Dear Grobo.. Sensor Data Please!

[pyromancy]

Dear Grobo,

I’ve been reading that in the past years many users on this forum, your paying customers who stand by and support your product, have asked for sensor data to be available.

I stumbled across this post below which I hadn’t read until tonight:

@Stephen

The Concern: Showing Data

Backstory: The Grobo one is designed to be the easiest way to grow. Simply add your seed, tell the app what you planted, and it takes care of the rest.

When we first designed the app, we showed sensor data within the app and displayed graphs including temperature, humidity, pH and EC. Our Beta testers experienced a large amount of confusion, not knowing what to do with this information. As a result, we removed this information from the app in order to focus on the core growing functionality which is ultimately letting the grobo control all these sensory readings automatically and only notify you only when absolutely necessary.

Next Steps: We need your help! We want to understand what you are hoping to see in the app.

1. What’s your personal experience level with growing cannabis?
2. Do you want to see more data? If so, what would you like to see?
3. What control over the system would you like to have?
4. Did data availability / control influence your decision to buy (or not buy) Grobo?

Please feel free to share any other ideas or suggestions you have. Thanks for your help!

Important Note: We will review all of this feedback in-depth, however it does not guarantee that changes will be made.

If the biggest concern with keeping this data hidden is that it’s confusing to new users and growers, wouldn’t it be feasible to simply add it as an Advanced option with a message that lets the grower know something like “Grobo has your back, sensor data is not necessary for a beginner”,? Obviously that’s pretty simplified but I trust you guys would be able to find something more suitable.

I have had my Grobo for two months now, and I am now on my second grow. I needed my pH probe calibrated twice within the past two months; the forums saved me the first time @VermontGrobo (Thank you) but I would have never known. My plant could have died; which means also wasted time, energy, nutrients, and money! My EC meter was also dirty and reading at a high level towards the end of my first grow, but all of this could be easily avoided if I had access to data.

Opening a ticket to support is still a great way to receive help, but I think that once sensor data became available there would be a lot more experience and knowledge to be gained and in turn shared on these forums… Over time, there would be more anecdotal experiences related to the sensor data to sharpen and educate the users on the forum. We might be able to help save someone’s plant faster in some occasions than Grobo support can. It would be possible to help them faster if we have a shared eye into what their sensor data has been reading at. If someone has a problem on a Friday night right after support is done for the week, they will have to wait 2-3 days until they can hear back a response… that time can be crucial to a plant! Obviously we can only do so much, but not every user of the Grobo buys all the extra gadgets ahead of time and it leaves us on the forum pretty much scratching our head and going through a list of possible causes of their plant’s ailment. If they could tell us the pH level, EC reading, humidity graph, temp graph etc from the past few days or a week, we would easily be able to pinpoint a problem area much sooner than you are capable of in some circumstances… This could mean enough time for them to run to the pet store for some pH supplies, or head to Wal-Mart for a dehumidifier, etc.

Obviously, that is just one example of a possible benefit of having the data…Grobo support does a great job of helping to solve problems with sick plants through the ticket system, however,**The main thing is that we all just want to see the data!

I know I sound like a broken record, but I don’t really care about the redundancy at this point, especially when I read that the sensor data is already there, we just can’t see it. I wasn’t aware that it used to be in the app and it was removed… despite the requests from people for over two years now to be able to see it. I imagined it as some back-breaking coding nightmare that you felt wasn’t necessary or important enough to undertake… The coding is there… it’s always been there!

Honestly I wish people would post about this more!

If you agree with me, let them know below…

@Stephen @Dani @stacey.grobo @bjorn

[FireGuy]

I agree with wanting to see sensor data. I have two thoughts, both which may be wrong. 1) Grobo is very cagey about what information they are seeing. I’ve sent in a few tickets and what I get is “everything looks good on our end” or “this is reading high (or low) and we recommend …” so I think they want to keep their “recipe” to themselves. We could all reinvent what they are doing if we really cared to spend the time…but we don’t which is why we bought Grobo.
2) They don’t want to overwhelm new growers. This is where I agree with the option as an “advanced” option. If you don’t care, don’t use it. I think allowing the info to A LOT of us would end some “unnecessary” trouble tickets as we could get an idea. If I check my PH with my meter and can see that the Grobo meter reads way off, I could just calibrate and be done instead of Grobo saying everything reads good on their end. My personal experience: my EC was high but I don’t have an EC meter. If I could’ve pulled that data…crisis averted and I’m not wasting Grobo’s time as I’m able to self diagnose.

Not sure if either of these are the reason, just my personal opinion.

AND, as you said, Grobo support does an EXCELLENT job helping. But without the data, none of us have the opportunity to learn without buying so much extra equipment. I agree 100% with issues arising on Friday and having to wait till Monday for an answer that requires a data poll from the unit only Grobo can see.

