LOSING a whole tank of water from cattle nudging the float off the trough was the final straw for Lake Grace farmer Karen Bairstow, Arizona Farms, which prompted her to invest in water monitoring technology.
With water being a scarce and valuable resource on her farm, she was sick of seeing water being wasted from leaky tanks or cattle causing damage to troughs.
"We can't afford to lose water nowadays, especially when you have a lot of livestock," Ms Bairstow said.
"So something had to be done about this."
The family decided to invest in Farmbot to monitor the water levels on their tanks.
They started off with one unit when they used to feedlot cattle and eventually progressed fitting them on all of their eight tanks.
To improve water efficiencies even more, they also cleaned out all 54 dams and roaded the catchments on their 12,530 hectare property, which Ms Bairstow said was a massive effort but well worth it, particularly with this year's summer rain as they could tell exactly how much water they had and knew it was of good quality.
Like many farmers across WA, particularly in the lower Great Southern and South Coast, Arizona Farms had been struggling for water in the past couple of years due to less rainfall.
Although Ms Bairstow said they had managed to capture about 40 millimetres from rain events during March.
"(Aside from March) this is probably the worst it has ever been for us in terms of water," she said.
"We have been carting water on and off in the last couple of years to get by, but we are just scraping by now with the water we have.
"Our long-term rainfall has definitely decreased - it is more hit and miss, with less rain in the growing season and more extended dry periods."
Determined to hold onto their stock numbers during these dry times, Ms Bairstow said the Farmbots have made a major difference in their water supply and also labour in having to check water points.
"It has saved me so much time now that I don't have to drive around and check each tank every day," she said.
"It just sends us all an alert on our phone if a change in the water level is noticed and then we know to check it and which one.
"They have been so handy as cattle especially can do damage to troughs."
Farmbot managing director and Australian Agritech Association chairman, Andrew Coppin, said Ms Bairstow's story was not uncommon and many other farmers were investing in water saving technology on their properties.
"It's about putting water management in the hands of the farmer and our main area of focus is around water for livestock," Mr Coppin said.
"The Farmbot device sits on the water tanks and looks at real time water consumption.
"Using satellite technology, it sends alerts via text message if there's any change that's not normal."
Mr Coppin believes that growers' motivations for investing in water management devices have been driven by their increased awareness of climate variability.
While some have made the decision out of necessity like the Bairstows, others who have adequate water understand its value and want to preserve what they have.
"Most customers say 'I got caught last time in the drought or dry season and want to ensure I'm prepared this time around'," Mr Coppin said.
"And people with water now want to gather data so they can be stronger."
As the climate changes and becomes more variable, Mr Coppin said farmers were having to change their practices from what they have always done to now farming to the conditions.
And data is crucial in making these decisions.
"Data around water consumption allows farmers to make informed decisions on how they manage that water and that way they can be responsive to changes on their property and in their program," he said.
"I think all water will be connected to the internet during my lifetime.
"Water management is a key component of precision agriculture, particularly as the industry heads towards precision grazing and precision soil management.
