How often do you water your lawn

[Icky]

So I was talking to my FIL last night about the new bhyve sprinkler timer I got him. I told him there's a smart watering feature that I have turned off, cause I don't know what it does. Decided to watch a video on it and decided to turn it on and see how it worked. Apparently I've been watering my lawn wrong all these years.

Based on a series of questions and options for each zone(soil type,sprinkler type etc) it's now watering 2 times a day, an hour apart every 3 to 4 days. I have been watering once a day for a shorter time, everyday of the week during the summer. I'm going to order the catch cups and dial it in more to see how well it works, worse case I'll have to make some adjustments or turn off that feature for the flower beds.

 

[jet496]

So I was talking to my FIL last night about the new bhyve sprinkler timer I got him. I told him there's a smart watering feature that I have turned off, cause I don't know what it does. Decided to watch a video on it and decided to turn it on and see how it worked. Apparently I've been watering my lawn wrong all these years.

Based on a series of questions and options for each zone(soil type,sprinkler type etc) it's now watering 2 times a day, an hour apart every 3 to 4 days. I have been watering once a day for a shorter time, everyday of the week during the summer. I'm going to order the catch cups and dial it in more to see how well it works, worse case I'll have to make some adjustments or turn off that feature for the flower beds.

Makes sense. I've been watering once every day as well but thinking about it, I've always been impressed with how deep the ground gets wet when I'm fixing my sprinklers, turning them on & off a couple times in a short period. The ground gets a much better soaking.

 

[nameisbond]

We have watering restrictions here and only can water twice per week.

 

[BHC Vic]

I water once a day for as long as it takes to not hear the kids killing each other

 

[mjc]

we have rocks.

 

[grumpy88]

Right now 3 times a day for 20 minutes each time . New sod .

 

[bilz]

Water every other day. Two ten minute sets each station. Twenty year old orbit timer.

 

[707dog]

once in the late evening ran by a 12 yr old or 14 yr old kid who ever is closest when I remember its time

 

[CobraDave]

That’s interesting. I’ve never tried to do it that way. Right now to keep my grass green I’m doing 6 minutes at around 10pm and 6 minutes at 1pm for the grass areas. If I don’t do it during the day it will turn brown.


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[kurtis500]

in the middle of Phoenix, I open my irrigation head twice a month and flood my yard with 4 inches of water... I can grow anything if it can survive the sun. And sprinklers that turn on every night if needed..thanks for reminding me to turn off the watering schedule

 

[LuauLounge]

Rachio timer, WiFi to the closest US weather station. Set once and done, adjusts based on weather. Everything is green, water days and restrictions don’t apply. City rebated the cost of the timer.
Put it in 3 years ago.

 

[Nordie]

Water restrictions, I plead the 5th. It may or may not be 2 minutes every couple of hours.

 

[QC22]

In SoCal. Fescue. I have been watering wrong all my life. I'm 61. Apparently fescue likes a really deep soak once a week more than some water every day. Who knew?

 

[rivermobster]

Rachio timer, WiFi to the closest US weather station. Set once and done, adjusts based on weather. Everything is green, water days and restrictions don’t apply. City rebated the cost of the timer.
Put it in 3 years ago.

More info please! We have a wi-fi timer, but it only hooks to my phone.

Links to this deal you have? Thanks!

 

[Icky]

Right now 3 times a day for 20 minutes each time . New sod .

That's how I was told to run mine when we put new sod in last summer. I had to overseed some areas to help blend in the sod at the "joints"

 

[Icky]

Rachio timer, WiFi to the closest US weather station. Set once and done, adjusts based on weather. Everything is green, water days and restrictions don’t apply. City rebated the cost of the timer.
Put it in 3 years ago.

That's how the bhyve works with the smart water features turned on. When I got it a few years back the Rancho Cucamonga water district was offering rebates. I ended up making $20 on the purchase as the rebate was more than the purchase price

 

[Icky]

 

[sintax]

I have one of the Rachio smart controllers and I’ve determined it’s not all that smart. If I let it do it’s thing my grass would be 100% dead. It doesn’t seem to have a ton of adjustability when it comes to the smart controls.

So I’ve gone back to doing an old school setup, and my grass is slowly coming back.

Maybe I’ll revisit the smart junk at later day.

 

[grumpy88]

That's how I was told to run mine when we put new sod in last summer. I had to overseed some areas to help blend in the sod at the "joints"

Yeah im looking the same way . Apparently laying sod is not a perfected art in las vegas ! Lol

 

[Icky]

I have one of the Rachio smart controllers and I’ve determined it’s not all that smart. If I let it do it’s thing my grass would be 100% dead. It doesn’t seem to have a ton of adjustability when it comes to the smart controls.