[miami5th]

Well said @pyromancy! I agree that it would be helpful in almost all scenarios to have visibility into the sensor data. We would like to see the info!

[Aang]

great idea and well said!

[Angiebaby]

-very well said!

[pyromancy]

We need some more people to chime in on this. Not saying anything in here is just the same as saying you don’t want the data.

[Angiebaby]

I would love the data. Even just having the option to view it whether we know what to do with it or not, if it helps us be ahead of the game with our plants then it should be in the app. If we don’t understand it, that’s what WE’RE here for, right? I think support is probably afraid of being bogged down with tech questions about it, because face it, look at all the crap we ask them now!

[Chad_Johnson]

I couldn’t agree more. Very well said!

[pyromancy]

Some exceprts from other users… no response from Grobo just like this thread.

@soverance

I 100% absolutely agree.

The entire reason I bought a Grobo was because it was already packed with sensors, and I assumed I would be able to leverage that data to make better decisions about my grow environment.

The end user not being able to see the realtime sensor data is crippling - so much so that ALL OF THE USERS on this forum are adding extra monitoring devices to keeps tabs on their grows. This adds dramatic hidden costs to the ownership of the Grobo device, duplicating sensors that we’ve already paid for and are currently functional. At this point it almost makes more sense to reverse-engineer the Grobo and build a similar box ourselves with a Raspberry Pi and various sensors that we could actually read data from… it would be less than half the cost and exponentially more useful.

Grobo’s “secret sauce” is in the nutrient dispensing algorithms for various “recipes”… it’s not the sensor data of the box. To make this device as valuable as it can possibly be, they should EXPOSE THE SENSOR DATA to the end user, in the app. End users absolutely require the capability to see data such as temperature, humidity, pH, water levels, etc to maintain an optimal grow space. Submitting a support ticket to get that information is unacceptable. There is ZERO technical reason to hide this data from the end users, so I can’t imagine what the business justification was to not make this data accessible.

The only justification I’ve seen so far on this forum from a Grobo employee was that providing the sensor data could be “confusing” and “overwhelming” to a new grower, which is simply absurd. This is like how Apple treats iOS and Mac users… thinking the users are too stupid to know what to do with the data, so you hide it from them, and it’s honestly insulting.

@OrionsCeiling

Maybe now they’ll update the app…?
Personally, I’d love to know the PH, PPM, humidity and temp within the unit. I purchased a temp/humidity reader and some other items to go along with the unit (fan, metal hooks, etc…) and I’m entirely interested in having access to this information from Grobo. They use it to manage our units. I get that. But why can’t we see?

@Pabber123

I agree 100%!!! Let’s ask Stephen why we cant have that info @Stephen

@Jp0247

Hmmm has a very valid argument

@suzylou

Absolutely agree. I bought a Grobo because I’m a gadget nerd. Because I’m a gadget nerd, you need to feed me data please!

@dthomasdigital

We need to know when the light over heats, PH levels and all the data these units produce. I guess I need to put that electrical engineering degree to good use. Now where did I put that raspberry pi.

[pyromancy]

Some more…

@SterlingNico

I def would like to see more data. Ideally, I’d love to see all the data that you guys get to see on your end. Granted, i’m way more a tech nerd than most.

@Jamminbear

@Stephen
I definitely want to see more data. Even if you are a newbie grower, i believe some basic terminology would go a long ways for all the users. I saw your post on beta testers for the new notification. Great start btw… Maybe there should be two levels; beginners and advance user notifications?
Beginners continue with the same notifications

@chris_barfield

I definitely want to see the data so I can research my own and take the number of tickets I send down by trying to troubleshoot on my own. Plus when I’m away I’m always nervous about my temps and humidity. I would like to see the info even if I can’t change it. I also would like to see my grow schedule like how you send in the emails when we request. That would be nice to see so I know when my plant is going through the stages.

[pyromancy]

@Tito

Dried my last harvest and started a new one on Saturday. When I went to check the plant yesterday, I noticed 3/4 of the bottle of Nutrient 1 has been used in ~72 hours (full when I planted). Opened a support ticket and Stephen advised it’s been dosing EVERY HOUR trying to get the PH up.

Are you kidding me? This thing has known it was having trouble for days and the only way to detect it is to open a support ticket? No, seriously, @Stephen, @bjorn, are you kidding me?

I’m about to setup an automatic mail to be sent everyday to support@grobo.io to tell me my PH, EC and Environmental data, basic information I feel should be available to me since I paid for all the hardware. This is absolutely unacceptable to charge more than $2k on a machine, not including required add-ons, and not even have it alert you when it’s having trouble. Hell, give me access to my data and I’ll monitor it myself. This Apple-esque approach to “a seamless experience” while hiding access to my hardware is insane.

