SENSECAP MTEC-01B Multi Depth Soil Sensor
Product Introduction
This Multi-Soil MT-01 Soil Sensor can monitor soil at different depths in real-time. By measuring the dielectric constant of the soil, this Multi-Soil MT-01 sensor can directly and stably reflect the true moisture content of various soils, and is the internationally standard method of measuring soil moisture. Apply to water-saving in farming, checking the weather, monitoring the environment, growing flowers and vegetables in greenhouses, grassy fields, soil testing, plant cultivation, scientific experiments, and more.
Features:
Soil moisture content, electrical conductivity, and temperature all in one.
Multi-layer monitoring. Supports 4 layers of soil temperature & moisture & EC monitoring.
High-quality plastic shell. Anti-aging and resistant to corrosion from acid and alkali in the soil.
Tight waterproof treatment. It can be immersed in water for a long time without leakage.
Reliable performance. Measurement accuracy is high, less affected by soil salinity, and applicable to various soil types.
Multi-directional imitation misconnection protection. With the power line, ground line, and signal line, there is multi-directional anti-wrong connection protection.
Specification
| Soil Temperature | |
| Range | -30 ～ 70 ℃ |
| Accuracy | ±0.5 ℃ |
| Resolution | 0.1 ℃ |
| Soil Moisture | |
| Range | 0 ～ 70 % |
| Accuracy | ±3 % |
| Resolution | 0.1 % |
| Electrical Conductivity | |
| Range | 0 ～ 5000 μs/cm Extensible customization range: 0 ～ 20000 μs/cm |
| Accuracy | ±10 % |
| Resolution | 10 μs/cm |
| General Parameters | |
| Interface | RS-485 |
| Protocol | MODBUS-RTU RS485 |
| Measurement Point | 10cm (4 in) 20cm (8 in) 30cm (12 in) 40cm (16 in) |
| Measurement Area | Within 10cm outside the surface |
| Response Time | <100ms |
| Start-up Time | 10 seconds after powering on |
| Power Supply | 12V ～ 24V |
| Current Consumption | 12V /40mA 24V /20mA |
| Operating Temperature | -10℃ ～ 55℃ |
| IP Rating | IP68 |
| Cable Length | 10 meters |
| Device Weight | 1505g |
Hardware overview
Wiring
 |
Aviation Connector | Sensor Wire | Description |
| 1 | VCC+ | DC12-24V | |
| 2 | NC | No connect | |
| 3 | RS485 A | – | |
| 4 | RS485 B | – | |
| 5 | GND | Ground |
Dimensions
Installation
Set monitoring locations:
Use an earth auger to drill holes at suitable locations, then remove impurities from the removed earth, rub it fine, and add water to make a slurry.
Grouting installation:
Slowly pour the mud into the hole and turn the sensor down slowly in one direction. Until some of the mud is spilled and the 0 scale line is level with the ground surface.
Notice: Installation should be done slowly, do not pull the sensor upwards to avoid air entering the hole and affecting the measurement.
Wait for mud to stabilize:
After completing the installation, it is necessary to wait for a period of time til the slurry has stabilised and returned to its normal state before starting monitoring.
RS485 Modbus Protocol
Modbus Protocol
Modbus Protocol is widely used to establish master-slave communication between intelligent devices or sensors. A MODBUS message sent from a master to a slave contains the address of the slave, the function code (e.g. ‘read register’ or ‘write register’), the data, and a checksum (LRC or CRC).
Multi-Soil MT-01 sensor with RS485 interface supports Modbus protocol. The communication parameters to factory default values for: Baud rate 9600 bps, one start bit, 8 data bits, no parity, one stop bit.
Communication protocol is Modbus RTU protocol. Communication parameters can be changed by the setup program or MODBUS command, after the communication parameters are changed, the sensor is required to re-enter the sensor to be effective.
Following modbus function code are supported by sensor:
Modbus Function Code 0x03: used for reading holding register.
Modbus Function Code 0x04: used for reading input register.
Modbus Function Code 0x06: used for writing single holding register.
