Reducing time managing irrigation
What is the problem?
Monitoring pumps can be time-consuming and repetitive. Depending on conditions, you may need to turn irrigation on or off at night or on weekends, and manage constant risks of pumps running dry and causing damage and higher maintenance and repairs costs.
Why is it important?
Reducing time spent on mundane, repeatable tasks frees up your time for higher-impact work or leisure. Remote control of irrigation lets you leave the property while still managing daily tasks.
What does success look like?
You can free up your time by remotely turning irrigation on and off from anywhere.
Encompassed technologies
Remote water sensors and probes
- Detects leaks, faults, and system failures in near real time
- Monitors pumps, tanks, and troughs without manual checks
- Provides accurate soil moisture and weather data to optimise irrigation
- Identifies over- and under-watered zones for targeted adjustments
Farmbot
• Real-time water monitoring system for tanks, troughs, pumps, and pipelines using satellite or cellular connectivity.
• Sends alerts via SMS and dashboard when levels drop or faults occur, helping reduce manual checks and prevent livestock water shortages.
• Designed for broadacre and grazing farms needing whole-farm visibility of water infrastructure.
Estimated Cost
• Water Level Monitor: AUD 1,290
• Annual 4G subscription: AUD 342
• Trough Sensor + bundle: ~ AUD 799
Wildeye
- Comprehensive suite of battery or rechargeable sensors including flow rates, pressure, water levels, weather and soil moisture.
- Corresponding management dashboards and app.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required)
Sentek
- Designs and manufactures technologies for measuring and managing soil moisture, salinity and temperature.
- Tools pair well with their irrigation decision aiding software.
Estimated Cost
- Drill & Drop probe ≈ AUD 1,100–1,200
- 120 cm/48″ probe ≈ AUD 2,900–3,000
- For deeper / salinity / advanced versions, ≈ AUD 4,000+
BILBY® sensor node
- Underground housing for soil moisture sensors that protects them from livestock and machinery.
- Sends wireless data to a nearby gateway to support irrigation decisions.
- Currently in field trials—Tasmanian farmers can express interest in participating.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required) (trial phase)
BANDICOOT® smart penetrometer
Handheld tool that maps soil moisture, compaction, and salinity with GPS.
Helps farmers identify soil issues and improve irrigation and cultivation decisions.
In field trials underway—Tasmanian farmers can express interest in testing.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required) (trial phase)
Cavicam
- Drone service for crop mapping, plant counts, weed detection, and precision spraying.
- Helps fruit and vegetable growers monitor crop health and optimise spraying and irrigation decisions.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required)
Drone technologies
- Captures Innovative-resolution imagery for irrigation performance monitoring
- Detects crop stress and water distribution patterns from above
- Reduces ground inspection time through aerial surveying
Octodrones
- Drone service for crop mapping, plant counts, weed detection, and precision spraying.
- Helps fruit and vegetable growers monitor crop health and optimise spraying and irrigation decisions.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required)
DroneAg
- Collect Innovative-resolution elevation data to support drainage planning and flow modelling.
- Use mapped data to evaluate and compare the return on investment of different drainage options — such as deep drains, shallow drains, or subsurface systems — before implementation.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required)
Remote irrigation control systems
- Automates pump and irrigation system controls to save labour
- Allows remote adjustments in response to changing conditions
- Reduces errors in irrigation timing and duration through automation
MAIT Industries
Dual function system that is both a universal monitoring system that can read a wide range of sensors as well as a PC based remote irrigation control system.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required)
FieldNET by Lindsay
- Full irrigation management platform to monitor, control, schedule, analyse and optimise irrigation systems from your computer, phone, or tablet.
- Integrates with every component of irrigation equipment.
- Supports Variable Rate Irrigation (VRI) with zone or speed control for more precise and efficient water use.
Estimated Cost
- Pivot Watch device: ~ AUD $665 (including first-year subscription)
- After first year, monitoring subscription: ~ AUD $150 / year
- Pivot Control hardware: ~ AUD $2,400
Observant
Scheduling application that allows remote operation of valves and pumps for pivot irrigation, drop and sprinkler irrigation, flood irrigation and stock water management.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required)
Automated irrigation infrastructure
- Precisely controls water delivery using automated gates, valves, and channels
- Optimises water distribution without manual intervention
- Increases system efficiency and reduces water waste
Rubicon Water
Automates surface irrigation via smart gates and outlets for gravity-fed systems.
Supports efficient water delivery at scale, especially in broadacre and dairy regions.
Includes the FarmConnect platform for remote monitoring and control of on-farm irrigation systems.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required)
Decision support platform
- Integrates weather, soil, and irrigation data for optimised water use
- Forecasts irrigation needs and costs using predictive AI
- Evaluates the impact of different irrigation strategies on yield and costs
Swan Systems
Irrigation and input management software designed to work with any hardware (e.g. weather stations, flow meters, soil moisture probes, irrigation control) enabling whole farm irrigation management.
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required)
Trimble
Suite of products and software to support water management decisions and data collection including optimal drip tape placement, field surveys and land forming design.
Estimated Cost
From ~AUD 2,000 – 10,000+ depending on module and hardware
Irrigation control
- Additional agtech to enhance irrigation of existing systems.
NanoBubble
Nannobubble tech installed onto a farmer's existing irrigation set-up.It puts ultra Innovative concentrations of oxygen in the farm irrigation water, which is then delivered to crops, improving plant and soil health, without increasing water or chemical use.
Estimated Cost
- Smaller portable or pilot systems: ~AUD 15,000–25,000
- Mid-scale irrigation installations (e.g. 20–40 L/s flow): ~AUD 40,000–60,000
Irrigation control
- Delivers precise water and nutrient supply to match crop needs
- Improves input efficiency and supports uniform crop growth
Goldtec
Offers irrigation and fertigation control systems with programmable schedules to manage water and fertilizer volumes, timing, and source selection.
Handles multiple water sources and calculates irrigation dosage based on soil moisture, rainfall accumulation, and evapotranspiration
Estimated Cost
N/A (quote required)