irrigation zone valve. Using a soil moisture sensor the Garden ConservepumpTM actually learns how to water your garden in the most efficient way possible. The ConservepumpTM starts itself at dawn and three hours later checks if the garden’s soil is adequately moist for a day of growing. This delay maximizes the value of the morning dew. If watering is needed, it waters for 5 minutes, waits 15 minutes to allow the water to be absorbed by the soil, and then checks again. It repeats the pattern until the desired soil moisture level has been attained, or six cycles have been completed. If the system senses that the soil moisture sensor is not operating, it waters three 5 minute cycles per day. When connected to your rainwater catchment system,, if the pump runs out of stored water before the watering cycle is complete the internal control opens a valve to let a dose of tap water into the reservoir and then pumps it to the garden. It learns how much is normally used in a day, and only doses that amount of make up water, so as not to overfill the rain barrel or cistern and displace potential rainwater. It keeps doing so until a rainfall replenishes the storage. If there is no rain water or tap water available, the unit signals an audible error. The Garden Conservepump’sTM battery is automatically recharged, so the system can operate in the event of a power outage. If a 12V solar cell (not included) is used instead of the included wall transformer, the built-in smart charger automatically compensates and uses that power to charge the battery instead. The Garden Conservepump’sTM (supplied) electrical adaptor is placed inside the housing near the battery and is fed by an extension cord through a slot in the casing. Keeping it inside the housing protects it from the elements. If a solar panel is to be used in place of the adaptor: Buy a minimum 10W 12V solar voltaic panel. It is critical to make the electrical connection properly, or serious system damage

will result. Remove the Garden Conservepump’sTM cover to access the controller’s blue terminal blocks. While the solar panel is not exposed to the sun, connect its red (+) lead to the bottom of the first terminal block at the edge of the controller (marked CHARGER). Using a small flathead screwdriver, screw the connection down tight but not so tight as to damage the connection of the block to the circuit board. The solar panel’s black wire goes in the partner connection of the same block. Attach the wires in accordance with the text on the controller.


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3 Garden Conservepump set-up See the Garden ConservepumpTM Installation and Commissioning guide for detailed set-up instructions. The Garden ConservepumpTM is configured for rainwater irrigation control when you receive it. If you wish to use the ConservepumpTM to manage a conventional valve control or irrigation system, skip to the following section.

Rainwater Irrigation Control The diagram below shows a typical domestic rainwater irrigation system example operated by a ConservepumpTM.

IMPORTANT!! Do not in any way interconnect the potable make-up water pipe with the pipe leading to the irrigation emitters – an unsafe condition will result and it will disrupt the operation of the system. Make-up water from the make-up water solenoid valve must enter the storage system via an air-gap as per your local plumbing code. An air-gap must ensure that the pipe carrying the house water does not come into contact with the water in the tank. See the diagram above for an example. From the pump outlet (the right-most connection in the unit’s base), use only ½” diameter distribution pipe. It is adequate for all flows the ConservepumpTM will deliver.


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Minimize the length of piping needed to feed the irrigation system; the more you use the longer it will take for water to reach the highest drippers and the more effort will go into ‘just filling the pipe’. Use drip irrigation components as they will greatly increase the amount of garden that the ConservepumpTM will service. The pump can provide enough flow for 200 gallons per hour (gph) worth of drippers. Check the rating of the drippers you select to ensure that you will get maximum coverage. Drip tapes are rated from ¼ gph per emitter and up and are ideal for row cops and borders, single emitters are rated from ½ gph and up and suit individual plants better. Avoid drippers over 2 gph; use multiple smaller ones instead. Balance the flows so that the whole garden is ‘one zone’. For smaller plants, use smaller drippers – for larger plants, use larger drippers or multiple drippers. This allows the system to work most efficiently. All drip systems need a fine strainer to clean micro-debris out of the water so the drippers don’t plug. Install the strainer between the pump and the fist dripper. Ensure that the strainer is cleaned regularly – particularly if you notice the system laboring or pumping longer than normal. A plugged strainer will result in reduced flow and the system will not operate properly.

