Soil Probe—Stevens Hydra Probe II

Installation Guide

The Stevens Hydra Probe II measures soil moisture and tem- 2 Click on the Sensors tab. Click the SDI button on the
perature and provides that data to the Sutron datalogger bottom right.
using the SDI-12 communication protocol. This document
provides basic installation and operation guidelines for
using the Hydra Probe II in LI-COR eddy covariance sys-
tems with a biomet system running Biomet_100, Biomet_
101, Biomet_102, and Biomet_103 programs. Refer to the
Hydra Probe II operating instructions for more information:
http://www.stevenswater.com/soil_moisture_sensors/

This will present a new SDI Interface window. Some-

times this is referred to as entering Transparent Mode.

Hydra Probe II
Operating Temperature Range: -10 to 65 °C
Voltage Range: 9 to 20 VDC
Measurement Range: 0.0 to Saturation 3 Connect the first Hydra Probe II sensor (the one you
Accuracy: ±0.03 m 3/m 3 will designate as Sensor 1).
Power Requirements: <1mA idle; 30 mA active

Addressing the Hydra Probe II for SDI-12

Communication
SDI (Serial Digital Interface) communication is a standard
for interfacing data recorders with microprocessor-based
sensors. The SDI protocol enables data from multiple
sensors to be recorded over a single SDI connection. In
order to work, each SDI sensor must have a unique address. Hydra Probe II; 1, 2, and 3
This section describes how to address the Hydra Probe
Color Desc. DIN Terminal
II with the Sutron 9210B datalogger.
Black Ground 15
Stevens Hydra Probes are supported by datalogger programs Red Power 16
Biomet_100, Biomet_101, Biomet_102, and Biomet_103. For Blue SDI-12 Signal 17
custom programs, use the SDI-12 block and configure it as
described in Soil Probe (Stevens Hydra Probe II) on page 1. Wire Lead Connections
Color DIN Terminal Datalogger Terminal
1 Connect to the Sutron 9210B datalogger using XTerm
46 cm Black 15 SDI-12 GND (B20)
software.
46 cm Red 16 SDI-12 Power (B21)
Be sure there are no SDI-12 sensors connected to the data-
46 cm Blue 17 SDI-12 Data (B22)
logger yet.

1
4 Click Find. command (XM=0). This sequence of parameters is
required for the standard LI-COR biomet packages,
where H represents soil moisture and F represents soil
temperature in °C. You can also enter the soil type using
the command XS1-4, where 1 is sand, 2 is silt, 3 is clay,
and 4 is loam (the default). Refer to the Hydra Probe II
The datalogger will find the sensor, which has a default manual for more information on its SDI-12 parameters.
address of 0.

7 Repeat steps 3 though 6 for each sensor.

Figure 1. SDI addressing dialog. You will need to give the sensor a unique address. For
5 In the numeric dropdown menu (0* in Figure 1), select LI-COR biomet packages, the addresses are 1, 2, and 3.
sensor 0, then click Send....
A new dialog will open, where you can enter the com-
mand A1 to change the sensor's address to 1. Then click
OK.

After configuring the sensors, click Close.

The sensor's address is now changed to 1. Installing the Probes

1 Siting the Soil Moisture Probes.
Three or more probes may be required for some
sites.
Place the probes in undisturbed soil that is rep-
resentative of the site.
Probes can be inserted directly into the soil surface
or inserted into the soil in a pit.

6 Now, select sensor 1 from the numeric dropdown

menu. Click Send.
Enter the command XM to query the sensor for its
default output. The default outputs should be H, J, F, G,
O, K, M, L, and N. If this is not displayed, send a new

2
2 Install the Soil Moisture Probes.
Recommended depth of 5 cm below the soil sur-
face.
Press the probe into the soil until the base of the
tines are flush with the soil.
Be especially careful to avoid creating air pockets
when inserting the probe. Air pockets around the
tines will reduce the accuracy of measurements.

Note: Route the sensor cable(s) through an open-

ing in the enclosure prior to installing the leads
in the terminal strip.
The enclosure includes connections for three soil probes. If
you want to add more than three soil probes to the biomet
station, the required modular terminals and resistors can be
purchased directly from LI-COR. Contact us for more
information.

Retrieving Data
If the system is configured to log biomet data in .ghg files
for processing in EddyPro software or the SmartFlux System,
data are stored on the removable USB storage device. Refer
to the Biomet Instruction Manual for details.

Maintenance
Stevens Hydra Probe IIs are sealed after calibration and do
not require routine maintenance. Be mindful of the fol-
lowing points:
Read and understand the manufacturer's instructions
provided with this product.
Do not attempt to disassemble the sensor. This will
damage the factory seal and invalidate the warranty.
Do not remove the Hydra Probe II from soil by pulling
on the cable.
Do not attempt to straighten a bent rod while it is
attached to the probe.

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