Products
Weight Sensor
Precision irrigation by direct substrate water balance
The Farmnet Weight Sensor measures substrate water content by tracking the weight of growing containers in real time. It provides the most direct indicator of plant-available water — triggering irrigation when actual substrate weight drops below setpoint, rather than relying on indirect volumetric readings. Designed for high-value soilless crops on coco and rockwool substrates.
our core strengths
Proven at Scale, Built for Performance
Farmnet manages the variables that determine crop consistency and operational efficiency. Systems are deployed across greenhouse, open-field, and indoor production environments, providing real-time control of temperature, humidity, CO₂, water delivery, and nutrient dosing.
Operating at national scale within the world's largest agricultural economy. Farmnet systems support dense networks of greenhouse and open-field operations across the highest-intensity production regions.
End-to-end production capability. Controllers, fertigation units, and system components are designed, produced, and validated within Farmnet's dedicated industrial facilities.
More than a decade of continuous development in agricultural control systems, refined through multiple technology generations and operational requirements.
Multidisciplinary engineering organisation focused on agricultural automation, control architecture, hardware design, and software systems.
Systems operating across diverse climates and production models—from arid environments to advanced controlled-environment agriculture.
Thousands of systems in continuous 24/7 operation, generating long-term performance data that informs system reliability and design.
Technical Specifications
- Measures
- Substrate water content by container weight
- Method
- Direct gravimetric measurement
- Integration
- iSMART irrigation controller, Farmnet Platform
- Substrates
- Coco, rockwool, perlite, open-top systems
- Advantage
- Direct plant-available water reading — not inferred
Key Features
Direct water availability measurement
Weight sensors measure the actual water mass in the substrate — the most accurate method for determining when a crop needs irrigation, independent of substrate type or age.
Setpoint-based irrigation triggers
When substrate weight drops below the configured setpoint, iSMART triggers an irrigation cycle automatically. No manual checks or fixed schedules required.
Drainage recovery data
Weight readings before and after irrigation quantify drainage volume, enabling optimised drainage percentages for nutrient recovery in recirculating systems.
Ecosystem
Works Together With
Irrigation Controllers
Weight-based threshold triggers irrigation starts in iSMART when substrate water content drops below setpoint.
Learn MoreFertigation Systems
Weight-derived drainage data informs FISMART recycling ratios and EC blending decisions for closed-loop systems.
Learn MoreFarmnet Platform
Real-time weight trends, drainage percentage tracking, and crop water use visualisation across the growing cycle.
Learn MoreApplications
Where It's Used
High-value greenhouse crops
Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and strawberries on coco or rockwool substrates where precise water balance directly drives yield and quality.
Recirculating systems
Weight-derived drainage percentages support closed-loop nutrient recovery and reduce fresh water and fertiliser input costs.
Next Step
Irrigation precision driven by actual water balance.
Tell us your substrate type, container volume, and crop. We'll confirm the right weight sensor setup and irrigation trigger configuration.