Conventional Valve Control The Garden ConservepumpTM can act as a controller to enable advanced irrigation from any pressurized water source, such as a home’s exterior tap or a larger irrigation supply. Irrigation system connected to a home’s water supply: To configure it for this application, remove the wires at the controller’s blue terminal blocks marked ‘Pump’ and carefully replace them with the wires connected to ‘Make-up Water’. The pump is now disabled and the control system will run the interior valve instead. In the base of the unit, provide pressure water to the left-most connection and connect the irrigation supply to the connection beside it. Agricultural: If you wish to operate a larger diameter exterior irrigation zone valve, remove the wires at the controller’s blue terminal blocks marked ‘Pump’ and carefully replace them with the wires connected to your solenoid operated zone valve. Do not connect the ConservepumpTM to your water supply. In this configuration the Conservepump’sTM advanced irrigation algorithm will simply manage your existing irrigation system.

Soil Moisture Sensor Operation The moisture sensor is the key to the Garden Conservepump’sTM operation. The Garden Conservepump’sTM controller automatically calibrates the sensor to match your soil type


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and garden conditions. The controller’s “correct” soil moisture sensor reading is set to “just like this” by the operator during the system’s initialization. You can further adjust the amount the system will water (in drip systems only) by inserting the moisture sensor in the soil nearer to or further from a dedicated dripper. Use one of the lowest volume/driest location drippers in your system for this. The controller will then regulate how long the Garden ConservepumpTM waters for each day, thereby using the least amount of rain water while also protecting plants from overwatering. The dedicated-dripper/sensor pair can be in the garden, but if the garden is located at some distance from the Garden ConservepumpTM, the sensor could also be located in a more convenient area with similar conditions to the garden being irrigated. In areas where certain plants need more water than others, add more or higher volume drippers adjacent to those plants.

4 What You Do ‘Right soil moisture’ is a key element of good gardening. We are not very good at ‘seeing’ appropriate water levels because we only see the usually-dry surface of the soil. In fact plants do better when they are slightly water stressed from time to time – it’s the way of nature and is how they evolved. The moisture sensor is a critical aid in getting moisture levels right consistently. Plants need a lot less water than most people believe. An important initial requirement for the set up of the Garden ConservepumpTM is to ensure that the soil in the garden that the ConservepumpTM is being connected to is at the appropriate moisture level. Before inserting the sensor ensure that the soil 2” below the surface is damp but not wet! In order to ensure proper operation it is important to get this initial moisture level right. The Garden ConservepumpTM will water the soil to the moisture level that exists when it is calibrated with the sensor connected (don’t worry – you can easily change it later). As such, make sure your garden has been watered to the desired moisture level before going through the following procedure. To start the Conservepump and set the moisture level: 1. Select a location for the moisture sensor 2” away from a non-mobile lower flow-

rate dripper that is under an open sky. 2. Stomp once on the ground to compact the soil there, and insert the sensor to its

full depth in the stomp mark. 3. Once the sensor is in place, confirm it is plugged into the Conservepump’sTM

controller. To access the controller, remove the green Conservepump shroud. If the sensor wire is not plugged in, slide its plug into the white 3-prong receptacle. This receptacle is at the bottom of the controller board underneath the metal cover.


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4. Ensure the Conservepump’sTM charger is plugged in, or a solar panel is connected. 5. Press the black “reset” button on the side of the case and listen for a soft clicking

sound. 6. Now calibrate the moisture setting (MOISTSET) by holding the ‘LESS’ and ‘MORE’

buttons down together until the unit beeps twice. MOISTSET is now set at ‘slightly wetter than this’.

