Watering

last modified: October 23, 2025

How to Design a Cheap Plant Watering Sensor (Part 2)

Posted on 2017-02-14— How and Why

I take you through part two of my cheap plant-watering sensor project, testing a prototype: power draw, LED impact, oscillator and MCU startup timing, voltage-divider checks, firmware inputs, and PCB preparation. If you want to see the detailed measurements and next steps, I invite you to read the full post.

Read this post

How to Design a Cheap Plant Watering Sensor (Part 1)

Posted on 2017-02-08— How and Why

I walked through designing a cheap capacitive plant watering sensor, from goals and measurement options to component selection and early prototypes. I explain why I chose a CR2032‑powered op‑amp oscillator, ATtiny MCU and low‑power timer. If you’re curious, read the full post for details and test results.

Read this post