How do our simple circuit and wire probes compare to a water/moisture detection module that you can find on retail sites such as eBay? These products typically contain a probe of some sort, plus a small electronic module. A picture of one of these modules, plus a few probes, are shown here:
Figure 9.9 – Moisture detection module and probes
The three probes pictured each have two terminals and are simply an exposed copper trace on a circuit board, analogous to the exposed wires we saw in our circuit in Figure 9.8. A key difference is that these probes expose a larger surface area and are therefore more sensitive. Furthermore, they are also likely to be less prone to corrosion (at least in the short-to-medium term) than two stripped wires.
You can connect these probes directly to the exposed wires in our circuit shown in Figure 9.8 to expand and enhance the detection capabilities of the circuit!
Let's discuss the electronic...