How a Smart Sprinkler Controller Works in Maplewood Yards
A smart controller waters by the weather instead of the clock, and switching to one typically cuts outdoor water use by 30 to 50 percent.
Free, no-obligation estimates. We quote the whole job before we start.
What a smart sprinkler controller does
A smart sprinkler controller changes the watering schedule on its own from the rain, the temperature and the humidity, instead of running the same fixed clock every day.
The "controller" is the box on the garage wall that most owners call the timer or the sprinkler clock. It decides when each "zone", the group of heads one valve runs, comes on and for how long. An old timer runs those minutes whether it poured last night or not; a smart controller moves them as the weather moves, the alternative to clock-based timers that the EPA WaterSense guide to weather-based irrigation controllers describes.
It is still the same job on the wall: the controller signals the zone valves, and the valves send water to the heads. What changes is who decides the schedule.
parts of a sprinkler systemAn old timer
- Schedule
- Fixed days and minutes, set once and left.
- After a rain
- Runs anyway, unless a rain sensor stops it.
- A hot, dry week
- The same minutes until someone changes them.
Waters by the weather
A smart controller
- Schedule
- Adjusts itself as the weather changes.
- After a rain
- Skips the run during or just after rain.
- A hot, dry week
- Reads temperature and humidity and sets the run to match.
Water savings from a smart controller
Switching to a smart controller can cut outdoor water use by 30 to 50 percent, and adding sensors when the old timer comes out pushes the range higher.
-
30 to 50%
A smart controller on its own
-
40 to 60%
A smart controller with rain and soil sensors
-
Where the saving comes from
Watering during or just after rain is the most common source of wasted water at homes, and that is the run a weather-based controller skips.
The saving depends on how the old timer was set and how the zones are laid out. A controller still runs the system you have, so a broken head or a leaking line keeps wasting water until it is fixed, and that repair is the work we do.
Still running an old timer?
Call and tell us what is on the garage wall. We will look at the controller and the zones it runs, and quote the whole job before we start.
We answer the phone or call back the same working day.
Rain sensors and soil moisture sensors
A rain sensor stops the watering when it rains, and a soil moisture sensor skips a run when the ground is still wet, so the system does not water a lawn that already has its water.
A system can carry sensors that detect the weather and the soil moisture, alongside the controller or on their own. Here is what each one does:
-
Rain sensor
A "rain sensor", the rain shut-off some owners call it, sits where it catches open rain and stops the controller from running while it rains. It is the simplest guard against the most common waste, a system watering in the middle of a storm, and we install new rain sensors as part of a repair when the old one has quit.
-
Soil moisture sensor
This one is buried in the root zone and measures how much water the ground is actually holding. When the soil is still damp, it overrides the scheduled run, as the EPA WaterSense guide to soil moisture-based irrigation controllers explains, and the zone waits until the ground needs it.
The controller answers the forecast; the sensors answer what is actually falling on your yard and soaking into it.
Wi-Fi controllers from Rachio, Toro, Hunter and Rain Bird
The smart controllers we see most are Rachio and the Wi-Fi models that Toro, Hunter and Rain Bird make.
These are the names you are likely to find on the wall or on a quote:
- Rachio
- Toro
- Hunter
- Rain Bird
Rachio is often installed alongside Hunter and Rain Bird equipment, so a mixed system is normal and you do not need a particular brand. The new controller has to suit the zones the system has and the wiring already in the ground, and we sort that out at the visit.
What neighbors say after they call us
Our Google reviews, as the people who called us wrote them.
Glenn with Rainmakers Irrigation is super cool, awesome and trustworthy. We are in Woodbury and almost the whole block on our street goes to Rainmakers for sprinkler installation, general maintenance, winterization, and spring startups. Their services are top notch, responses are timely, and prices are affordable. I would recommend Rainmakers Irrigation to anyone who is out shopping for a service provider to install, expand, or service an irrigation system.
Absolutely great company to deal with .I was quoted by a different company that I needed a whole new irrigation system rainmakers came out and fixed a leak and replaced two sprinkler heads and got my system up and running and saved me $2700.00 dollars .if you need irrigation work done give them a call there an honest family owned local business.
Always responsive...Always Fast...Always done right. LOVE THESE GUYS.
Ready to stop watering in the rain?
Call and tell us what controller you have now and how the lawn is doing. We will check the timer and the zones it runs, and quote the whole job before we start.
- Free, no-obligation estimates
- We show up when we say we will
- We clean up when the work is done