The importance of smart water management

By Emma Peterson. 

How modern water management technologies help contractors improve sustainability, save money and keep landscapes thriving. 

In a new episode of OutdoorTalk™, host Karol Weyman sits down with Luis Andrade of Heritage Landscape Supply Group to discuss the smart tools and strategies available to irrigations and landscape professionals. This is a topic that Luis is very passionate about, as he shared:  

I joined Heritage about four and a half years ago. Prior to that, I worked as a specification manager collaborating with cities, architects and engineers on some cool projects like green walls, smart water controllers, moisture sensors, ET flow meters – all of that good stuff that helps us conserve some water.  

Why is it so important to develop all this technology around conserving water? First and foremost, it’s about sustainability. Luis explained, “Only 3% of the world's water is fresh water, and 2% of that is in glaciers. The other 97% is saltwater. So, in practice we only have access to 1% and that’s not a lot. In order to make sure our children and their children still have fresh, clean water, we have to be a good steward of that 1%.”  

In addition to the environmental stewardship perspective, conserving water also comes with financial and aesthetic benefits. As Luis put it, “Smarter water management leads to healthier plants and long-term cost savings. Some of those savings are directly related to having healthier plants, as you’re not having to replace things as much, but it also saves you money on the water bill.” 

So, what exactly do these smarter water management tools look like? A common one is getting a more advanced irrigation controller. Luis explained:  

Most people just go to their irrigation controller and choose an amount of time, maybe 10 minutes, maybe 20 or 30 without any rhyme or reason. And what often happens is that they are running their sprinklers or whatever their irrigation is too long and excess water is running off, not going into the soil. 

By getting a more advanced, “smarter” irrigation controller that has more precise timing capabilities or allows you to control settings remotely, you can better control the timing of your irrigation system, leading to a healthier landscape, a healthier planet and a healthier wallet.  

Listen to the whole OutdoorTalk or Watch the episode on YouTube to learn more!