The system will always re-start after the Conservepump is switched to ‘reset’, but will only water if soil around sensor is dryer than the calibration point. In general, the closer the sensor is to its dripper the less time the system will operate (the flowing water increases the soil’s moisture nearer the dripper sooner). The Conservepump’s TM face requires access to daylight for proper operation. Ensure the daylight lens in the front of the shroud remains unobstructed. The Garden ConservepumpTM may not operate properly if installed in a very dark location (such as under a deck). Once the sensor is placed and MOISTSET is set, give the system a couple of days to stabilize the watering regime before deciding whether you need to change the setting or relocate the sensor. If after a couple of days you want to fine tune the operation of the ConservepumpTM you can easily do so. To Recalibrate the Moisture Sensor The Garden ConservepumpTM calibrates the moisture setting to your garden’s soil type and density once you’ve set the MOISTSET point, and then uses that to decide whether to water each day or not. If you decide to move the sensor to a different location in the garden, you may need to recalibrate the MOISTSET point due to a different soil type or different soil moisture levels. You may also want the unit to water more, or less, than it has been.

1. The MOISTSET setting is recalibrated using the ‘LESS’ and ‘MORE’ buttons on the side

of the case. If you want a new MOISTSET hold both buttons down until the unit beeps twice. It is then reset to maintain the soil slightly moister than the current level. This reset can be done at any time and as many times as you wish.

2. You can change the soil moisture three steps above or below the MOISTSET point.

Each time you push MORE, it increases watering one step to a maximum of three above MOISTSET. Each time you push LESS it decreases watering one step to a maximum of three below MOISTSET. At any time you can reset MOISTSET by redoing step 1.


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3. If you wish to verify the new setting, switch the system off/reset to restart the ‘day’; after the ‘reset’ the pump will start if the soil is dryer than the setting.

4. No matter when a reset is done, the system will start a bit earlier each day until it is

starting 3 hours after dawn again.

5 Maintenance The following maintenance practices will ensure proper operation of the system:

Make sure the daylight lens in the shroud doesn’t get obstructed.

Keep all in-line debris strainers clean. A fine in-line micro screen protects the emitters in the drip system. Check it frequently by unthreading the housing and rinsing the screen, particularly if you notice the system running for longer than normal or if it is under-watering.

The Garden ConservepumpTM must not be exposed to freezing temperatures when charged with water. If you wish, the Garden ConservepumpTM can be taken inside and stored for the winter, or if your winter weather is not severe, leave it out. Whether you leave it out or take it in, be sure the charger is plugged in and the window (for the daylight sensor) is completely blocked. Leaving it like this for the winter will keep the battery perfectly charged and in good health for next season. The charger only comes on when the battery needs power, so you don’t have to worry about unplugging it to conserve energy.

6 Trouble Shooting

The Garden ConservepumpTM has built-in error indicators that can be heard from a beeper on the controller. These serve to protect the components from damage as well as alerting you to a problem. When the system is operating normally, a ticking sound is heard on a one second interval. This is not an error message, but the heartbeat of the system. The Garden ConservepumpTM is manually reset after an error condition by switching it off and to ‘reset’ again. If the switch is in the ‘off’ position when you first check it, a current spike has activated the circuit breaker in the switch. The various possible error conditions are described below.


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1. Current overload error – one beep repeating If the pump or zone valve draws more current than the maximum permitted the system turns off and signals error. This can be due to a motor/solenoid coil failure or an excessive demand. An excessive demand can also occur if the wrong replacement pump is installed, or if the pump mechanism becomes blocked. First try resetting and see if the error recurs. If it does so regularly, servicing is required.

2. Rainwater make up water time out- 2 beeps repeating (Pump systems only) If the storage tank has been completely emptied of rain water by the pump, the controller calls for some make-up/supplemental water from the home’s conventional water system via the connection you made to the solenoid valve. If this water does not reach the pump via the pump suction intake by a set time, the system tries again ‘tomorrow’ and signals error.