Modbus Function Code 0x10: used for writing multiple
Modbus Registers
| Parameter Name | Register Address | Parameter Type | Modbus Function number | Parameter Range and Description |
| Soil Temperature (10cm) | 0x0000 /0 | INT16, read | 3/4 | -32768-32767 Divide by 10 to get the true value Unit: ℃ |
| Soil Moisture (10cm) | 0x0001 /1 | UINT16, read | 3/4 | 0-1000 Correspond to0-100% |
| Soil EC (10cm) | 0x0002 /2 | UINT16, read | 3/4 | 0-500 Correspond to0-5000μs/cm |
| Soil Temperature (20cm) |
0x0003/3 | INT16, read | 3/4 | -32768-32767 Divide by 10 to get the true value Unit: C |
| Soil Moisture (20cm) |
0x0004/4 | UINT16, read | 3/4 | 0-1000 Correspond to 0-100% |
| Soil EC (20cm) |
0x0005/5 | UINT16, read | 3/4 | 0-500 Correspond to 0-5000 μs/cm |
| Soil Temperature (30cm) |
9/9000×0 | INT16, read | 3/4 | -32768-32767 Divide by 10 to get the true value Unit: “C |
| Soil Moisture (30cm) | 0x0007/7 | UINT16, read | 3/4 | 0-1000 Correspond to 0-100% |
| Soil EC (30cm) | 0x0008 /8 | UINT16, read | 3/4 | 0-500 Correspond to 0-5000 μs/cm |
| Soil Temperature (40cm) | 0x0009/9 | INT16. read | 3/4 | -32768-32767 Divide by 10 to get the true value Unit: ‘C |
| Soil Moisture (40cm) |
0x000A/10 | UINT16, read | 3/4 | 0-1000 Correspond to 0-100% |
| Soil EC (40cm) | 0x000B/11 | UINT16, read | 3/4 | 0-500 Correspond to 0-5000 μs/cm |
| Slave ADDRESS | 0x0100 /256 | UINT16, Read/Write | 3/6/16 | 0-255 Default is 49(Dec) |
Reading Sensor Data
Reads data (soil temperature, soil moisture, soil EC) from the sensor (address 49, decimal)
Master Send:
31 03 0000 000C 403F (CRC Checksum)
Sensor Response:
| 31 03 18 | 00D3 (Soil Temperature-10cm) | 0110 (Soil Moisture-10cm) | 0028(Soil |
| EC-10 cm) | 00D0 (Soil Temperature-20cm) | 0121 (Soil Moisture-20cm) | 0032(Soil |
| EC-20 cm) | 00CD (Soil Temperature-30cm) | 012E (Soil Moisture-30cm) | 003C(Soil |
| EC-30 cm) | 00CB (Soil Temperature-40cm) | 0138 (Soil Moisture-40cm) | 0041(Soil |
| EC-40 cm) | 62D9 (CRC Checksum) |
Data representation:
Soil Temperature: INT16 format, divide by 10 to get real value in C
Soil Moisture: UINT16 format, divide by 10 to get real value in %(m³/m³)
Soil EC: UINT16 format, multiply by 10 to get the true value in µs/cm
For example, the data above indicates that:
| 10cm: | Soil Temperature: 21.1℃, | Soil Moisture: 27.2%(m³/m³), Soil | Soil EC: 400 μs/cm; |
| 20cm: | Soil Temperature: 20.8°C | Soil Moisture: 28.9%(m³/m³) | – Soil EC: 500 μs/cm; |
| 30cm: | Soil Temperature: 20.5°C, | Soil Moisture: 30.2% * ((m ^ 3) / (m ^ 3)) | Soil EC: 600 μs/cm; |
| 40cm: | Soil Temperature: 20.3°C, | Soil Moisture: 31.2%(m³/m³), | Soil EC: 650 μs/cm; |
Modify Modbus Address
Set default Modbus address (49 in decimal) to 02:
| Slave Addr | Function Code | Register Addr H | Register Addr L | Register Data H | Register Data L | CRC16 H |
CRC16 L |
| 31 | 06 | 01 | 00 | 00 | 02 | 0C | 07 |
Repeat the sent command if the sensor successfully receives and modifies the address.
Notice: Make sure that only one slave is connected when using the broadcast address to modify the sensor address.
Document Version
| Version | Date | Description | Editor |
| V1.0 | 1/24/2025 | First edition | LeoLiu |
Customer Support
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Documents / Resources
 |
SENSECAP MTEC-01B Multi Depth Soil Sensor [pdf] User Manual MTEC-01B Multi Depth Soil Sensor, MTEC-01B, Multi Depth Soil Sensor, Depth Soil Sensor, Soil Sensor |