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Summer of Green Tech Design Challenge
Forum Deceptive Smart Garden needs to be Smarter
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  • Replies 28 replies
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  • smart planter
  • click and grow
Related

Deceptive Smart Garden needs to be Smarter

cstanton
cstanton over 2 years ago

image

I was gifted this rather smart indoor planter.

Its advertising and marketing is somewhat deceptive, for example, the title claims:

"Click & Grow Indoor Herb Garden Kit with Grow Light | Easier than Hydroponics Growing System | Smart Garden for Home Kitchen Windowsill | Vegetable & Herb Garden Starter Kit with 9 plant pods, White"

There's nothing "smart" about this (it only has lights and a timer), nor would you keep it on your kitchen windowsill (it has LEDs, why use outdoor light!?) and I would argue there's nothing hydroponics about it (you sit the plants in a bath of water).

Further to extend its height, you have to buy (or 3D print) extensions to the arms, and there's no temperature control or pump for the water.

Since it has 9 slots for 'plants', but frankly, you wouldn't want to fill each one as you're then starving the neighbour of food, I'm thinking it gives an opportunity for electronics to fit into one, maybe create an enclosure, have some temperature control, add something else.

The last time I tried anything involving moisture though, it resulted in degraded and rusted electronics, it did not end well. Obviously, I'm not using the right components.

So this gives an opportunity for hacking and making. I'm open to suggestions, and what components to use.

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  • cstanton
    cstanton over 2 years ago +2
    I was having problems with my 3D Printer, but I've discovered the issue was caused by having the fan pointed at the hot-end turned on too soon and too strong. The first 'mod' I've needed to make to this…
  • beacon_dave
    beacon_dave over 2 years ago +1
    cstanton said: nor would you keep it on your kitchen windowsill (it has LEDs, why use outdoor light!?) I would probably keep it on the windowsill anyway and then use the LEDs at night. If the LEDs were…
  • cstanton
    cstanton over 2 years ago in reply to beacon_dave +1
    beacon_dave said: I would probably keep it on the windowsill anyway and then use the LEDs at night By default, the 'timer' is 16 hours on and the remaining hours off, there's no control and would definitely…
  • robogary
    0 robogary over 2 years ago in reply to cstanton

    that creates harmful methane gasses. Eat more beef. 

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  • beacon_dave
    0 beacon_dave over 2 years ago
    cstanton said:
    Further to extend its height, you have to buy (or 3D print) extensions to the arms,

    Does the overhead light bar double up as a carry handle or does it fall apart if you try lifting it that way?

    You could modify the side support arms to allow you to have additional light bars that throw more light onto the sides of the plants. Alternatively use a reflector to help wrap the light around the plant more.      

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  • beacon_dave
    0 beacon_dave over 2 years ago

    You could go the whole remote monitoring and control route. Turn it into a STEM type educational device with the ability to monitor, data log, create time-lapses, programmable control and so on.

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  • beacon_dave
    0 beacon_dave over 2 years ago
    cstanton said:
    there's no temperature control

    You may want propagation heater control per pod in some cases as you could have ready to harvest plants mixed in with seeds in their biodomes still waiting to germinate. You may not want to waste electricity by trying to heat the whole room just to help propagate those new seeds. If your smart garden is mainly kept in an unheated back room or potting shed over the winter months, then you may want a bit of localised heat, especially overnight as the temperature drops without heating the whole space.

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  • cstanton
    0 cstanton over 2 years ago in reply to beacon_dave
    beacon_dave said:

    Does the overhead light bar double up as a carry handle or does it fall apart if you try lifting it that way?

    It is not intended to be load-bearing.

    beacon_dave said:
    Alternatively use a reflector to help wrap the light around the plant more. 

    That sounds like a doable and good idea.

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  • cstanton
    0 cstanton over 2 years ago

    I was having problems with my 3D Printer, but I've discovered the issue was caused by having the fan pointed at the hot-end turned on too soon and too strong.

    The first 'mod' I've needed to make to this planter is to extend the height of the LEDs. By default they are far too short for a growing basil plant (and actually started to burn the leaves)

    Thankfully someone's already modelled the extenders for me https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4341292 

    image

    I do not have the space on the printer to do the 200mm length, so I opted for the 150mm.

    Looks like someone's also modelled the 'cups' that suspend above the basin: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4664402 

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  • beacon_dave
    0 beacon_dave over 2 years ago in reply to cstanton
    cstanton said:
    I do not have the space on the printer to do the 200mm length

    Can't you print 2x 100mm instead to get to 200mm or is there one of those hidden 'gotcha' type things preventing you from doing so ?

    Would be an ideal one for parametric CAD. 

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  • cstanton
    0 cstanton over 2 years ago in reply to beacon_dave
    beacon_dave said:
    Can't you print 2x 100mm

    I could do that, though I think 150mm is enough of a height. I wanted to reduce how many joins there were.

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