The possible causes are: there is no make-up water connection. If the ConservepumpTM has been installed

with no make up water connection, the system will have to be reset to delete the error.

the piping carrying the make-up water to the system is plugged/loose/disconnected. the suction line from the storage barrel to the pump inlet screen is leaking/damaged

(look for air bubbles in the clear plastic tubing in the ConservepumpTM case to confirm).

the suction intake line has frozen. 3. Voltage error – 4 beeps repeating The controller contains a smart charger that monitors system voltages and properly keeps the battery fully charged. If it detects that the battery is below a specified voltage during an operating cycle, the system shuts down and signals error.

The possible causes are: the charger has been unplugged or the household electrical breaker it is served by

has tripped. if using solar energy to charge, there has been inadequate sunlight on the

photovoltaic cell. the battery has reached the end of its operating life and needs to be replaced. the solenoid valve or the motor are malfunctioning. Call your system provider.

For the first occurrence of this error, switch to OFF, wait for a half hour at least, cover the daylight window and switch to RESET. Wait at least 4 hours to give the battery time to recharge. Restart the system.


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4. motor fault – 1 repeating beep If the pump motor develops a short circuit the system shuts down and signals error. Contact your system provider for a replacement.


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Limited One Year Warranty Warranty Coverage: Your Garden ConservepumpTM is warranted to be free from defects in materials or workmanship for a period of one (1) year from original date of purchase. This warranty is extended only to the original consumer purchaser of this system and is not transferable. For a period of one (1) year from the original date of purchase of the system, iDUS Controls Ltd. will at its sole discretion either repair or replace one or more of the Garden ConservepumpTM components or the whole Garden ConservepumpTM if such components or the box are found to be defective. These remedies are the purchaser’s exclusive remedies under this warranty.

Warranty service: To obtain warranty service, first contact your ConservepumpTM vendor. If you require further assistance contact iDUS Controls Ltd. directly at www.iduscontrols.com. iDUS’ sole activity during warranty service consultations will be restricted to verifying component failure, and repair or replacement of component parts covered by warranty. What is not covered: This warranty does not cover damage resulting from misuse, tampering, accident, commercial use, improper service or any other damage caused by anything other than defects in material or workmanship during ordinary consumer use. Connecting an electronic

device to the controller in the ConservepumpTM will result in its failure, and such damage is not covered by warranty. This warranty is invalid if the serial number has been altered or removed from any of the components. This warranty is only valid in Canada and the United States. LIMITATION ON DAMAGES: THERE SHALL BE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES FOR BREACH OF ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTY OR CONDITION ON THIS SYSTEM. DURATION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES: EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT PROHIBITED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES AND CONDITIONS, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, IMPLIED WARRANTIES AND CONDITIONS OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE ON THIS SYSTEM ARE LIMITED IN DURATION TO THE DURATION OF THIS WARRANTY. Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental or consequential damages, or allow limitations on how long an implied warranty lasts, so the above limitations or exclusions may not apply to you. This warranty gives you specific legal rights and you may have other rights under the laws of your jurisdiction.

Please record and safeguard this information: ConservepumpTM Serial Number: _________________________________ System Commissioning Date: _____________________________ ConservepumpTM Vendor: ______________________________________

http://www.iduscontrols.com/


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About iDUS

iDUS Controls Ltd. develops award winning water recycling products that make it easy to reduce and recycle water consumed in and around the home. Delivering water recycling solutions that are reliable, affordable and easy to use, iDUS products help homeowners reduce their water bill, and help to protect the environment by conserving local water resources. Established in 2007, our vision is to be a leader in developing technological solutions to water conservation, water recycling and grey water reuse.

Web: www.iduscontrols.com Email: [email protected] Phone: 250-758-9995 Toll Free: 1-855-758-9995

operations and maintenance manual · the garden conservepumptm takes over when the weather is not...

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