@SilverGrobo

Now that I’m coming more familiar with all the information that is coming at me, I’m wanting to know the (ins and outs) of the more detailed data too:

No need for this happening for no reason:

@Hazy_Hoose

I wish they had a basic growers mode & an advanced growers mode. Basic how it is now with the help of support. Advanced for the growers who want to see there stats & adjust there formula.

@Mike_Sampson

From a new grower, this is a must. We call this a set it and forget it (I got the email today) but the truth is that’s not at all the case; not even close. This is a lot of work and without being a leaf whisperer, most of it seems to be guess work. It’s difficult to create a ticket when you don’t know something is an issue. My pump didn’t work for 2 days and bottle # 5 didn’t work for the first 40 and having never grown before, I didn’t know this wasn’t the way the unit should perform. This is too technical a product to be calling it “plant and harvest” especially when we don’t have this information available.

Really looking forward to the changes.

^ A year ago … when are the changes coming? You said they were in the beta of Grobo One

@soverance

Complaints about inaccessible sensor data going back years… not a good look.

Why do we still not have access to the real time sensor data?

@Tito

From what I’ve seen above, no traction on I proving the software side of things in almost a year since I posted this.

Cannot overstate how much I recommend building your own system.

This post had a response from @bjorn saying that they were working on it… a year ago… but it directly contradicts what is said in this topic above:

@Stephen

When we first designed the app, we showed sensor data within the app and displayed graphs including temperature, humidity, pH and EC. Our Beta testers experienced a large amount of confusion, not knowing what to do with this information. As a result, we removed this information from the app in order to focus on the core growing functionality which is ultimately letting the grobo control all these sensory readings automatically and only notify you only when absolutely necessary.

[FireGuy]

The problem is, you DON’T get notified when necessary!
Overheating and shutting down…no notification.
EC too high so no bottle 5 dispense…nothing.
Low water level…I don’t think it notifies.

The ONLY notifications are the preset ones.

[Gmann]

Only a new grower but I totally agree that sencer data should be made available IF possible even via a paid add on IF necessary !

[Tito]

This is funny that people are still complaining about this. I gave Grobo the answers to the test over a year ago. Whenever I see Grobo stuff online like the chive I check again, and see nothing has changed. I make a new comment and bjorn tells everyone it’s getting better.

It’s not everyone. They’re not changing at the speed of 2020. If their company goes under you have a worthless box of software defined parts.

Edit: ‘notify when necessary’ lmao. This thing doesn’t do anything necessary

[SWSVIC]

An extremely well written and supported case you have put forward @pyromancy. I am in full support of this request as well. The case has been presented by too many Grobo growers over the years for their team not to take action. It is time for that to change. Releasing this data is a crucial next step in the Grobo’s continued direction of market dominance.

@Tito, No one in here came to bash Grobo. Whatever your reasoning for doing so is, it should be taken up between you and their team privately, this isn’t the place for it. We’re here because appreciate the box for what it is and enjoy working with the Grobo team in their efforts to improve their product.

[Gmann]

There are No Sticks To Pick Up !!

Only a good place for Honest & Open Chat & Idea’s/problems to be shared … Good or Bad …

[SWSVIC]

All for the good and bad. So long as it’s constructive and not just useless banter/negativity.

[Gmann]

Nothing wrong with Conservative Criticism

Constructive" !!

[pyromancy]

I just want change to happen. I want this to be discussed. I want us to talk about it.

The Grobo is the most expensive item I’ve ever purchased.

Yes, I’ve had vehicles that were LOANS that were more expensive, but I didn’t have to pay them off before I got the item, I paid them back over time.

I really love the Grobo. I literally wake up every single day and check my unit with excitement. It actually gets me out of bed without sleeping in some mornings, it gets me through rough days at work knowing I have something alive and growing at home. The Grobo has allowed me to undertake a relationship with a plant I’ve enjoyed and since my teenage years and made me understand and appreciate it even further. My life is forever changed because of the Grobo!

With that being said… the Grobo is a wonderful unit, but let’s be real; this is what the Grobo is competing against:

^ Ain’t ever gonna see a plant inside my Grobo that looks anything like this! I am well aware of this but that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop using the Grobo, even if I was ever to get a tent, just like others here have done. Anyway, the point I’m trying to make is hard to explain other than my feels after spending $2400 (I’m actually over $3000 for all the stuff I’ve gotten on the side now too by far. Closer to $3500) for a unit that has less capabilities than a tent and we can’t even have access to data and the sensors we basically are paying for when we buy the Grobo.

I love the community behind the Grobo here and I love the learning experiences I’ve gotten as well! But, I am not pleased with the lack of progress towards something that, again, seemed like a “coding nightmare” but it turns out it was ALREADY there back in the beta test days of the Grobo!

I am simply asking the community to stand up and speak for change; nothing seems to be getting done and that really bothers me.

[Gmann]

I just think this whole data thing a good idea just might need simplifying down a little but then what do I know …