FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions.

Performance of our equipments, service content… details, best kept secrets and unpublished scoops await you in our frequently asked questions:

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Tree planting and blossoming

How long do you monitor the newly planted trees?

For optimal result, the plantations are monitored from the first year period until sufficient water autonomy is achieved. It is therefore necessary to ensure that the root system is sufficiently developed in depth and outside the root ball.
In practice, monitoring usually lasts between 2 and 3 years, i.e. the first year period and one to two years following-period, depending on the situation and nature of the plantations.

How are the recommended doses and watering frequencies calculated?

To establish our recommandations, we first rely on the state of development of the root system: roots contained within the root ball require a smaller volume of water than an active root system on the periphery. This is the estimate of the optimal dose of each watering.

For frequency, it is a question of estimating the number of days remaining before the plant enters into water stress. For this calculation, we take into account a series of criteria such as its water behaviour, the nature of the soil explored by the roots, the sensitivity of the planting pit to precipitation, or the meteorology to come.

This analysis is weekly summarized and sent by an email recommending watering.

I already have a take-back guarantee on plantations: what is the point of an additional service?

Because the "take-back guarantee" ensures the replacement of a dead tree by a young tree... which has not taken up again!

At Urbasense, we believe that the best guarantees of a vigorous, resistant and inexpensive plant heritage in the medium and long term are the care and maintenance of the crop. These guarantees are generally provided for planting contracts or by the authorities

Finally, the administrative tool of the "take-back guarantee" is by nature on limited on time compared to the length of tree’s life.

Sport fields:

I have already a rain gauge or a weather station, is it usefull to add more?

The installations controlled by a rain gauge make it possible to avoid watering when it rains. This function is especially useful to avoid the reactions of the general public when watering under precipitation, often misunderstood. Rainfall alone does not determine the water requirement of plants

The potential evapotranspiration (from weather stations) is a local (or regional) data for an average soil, for an average crop. It allows a theoretical adjustment of the amount of water used for irrigation. It never takes into account the water stock in the soil or the state of root development.

The tensiometric technology used by Urbasense is coupled with meteorological data processing. It makes it possible to provide the actual water requirement of the plantations, taking into account both weather conditions and the soil's water stock.

How do i know if the service is adapt to the situation of my places?

Once a week, an agent must be available to reschedule the watering programmer (individual or centralized).
A technical agent (sports ground manager, for example) is also a real asset for the added value of the service.

I don't have an integrated watering system, is this service still useful?

Yes it is. Some authorities are still watering with manually installed devices. Two elements complete the water saving:

An assessment of the homogeneity of water supply, thanks to our two measuring points
A reduction in the time spent on watering

What is your feedback on the savings made?

For example, in 2016, in the Ile de France region, the theoretical need for a large playground was around 2,800 m³ (filtering field of honour).
The usual practices observed (3 times 20 min per sector each week) led to consumption of nearly 6,000 m³.

Generally, the water’s costs are close to tax. Savings for 2016 are 3,200m3 of water or approximatively 13,000 € HT/m3.

Warning : these volumes vary each year, depending on weather conditions. Only one thing is certain: you will only bring the water that is strictly necessary at the right time.

Minisense® station:

What is the autonomy of your sensors ?

It increases every months. Today it is between 18 to 24 months. In concrete terms, we carry out an annual maintenance that includes a change of batteries.

How your sensors communicate?

Several telecommunication technologies are used depending of the availibility of networks at each place : GSM, SigFox, LoRA. Wifi and bluetooth are not use today for practical and energy reasons.

Are your sensors guaranteed?

Yes, our sensors are guaranteed for the entire duration of the contract when they are rented (global functioning guarantee). They are guaranteed for two years when they are sold.

What is your perspective on the reliability of your sensors?

The first sensors were deployed at the end of 2014 and still operational on the ground. More broadly speaking, we assemble and test our stations and we keep control on the assembly line, it’s a critical point for sensors reliability.