Thirdreality recently released a new Zigbee device, a smart watering kit for gardens and plants. It’s battery powered and can be controlled and automated through Home Assistant. I managed to get my hands on a sample and test its operation and performance.
In this review, I’m dismantling the Thirdreality Smart Watering Kit [3RWK0148Z] and integrating the device with Home Assistant. It’s available on Amazon for $34.99 or $47.99 with a complete set of accessories as well as their Webstore.
Technical Specification
- Name: Thirdreality Smart Watering Kit
- Model No.: 3RWK0148Z
- Connectivity: Zigbee 3.0
- Input: 6V (4xAA) batteries
- Display: LED
- Watering Duration: 10s-16min
- Dimensions: 114x84x34mm
- Price: $34.99 (Device only), $47.99 (Full kit)
Overview and Package Contents
The Thirdreality Smart Watering Kit ships in a white cardboard box containing the device itself, some tubing and a few accessories for attaching and dividing the water line. The kit sold on Amazon ships with 10 of these attachments, suitable for watering up to 10 different flower pots. It includes 10 meters tube, 10 water droppers, 10 t-joint splitters, 10 tube holders and 3 filters for keeping the line clean.
The device itself measures at 114x84x34mm or 4.49×3.31×1.34 inches, which is pretty compact for a device containing a small pump. It has 3 buttons on the front: one for setting the watering duration, another for setting the watering interval and a simples start/stop button. This one also doubles as a pairing button to allow the device to join your Zigbee network.
Above the buttons, there’s a small LED numeric segment display which shows the value set by the buttons. It displays the watering time in seconds, which can be set in a range of 10s-16.5m and the watering interval in days, which can be set from 1-30 days. More on the operation of the device bellow.
The Thirdreality Smart Watering kit is powered by 4xAA batteries. Battery life is no specified anywhere, but I’m guessing it can endure at least 6 months depending on how heavy you use it. The device includes a low battery alert; when the battery is running low, the top left corner of the device will flash red twice to remind you the battery is running low.
This watering kit uses standard PU tube with an inner diameter of 4mm. It slots very securely onto the IN and OUT connectors on the back. Its operation is very straightforward: you fill a container with water and insert the IN tube, while placing the OUT tube in the flower pot. When triggered, the device siphons water from the container and delivers it to the flower pot, according to the duration and interval you’ve configured.
The connectors included in the package very easy to install as well. My kit included 2 tube holders, 2 water droppers, 2 t-joint splitters and a single water filter. The tube needs to be cut at the required length and set to water two plants. I used the filter at the siphon, so only clean water enters the watering kit, preventing clogs.
Home Assistant Integration
The Thirdreality Watering Kit is supported in both Zigbee2MQTT and ZHA. To pair it, insert 4xAA batteries which automatically put the device in pairing mode. If you need to reset, simply hold the start/stop button for about 5 seconds until a blue LED starts blinking.
Zigbee2MQTT
Once paired to Zigbee2MQTT, the device is correctly discovered and configured. It’s labeled as model 3RWK0148Z by manufacturer Third Reality. Since this is a battery powered EndDevice, it cannot relay traffic from neighboring devices back to the coordinator. It exposes the following entities in Home Assistant through Zigbee2MQTT:
There are a total of 3 sensor entities for monitoring the battery status of the watering kit. The first one simply gives a remaining value as a percentage, the second one reads the millivolt value and the third one is a binary indicator of a low battery. The device is controlled simply through a single switch entity, toggling the watering on and off.
ZHA
Once paired to my ZHA instance, the device is also identified correctly. The switch entity is present as well as the battery percentage entity. There are no custom quirks applied, which just tells me Thirdreality uses standard Zigbee clusters. However, there is a ghost opening entity which does nothing and just stays at closed, regardless of the state of the device. It’s possible this is the battery alarm incorrectly set as an opening sensor. It does not affect the use of the device, so it’s not really relevant.
How does it operate?
The Thirdreality Watering Kit’s operation is very straightforward. However, the way the device needs to be configured might not be obvious at first and it’s possible to make a mistake. I installed the kit behind two plans and got to testing.
The first button sets the watering duration by multiplying the number on the screen by 10 seconds. For example, setting the number to 1 will give you a watering duration of 10 seconds. Setting the number to 10 will give you a duration of 100 seconds. This can go all the way up to 99, which translates to 990 seconds or 16.5 minutes.
The second button just sets how many days should pass before the watering will repeat. For example, if you set the duration to 120 seconds and set the days to 20, the device will water your plants for 120 seconds every 20 days. If you set it to 1 day, it will water your plants daily.
Okay, but what about the smart aspect of this device? What is the switch for? The switch is used to remotely activate the preset watering schedule when you are not at home or by using any other trigger. For example, you can pair this device with a Thirdreality Soil Moisture Sensor or the Apollo PLT-1 Plant Sensor and trigger the watering when the value drops bellow a certain threshold. Further, you can use the switch entity to monitor and log how long has the device been watering your plants.
The Thirdreality Watering Kit can output about 60 milliliters of water in 10 seconds. I timed this data for those who need to know the exact amount of water the device will pour over a set time. Certain plants are very sensitive to the soil moisture as far as I know, and overwatering can be a problem.
Final Thoughts
The Thirdreality 3RWK0148Z is a super simple Zigbee Watering Kit compatible with Home Assistant. It operates well within a Zigbee mesh network, sitting idle as an EndDevice until it’s turned on.
Triggering the device manually or from Home Assistant mirrors the state to the device and visa versa. This mean the log you would be getting in HA for the duration the device has run is accurate and you can keep tabs on your the amount of water the plants are getting.
The only drawback of the Thirdreality Smart Watering Kit I can consider a con is the audible noise level it produces when it’s watering. The distinct pump hum can be heard clearly if you are in the room, so it’s worth knowing this in order to position the device properly. It’s not high enough to bother me personally, but it’s definitely there and noticeable.
On the other hand, this is a very affordable Zigbee device, all things considered. It costs less then $50 for the full kit for 10 plants. The main device costs $34.99, if you decide to create your own custom tubing setup. Here’s where you can get it:
OFFICIAL WEBSTORE
Watering Kit | Accessories 
United States | United States (Full Kit)
United Kingdom | United Kingdom (Acc.)
Germany | Germany (Acc.)
*If links fail to open, try disabling your AdBlocker.
Assuming you’ve disassembled the unit, do you know what kind of pump it has? This would be an instant buy from me if it uses a peristaltic pump.
Unfortunately, I did not dismantle this one as the enclosure was glued shut.
It meant completely prying out the plastic and possibly damaging the in and out connectors.
So no, I don’t know what kind of a pump it has.
Honestly, this is really stupid thing. I bought small 5V pump on Aliexpress for like 3 euro, attached 2 tubes, put it into box. Added USB connector, plug that to Ikea smart plug, which cost me 8e. Under 15 euro I have pump that I can switch on/off with Home Assistant and I can do as many schedules as I want. I added soil humidity sensor + ESP8266 to see if the plant needs watering. Less than half the price of this device and it is 100 times more useful and smart.
Well, 90% of users do not have the time or knowledge to do something like your project.
So, it’s not stupid at all. It’s actually great.
Anything for measuring the amount of water in a container, like a rain barrel or in this case whatever the pump is drawing out of? I’ve looked for something like it before but had no luck.
Yes, there are liquid level sensors you could DIY
https://community.home-assistant.io/t/water-tank-level-and-water-volume-with-esphome/192666
Zigbee liquid level sensors (ultrasonic) have started showing up on AliExpress recently. Can’t vouch for any as I haven’t used any of them.