Automatic Plant Waterer

thingiverse

This automatic waterer uses a bottle with a screw-on cap. The cap is glued into the base, then a hole is drilled or nailed in the cap. The base is hammered into the ground near one of your plants. Fill the bottle with water and screw it upside down into the cap. Cap diameter, height, landscaping nail diameter, width, arm width, number of arms, glue tolerance, and drip hole diameter are all customizable. If you want any special features, ask in the comments. Future features might include direct printing of cap threads, labeling on wings (e.g., "For Coke", "For Bacardi 1750"), or attaching to the inside of the bottle. Print Settings: Rafts: Doesn't matter Supports: Yes Resolution: Low/fast (300 um) Infill: 22%? Pre-Printing: Measure cap height, diameter, and landscaping nail diameter. Enter these into Customizer/OpenSCAD file. Render/export. Print with supports for the overhang on the cap. Alternatively, use the closest STL and scale it to your needs. X and Y must be scaled equally, while Z can be scaled separately. Post-Printing: Remove supports. Drill or make a hole in the cap of the bottle. Apply waterproof glue (e.g., Wood Glue, silicone caulk, Goop) on sides of cap, base overhang (not in funnel), and cap recess in the base. Place cap into base, swirl to distribute glue evenly. Wipe away excess with a damp paper towel. Turn upside down onto Saran wrap or aluminum foil, wipe away excess glue, and allow glue to cure per manufacturer's instructions. Remove the base from the drying sheet. Place the base near the plant you want watered, close enough for water to reach roots but far enough not to interfere as the plant grows. Fit landscaping nails into holes in nacelles and hammer them into the ground. Fill the bottle with water. Screw the bottle upside down into the base. FAQ/Troubleshooting: How does it work? As soil dries, water displaces air in the soil and waters the soil. When soil is saturated, there's no air to bubble up the bottle and displace water. It's not working, no water comes out. You forgot to tap a hole in the cap or glue clogged the funnel. Drill a hole from the cap to the tip. It's not working; there's a small wet patch but the plant isn't getting it. The plant might be too far away (>12"), the hole in the cap is too small, or the soil has too much clay in it. Water spills out of the top of the base. The seal between the cap and bottle is not good enough. Try screwing it down a bit more or there's dirt at the bottom of the cap that prevents a good seal. I'm a wino; how can I use this? You need to adjust the "cap_height" for wine bottles. Measure the width of the bottle 3 inches down the neck, add 2-4 mm, and set it as the "cap diameter". Print the base per steps 1-4. Coat the top of the bottle and neck with silicone caulk to create a waterproof O-ring. It's August; my cap is leaking, and it looks deformed. You probably used PLA instead of ABS. PLA deforms at a relatively low temperature.