The tank drops a little each day and you can't see it from the house
A water tank level indicator on most stations is a float dial at the tank or a display in the kitchen. Neither tells you how many days of water you've got left.
A roof tank only fills when rain runs off the roof. In a long dry the rate of fall is your warning.
The fire tank at the sheds, 600 m away, only helps if it's full on the day.
- A Bunnings float dial (listed at $27.10) only reads at the tank.
- A Stratco wireless display (listed at $69.99, up to 100 m) only alarms in the house.
A 30,000 L house tank with 10,000 L held for fire
- 720 L a day for four people. Measure your real use.
- A 7 day carting lead time.
- 12,000 L carted for $290, the top of the 2018 Proserpine range.
| Usable water (30,000 minus 10,000 L) | 20,000 L, 27.8 days |
|---|---|
| 7 day alert fires at | 15,040 L (50%) |
| One 12,000 L refill | about $24 a kL |
At 33% you're down to the fire reserve and the house take-off has to sit at that line.
How a water tank level indicator works from the roof to your phone
- 1
A node on each tank
An ultrasonic node fits through an existing lid and measures the water level every 15 minutes. It runs on battery.
- 2
Radio to the roof
Nodes send by LoRa radio to a gateway on the roof, so the tanks need no wifi.
- 3
Litres, then days
We turn the reading into litres using your tank's size, then divide by recent daily use to get days left above the reserve.
- 4
Starlink or 4G, then a text
The gateway sends out by Starlink or 4G. Your phone gets the text.
What we fit on the tanks and the roof
-
Tank level node
Fits through an existing lid, centred and clear of the inlet, so the mosquito screens stay put.
Reads every 15 min
-
Roof gateway
Picks up every tank node by radio, with mains or solar power and surge protection.
Radio signal tested per tank
-
Starlink or 4G link
Sends the alerts out from the homestead.
No wifi at the tanks
What your phone shows as the tank runs down
-
6:02 am
House tank 50%, 15,040 L. 7.0 days above fire reserve at 720 L a day. Book the carter.
-
7:40 am
Quarters tank node: no reading for 45 min. Check the node and battery.
-
2:15 pm
House tank 54%, 16,200 L, up 1,160 L. Carter delivery logged. Back to normal.
Messages go to the people you nominate, by SMS to any phone and by email, with the reading and the time in every alert.
A float dial or kitchen display versus tank level alerts
| Topic | Today | With monitoring |
|---|---|---|
| Finding out | Walk to the tank or look at the kitchen display | A text on your phone wherever you are |
| Days of water left | A guess from the dial | Worked out from the fall over the last 7 days |
| Tanks 600 m away | Out of range or a drive to check | Radio to the roof gateway, tested per tank |
On a station homestead
We signal test each tank. One out of range gets a solar repeater gateway.
Where one tank serves both house and fire, the house take-off must sit at the reserve line. Raising it is plumbing, done by a QBCC-licensed plumber we engage and manage.
See remote water tank monitoring, and dam level monitoring, a power outage notification device covers the bore pump.
What it costs
We fix the price after a short scoping call or a site visit. It depends on how many tanks, how far they are from the gateway, and how the alerts get out. Ongoing support is available as a plan after handover.
Get a quote for tank level alertsThe fixed price covers
- A level node on each tank you want watched
- Gateway and Starlink or 4G backhaul
- Installation and electrical work under QLD Electrical Contractor Licence 1513082
- Alert set-up, with each tank calibrated to a known volume and a test text to every phone
- Training on the dashboard and the alert rules
- Ongoing support: fixing faults, replacing batteries and sensors, and tuning alerts
What tank level alerts won't do
- Readings are indicative. Wind, foam, condensation and the sensor's blind zone affect ultrasonic accuracy.
- It's not a certified fire system. It doesn't show your property meets QFES or council rules, and it doesn't call the brigade or check pumps, camlocks, valves or hoses.
- Readings stop outside gateway range, and a flat battery or a dead dish means no alerts.