A photo of the water meter instead of copying digits
Stand by the meter, take a photo with your phone and you are done. AI reads the counter and fills it into the daily entry; you just check and save. Water use is the difference between readings, and the photo stays with the entry as proof.
verifiedFrom the team that has organised work on poultry farms for years.
A meter in the corner, digits in a notebook, an error in the flock record
The water meter reading is one number a day. And it still causes a mess.
Dark, wet, tiny dial
The meter hangs low in a corner behind a fogged glass. You copy the digits on your knee and are never quite sure.
Swapped digits
One swapped digit and the flock record says the birds drank twice as much as yesterday. Or almost nothing.
No proof
When numbers do not add up, nobody knows whether the meter or the person reading it was wrong.
A drinking drop missed
Water is the first sign of disease, but comparing day to day in a notebook happens rarely and too late.
Read the meter by photo at your very next daily entry.
Create an accountWater meter reading by photo in DlaFerm.pl
It works in the flock’s daily entry — in poultry houses and pig barns, in the mobile app and in the browser panel.
Photo next to the meter field
Next to the “water meter” field in the daily entry there is a photo button. Take a picture of the meter with your phone, or upload an existing file in the browser panel.
AI reads the value in m³
The reading tells whole cubic metres from fractions. The result goes into the field together with a confidence score in percent.
You approve
The AI reading is a suggestion, not a verdict. You check the number, correct it if needed, and only then save the entry.
Unreadable dial? You know why
When the photo is blurred or fogged, the AI does not guess. You get a short note on what made it hard to read and enter the value by hand.
Photo as proof
The meter photo stays with the daily entry — even when the AI could not read it. If in doubt, you can go back to it a week or a month later.
Water use calculated for you
The entry shows the previous meter reading, and daily water use is calculated from the difference and saved in the flock record.
Drinking drop alert
Daily use is compared with previous days. When it falls by more than your threshold, you get a phone notification. For poultry a default 15% threshold works from day one.
Meter replacement without chaos
After replacing or resetting a meter, reset its reading in the house settings and count from scratch.
Team-only access
Photos are visible only to people who can make entries for that flock. Files up to 10 MB, up to 10 photos per entry.
Water meter reading by photo in three steps
Open the daily entry
In the app or the panel, choose the flock and the day as for any entry.
Photograph the meter
The button next to the meter field opens the camera. AI reads the value and fills in the field.
Check and save
A quick look at the number, save — and you have the meter reading, daily water use and the photo in the flock record.
One photo a day gives you a reliable number in the flock record and a watchful eye on drinking drops.
Create an accountQuestions about reading the water meter by photo
Which animals does photo reading work for?add
For every flock or herd with the water meter field enabled in the daily entry — in poultry houses as well as pig barns.
Where can I take the photo?add
In the DlaFerm.pl mobile app for breeders and in the browser panel, in the daily entry, next to the water meter field.
What if the AI misreads the meter?add
The reading is only a suggestion: the number appears in the field and you save the entry after checking it. You can correct it by hand, and the photo stays with the entry anyway, so you can always go back to the source.
How is water use calculated?add
From the difference between the current and the previous meter reading. How much water a broiler flock should drink at a given age is in our guide broiler water consumption, and the meters themselves are covered in poultry house water meters.
When will I get a drinking drop alert?add
When daily water use falls versus previous days by more than your threshold. You set it in the alarm settings — for the whole farm or for a specific house. All alarms are described on the farm alarms and thresholds page.
My meter is connected to the controller. Do I need photos?add
No. If the controller knows the meter reading, readings can flow into DlaFerm.pl automatically — see feed and water intake from the poultry house. Photos help where the meter is not connected.
How can I try DlaFerm.pl?add
Click “Try the demo” — you get your own demonstration farm with sample data. The session lasts 24 hours, then the test data is deleted. Once you create an account, the first 60 days are free and no card is needed.
A question about your water meter?
Tell us how many buildings you have and how you read meters today. We will suggest how to start tracking water use in DlaFerm.pl.
Phone
+48 796 258 151