Garden Accessory Compost Moisture Meter with Battery

Perfect tool for getting a moisture levels at depths. Read the instructions....The tool works as described if you follow the instructions. I used a deep push rod drill available here on Amazon to get my soil sample for the baseline on the Moisture Meter. Using the drill to make the hole at depths and then measuring the moisture at those depths will provide you the information you need. In my case, I was looking for the moisture level before doing deep root watering of my trees. If you try to push the Moisture Meter rod down without previous drilling to depths, you will probably bend it and ruin the Moisture Meter. I have a heavy clay soil yard, so the drilling is a necessary step. Overall, I'm very pleased with this tool and it will provide me with years of service as long as I follow the instructions.

Great tool for the orchard and vegetable garden. It takes a little time to get it adjusted but then works great.

Out of the box, mine didn't work at first. I followed the instructions printed on the box, but the instrument didn't respond when I inserted the probe into damp soil and tried to calibrate it. I was on the point of returning it as defective when I checked the manufacturer's instructions from the website and found a FAQ indicating that others had had the same experience. The remedy: open the case and check the battery. Sure enough, mine had become dislodged in shipping. I repositioned it, and the gauge promptly responded as it was supposed to. Amazon forces me to fill in the star ratings, but I really don't know yet about its accuracy. Practice will tell.

I love the long stem. I am able to check the moisture without bending or stooping over - what a relief for my back and knees! I would give this item 5 stars if it came alread calibrated and if assess to the battery was easier. I have not had to change the battery yet but it looks like a potential challenge when that time comes. If there is difficulty changing the battery, I might have to revise and lower my review rating in the future but for now, I am loving the ability to check my plants moisture while standing.

We have 3 one cubic yard compost bins 3-4 feet deep on our farm. Bought this in 36-inch length to check moisture level at different depths. Works good but not perfect. The calibration is a relative scale numbered from 1(dry) to 10(wet). You stick the tip in material you consider perfect in terms of moisture and then turn the screw to set the gauge to read '5'. A little touchy, if the tip hits a clump of damp dirt it will peg the meter, so you really need to do several measurements and average the results. I'm also hesitant to leave it in the compost all them time, as there is a battery in it that might run down faster. You need to remove screws and take apart the metal housing to change the batteries.