Sprinklers
 

Would appreciate recommendations on how to set the sprinklers in my yard. How often and for how long. I have gotten conflicting advice from previous homeowners and landscapers. Is there a rule we should follow?

This is by our controller.

This is weekly coverage.
My yard guy recommends 3 times per week rather than once.
(sandy soil, water jus drains thru)

If you have St Augustine grass, it needs at least one inch per week of water during the “Growing Season”. We are in thru Growing Season now. Set up some coffee cups or saucers in your yard and run your sprinklers until you get 1/2” of water in them. Record this time for that zone. Run your irrigation twice per week to get your requirement if 1” of water.

Winter water requirements change, but do this for now.

You can go to "districtgov.org" and view water bills for any address. So, you can compare your monthly water usage to other houses in the neighborhood. A lot of people tend to overwater their lawns, so reducing the watering times may be a good thing to try.

Your grass will tell you. Info and recommendations from Deans follow.

A wifi controller makes adjustments very easy to make.

If there is water running out onto the street then your run time is too long & you are just wasting water. My yard guy says it is better to have shorter periods (10 minutes or less) but more days (5-7) per week to prevent this. Supposedly there is a cycle/soak setting on the system but I cannot get it to work after following the instructions to the letter. Also do not water your lawn during daylight hours. Mine run at 3:00AM EST.

I start at 3:30AM
I run mine twice - so if a zone needs 40 minutes, i run it for 20, then re run the entire cycle a second time. You get better soaking.