'Smart' Sprinkler Helping Family Conserve Much More Than Water

WEST COVINA (CBSLA.com) — Meet the "smart" sprinkler, a device Marcos Quezada has at his West Covina home, and one that's capable of being controlled through a phone app.

As Quezada explains, water conservation was something his parents ingrained in him as a child in Mexico.

"There's only water on certain days of the week and at certain times," he recalled. "Usually they have cisterns and if you don't save water, basically you run out of it."

That's why he installed the Rachio Smart Sprinkler Controller, which sits right next to his rain barrel.

The device is controlled through a phone app and it connects to his WiFi to get weather reports, which turns off the sprinkles when it rains.

He says it's really helpful in communities with water restrictions and allows him to edit the watering schedule only on days when they're allowed to water.

Quezada's wife, Veronica, says the family just came back from a trip to Mexico and her husband watered the lawn remotely during their vacation.

"My husband likes to show off," she said. "'Look what I can do with the watering system.' He'll be at work and he's like, 'Is the system on?' "

Pricing starts at $200.

But the Quezadas say it's paid for itself because their water bill has dropped.

Quezada says his mother was so big on saving water that she would have him dump her dishwater on their family lawn.

And now that he's a father, he's hoping conservation is a value that will continue to run deep.