LinkTap has expanded its software with the March 2025 update to include the additional “Smart Anti-Freeze Protection” feature.
Previously, LinkTap devices had a certain level of frost protection, which automatically alerts users of impending frost well in advance of the onset of winter, allowing them to winterize the irrigation controller early enough to prevent damage. This occurs when water standing in the pipes expands in volume as it freezes, thus bursting the irrigation controller.
Previously, the warnings did not cover the danger of very rapid weather changes, when large temperature changes occur within a few hours or days, and the temperature suddenly drops from significantly above zero to below zero. Such rare extreme events have repeatedly led to the destruction of thousands of irrigation controllers worldwide in the past. To prevent this, LinkTap has included a clever additional feature in its software. As far as I know, they are currently the only manufacturer to offer this feature.
This feature requires a temperature sensor built into the controller. This is included in all LinkTaps of the following models: D1, T1, Q1, G1S (manufactured from 2023), and G2S (manufactured from 2023).
It works by automatically triggering a short watering cycle when the temperature falls below a certain level. This ensures that the water that is currently freezing is flushed from the pipe, preventing damage. If the temperature remains low, the process is repeated at preset intervals.
Intelligent Frost Protection can be managed in the device settings and is enabled by default with useful values:
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- Smart Anti-Freeze Protection
If necessary, these values can be further refined:
- Increase/decrease the temperature at which frost protection takes effect
- Increase/decrease the flushing duration
- Extend the flushing duration depending on the cold temperature
- Adjust the flushing interval
- Specify the computer output at which the flushing should occur (only possible if multiple outputs are available)
Cover image: LinkTap
