How To Program A Sprinkler Timer}

Submitted by: Randall Haward

In this article, we will be talking about how to program your sprinkler timer. Ill be showing you how to set your sprinklers timer for certain days, start times and length of run. You should be careful to avoid over-watering, under-watering and runoff all the time.

Lets use, for example, the most typical types of sprinkler timer. Now, yours may not be the exact one but they all have the same basic features. Im going to show you step-by-step how to program a sprinkler timer to create an exact schedule for the week.

The first and obvious thing to look for is it the sprinkler timer has power or not. Be sure to plug the sprinkler timer in. Some sprinkler timers have 9-volt battery backup in case of a power outage. Once the sprinkler timer is turned on, the next step is to set the date and time. Some newer sprinkler timers will know the date and time automatically when turned on. On this sprinkler timer, we will set it manually. Your sprinkler timer might have a choice of programs. For this module, lets use program A. Now lets decide what days we want to program. For example: Never water every day or Water 2 or 3 days a week. For this demonstration, well use Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

Next, lets choose the best time and day to water our lawn. Early morning is the best. The water does not evaporate too quickly and the water has a chance to soak in before it gets hot. And heres a new trick: Lets set four start times in the morning. Say 12 am, 2 am, 4 am and 6am. Ill discuss why we are doing this later.

The next part is where more people are getting confused. It knows how long each stationer zone should run for. Whats too much? Whats not enough? Well not to fear, we use information from the National Weather System to figure out how much water your lawn and shrubs need to do well. We boil these numbers down into minutes per week so you can enter them into your sprinkler irrigation timer. Sensor lawn has spray heads. I know that we should run our heads for 1 hour per week in the hot summer. So Im going to set all my lawn zones to run for 5 minutes. This means that each zone will run four times for five minutes on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. This will total 12 complete cycles or 60 minutes per week. And thats the basic programming to have a weekly watering schedule. Remember that all the zones run one after the other.

So why did I break the runs into several short ones instead of one long water? It is because the leading cause of water waste is water runoff. Most systems water much too quickly resulting in water runoff after several minutes. By creating several short runs, I give the water the chance to soak in before it leaves.

Now some sprinkler timers have the percentage feature. This can make your life easier and save a lot of water. If you have this feature, set it at 100 percent for the summer setting I showed you before. In September, dont change any of the run times or days in program A. Just lower the percentage to 80%. This reduces the time to all the zones. In October, lower it to 60% and so on until you reach 20% in December, January and February. Once you set your sprinkler timer, be sure to check that the zones go off at the right time. If theyre not, theres a good chance one of the step mentioned above is entered in incorrectly.

Now I know that a lot of sprinkler timer s out there are ancient and very hard to program. If this is your case, please consider to purchasing a new sprinkler timer. The new ones are computerized and do a lot of different things.

Another important tip, please dont assume that your lawn mowing company are experts in programming sprinkler timers. We want you to personally know how your sprinkler timer are set. Overwatering can cost a lot and watering on a restricted day can result in a fine. Remember, if its your property, you are responsible for the water use even if you didnt set the sprinkler timer. By using these tips, you will have a healthier greener landscape that will save you water and money.

About the Author: Randall Haward: we specialize in commercial-grade irrigation sprinkler parts and sprinkler irrigation system to help you know you are purchasing a quality lawn sprinklers system.

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