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Dep. of Biological Sciences, Florida International Univ., University Park, Miami, FL 33199
* Corresponding author (obrienj{at}fiu.edu)
Until now, dielectric-based soil moisture measurements required expensive cable testers or commercial systems to read probes. Here we describe a method of constructing an inexpensive meter from a multimeter and a simple power supply. When coupled with a Campbell Scientific (Logan, UT) CS615 probe, the entire system costs
$350 US. A single meter can be used to measure multiple probes and the entire system is quite small and portable. The new system reads soil moisture probes capable of measuring a soil's dieclectric constant. Measurements taken with the meter described here and a CR10 data logger recommended by the probe manufacturer did not differ significantly. Nor was there any measurement offset between the data logger and the meter.
Abbreviations: TDR, time domain reflectometry VDC, volts direct current
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