They probably had water on more often, to get the grass to take Check timer to see how long stations are set, and how many days a week your watering. More likely that then the Sensor. (But check sensor also in case)

New Designer corner lot: 16000-18,500 gal. :eek: with 5 stations and about 40 heads. Watering 2x weekly unless the sensor bypasses the set day. We have several corner lots in the neighborhood and they see similar, if not higher usage. I'm thinking of cutting back to 1x a week since the zoysia will be going dormant over the winter. If you look at the recommended length of time for each station on the inside of your control box, it's way less than what both the sprinkler installers and lawn companies set the timers to. I was a bit shocked at how much water was being used for lawns. I'm hoping when our new lawns get well established we can cut the timers back.

Potable water usage is averaging between 1800 and 2,300 gal. monthly, which seems normal for two in a household.

Also a few tips I've read or heard:

1. Check for leaks. Open your cover and look at the meter reading. Then check it in an hour or so, or the next day if it's not scheduled to run. It shouldn't change. If it does you have a leak somewhere in the system.

2. There is an outside box in the ground near the house with a lot of control valves that I've been told is there for lawn folks to control if they see watering problems or need adjusting. I'm not sure how that works, but I'm guessing it's there for folks that are part timers or rental property. The irrigation water shut off valve is located there also if you ever develop a leak.

3. SECO suggests that you check your timers after a power outage, especially if your timer doesn't have a battery backup.

Yes, this is the time of year to cut back on sprinkler times!! On average I have about 35 min on each station. I'll be changing that to about 20 min now, as grass goes dormant. And if it rains two days prior to coming on, I turn off completely. You can always water just one station, if need be, because of shrubbery, flowers etc

The hunter timer control require a 9V battery to work thu a loss of power, install inside door cover.

Timers need to be set differently for regular spray heads Vs rotators, rotators need be set about 2X as long in run time.

When the system is new it only set to use program A, there are two more B&C that can be programmed independently.

For example the lawn zones can be on A and the plants on B
Or the lawn in heavy shade in A high sun in B

These can be set to run every 2, 3 4 or any number of days apart.

Zones can be set to run odd or even days.

There are many other options, do a search on Utube for a lot step by step info.

Good Info Jimbo!!!

We closed via mail on 8/16 on a new Seabreeze corner lot in Hillsborough. The first full month was 29,000 gal.! We made our first trip there last week to check things out. We had our builder walk-through and the builder said our sensor system is working correctly. Yikes! I'm with you, may not be able to afford this. On the other hand, we do have the greenest grass on the street! Oh, and the 29,000 was the irrigation useage.

Your sensor might be working correctly, but maybe it's on too long? You might want to check each station, and see how much time is set for each. Like Jimbo suggested, check the Programs and zones to see if they are set more then they should. This is the time of year to cut down on usage, as the grass goes dormant. Irrigation water is more expensive then regular water. Good Luck

When people close their house VIA MAIL, they don't get an irrigation orientation until they arrive months later. In the meantime, their property is being watered excessively...30 minutes each zone, DAILY. My advice is that they have their real estate broker or a friend come in and reset the sprinkler system to two times a week immediately after closing. Also at that time, they should activate the Rain Sensor.

Oh, I need help. I recently bought my house, won't live there for another year but will rent it out starting in November. What does all this mean? What are stations? How do I check for rain shut-offs, how do I control the whole system? How do I find out how much it's "using" 30,000, 7,000 what is that?

everyone gets a large first bill because the builder uses it before you moved in.