Ecowitt GW1100 Wi-Fi Weather Station Sensor Gateway with Temperature, Humidity and Atmospheric Pressure 3-in-1 Probe Sensor(1X GW1100 WiFi Gateway)

I have tried sooooo many moisture meters from really cheap crap with double metal rods that show light intensity, moisture, and soil pH which is always inaccurate, single metal rod by XLUX company and those are reliable and very accurate but you have to poke the soil in multiple places which damages roots, also used the Blumat $90 meter which is way overpriced and it only shows the moisture without any graph 📈 or remote Bluetooth or Wi-Fi capabilities, and bunch of other ones that were always showing wrong readings until someone told me to try these Ecowitt WH51 and WH51L sensors. The WH51 model is great and shows moisture levels from the top 7 inches of soil which is great for all types of pots up to 7 to 10 gallons. The beauty about this Wi-Fi Gateway is that you have access to the data from anywhere in the world and it comes with graphs that show previous readings that you can compare and dial in your watering habits for better performance. You can add up to 8 devices per each GW1100 Wi-Fi Gateway and it comes with an app as well as their website and you can set up alerts to come in through the app as well as get an email when soil goes below your indicated level which is very very useful. Now when it comes to raised beds and 20 gallon containers I have to purchase the WH51L model which comes with a probe attached to 1 meter long cable which allows you to use them in deep pots/beds/containers and they can also be connected to the same Wi-Fi Gateway. Both models are very accurate. The Wi-Fi gateway also has a temperature and humidity and pressure sensor which gives you readings of the room where the sensor is located. I plugged mine in inside my grow room next to my grow tents to monitor the temperature and humidity inside that room to make sure my grow tents are in an optimal environment. I can't say enough good things about Ecowitt. Customer service is very helpful and very responsive. The only thing I did not like is that they are based in China and you can't really call them and the only method of communication is via email but like I said they are very helpful and responsive. If you haven't tried this company yet then don't waste your money on anything else and do yourself a favor get this Wi-Fi gateway along with the moisture meters and anything else you might need because you won't be disappointed. I will surprised that they are so inexpensive and work so great. I mean when comparing to the Blumat meter that cost $90 it's like comparing apples to oranges because for $90 it should be able to do more, at least have remote capability but it doesn't even have that option. In my opinion it's extremely overpriced and these Ecowitt devices without a doubt are blowing away Blumat meters. I hope this helps.

The GW1000 Sensor Gateway arrived as scheduled and packaged extremely well. I initially bought the gateway and a soil moisture sensor to try out the system and I wasn’t disappointed. After plugging the Gateway into a USB outlet and following directions the gateway attached to my Wi-Fi network with no problems. Now for the soil sensor. Inserted a AA battery, attached the cap and waterproof cover and set the blade portion of the sensor into a glass of water. After downloading and starting up the Ecowitt app I registered the soil moisture sensor which started sending information and showed a soil moisture of 96%. Determining the soil moisture for potted plants was the initial mission for this setup. This was easy, just slide the blade of the soil sensor into the soil in a hanging pot and in a few minutes the sensor was showing a soil moisture of 28%. Since it was watering time I watered the hanging pot and in a minute or two the soil moisture level went to 58 %. Looking good! I watched the app for several days noting the reported falling soil moisture as the pot dried over the course of time. Optimal soil moistures for different types of plants can be found online fairly easily. After about a week I felt secure in ordering more soil moisture sensors as well as a water leak and temperature and humidity outdoor sensor. Having a set of different sensors around my yard helps with determine adequate watering while not over or under watering as well as not wasting water. The system is working well with the single sensor while I’m waiting for the additional sensors I ordered to arrive. Moreover alert levels can be set which generate an email if that alert level is met. I’ve looked for awhile to find an affordable and operable system to monitor the watering and temperature for my yard. Future plan is to integrate the Ecowitt sensor and gateway system to control the watering of inground as well as potted plants. I have a rainwater capture setup using IBC totes as water storage along with a pump to facilitate watering. I envision using the Ecowitt sensors to determine optimal watering times and amount. Overall pleased, so far, with the system. The AA battery in the moisture sensor has been working several weeks with no decline in voltage. Yes, the battery level is monitored by the app. I purchased the additional sensors direct from Ecowitt. The price is lower but there is shipping costs as well as a time factor since the devices have to come from mainland China. I will update this review after the additional sensors arrive.