So I’ve gone back to doing an old school setup, and my grass is slowly coming back.

Maybe I’ll revisit the smart junk at later day.

That's what I'm curious about, is it smarter than me? The only thing I know about grass is it's supposed to be green.

 

[sintax]

That's what I'm curious about, is it smarter than me? The only thing I know about grass is it's supposed to be green.

That’s about my level of experience with grass as well. I know if I water it, it stays green.

I knew something was up when we had a week of 100* weather and it was only watering 1 day that week

 

[HOOTER SLED-]

My smart sprinkler just tells me to grab another beer when I water in the evenings....more consumption in the Summer naturally.

 

[RitcheyRch]

Twice a day for about 3-4 minutes.

 

[Rajobigguy]

I water 3 days a week, 4 stations, 7 mins. ea. @ 6:30 AM. in SoCal. In Havasu I have rock so no sprinklers.

 

[monkeyswrench]

I don't have a "yard"...and after this week's monsoons, I think the field will need some serious mowing in a week or so

 

[Sherpa]

St Augustine, deep water usually once a week for 45 minutes.

Deep watering pulls root systems deeper so your lawn is more drought tolerant..

Water as long as you can until soil saturation.

A lot of course depends on soil types. Clay, sandy soil, etc.

 

[Uncle Dave]

One yard hardly equals all yards so the question is interesting but no way to make relevant.


City Place (what little I have) often enough to keep it green, but I manage to keep total consumption in tier 1.

Country House - I have a tiny patch with 5 low pressure heads because its driven off a well and water it a few minutes every day.

 

[spectra3279]

Never. We get enough rain that I should mow it twice a week.

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[Uncle Dave]

Why is "when you water" more important than your overall consumption in the billing cycle?

 

[spectra3279]

Why is "when you water" more important than your overall consumption in the billing cycle?

It prevents fungus. And to me if I watered the lawn, I'd do it at about 3 am. Gives time to soak in to ground but sun can still dry it up to prevent the fungus

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[Uncle Dave]

It prevents fungus. And to me if I watered the lawn, I'd do it at about 3 am. Gives time to soak in to ground but sun can still dry it up to prevent the fungus

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let me add some detail to clarify my question -who cares whether I do it on monday or tuesday and why?

Isnt how much I use - more important than when I do it?

 

[spectra3279]

let me add some detail to clarify my question -who cares whether I do it on monday or tuesday and why?

Isnt how much I use - more important than when I do it?

Don't you know? Even days the liberals can water their lawn all day and it doesn't count as it's just unicorn piss. Odd days are for conservatives and it counts 5 times the amount actually used. Your wasting all that water.

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[Uncle Dave]

Don't you know? Even days the liberals can water their lawn all day and it doesn't count as it's just unicorn piss. Odd days are for conservatives and it counts 5 times the amount actually used. Your wasting all that water.
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I got into an argument live with some stupid little gen z prick lecturing me on what day I watered vs how much I actually used.

 

[shock22]

With all the rain in Texas have watered the lawn once since February

 

[Mandelon]

I took out all the damn grass and put in decomposed granite, boulders and a few plants that don't need much water. Stuck in a non fruiting olive tree, and some fancy lighting. Now my yard maintenance is more like one day a month rather than one day a week. Save a ton of water too. Added a big putting green in the back on artificial turf.

 

[WhatExit?]

I have the Orbit B-hyve smart sprinkler controller. It works fine except for losing connection to the Internet routinely and for long periods of time.

If I had to do again I would buy a Rachio Sprinkler Controller in a heartbeat as I understand that Orbit isn’t supporting the B-hyve product any longer at least that’s what I read on their forums

 

[Cobalt232]

In San Clemente, we have Marathon 2 grass. Summertime, every other day for 12 minutes. I also hit it with the hose on weekends if it is looking dry. Spring and Fall, every 3 days 9 minutes. Winter, every 3 days 5 minutes, unless it has been raining. 20-year-old Rain Bird timer. That reminds me, I need to replace a valve or 2.

Havasu currently 20 minutes every other day for a drip system. I spend way too much time working on the drip system there. I have no idea if I am overwatering or underwatering, some of my succulents don't look too great. This week, we had one cracked valve that I replaced, and another had it's backflow lid popping off. I didn't have the time this week to fix it as we had to get home, so I called a handyman and he replaced it. He said he measured 120 lbs. of water pressure at one of the hose bibs. I had him replace the regulator too. Maybe that has been why I have had so many irrigation issues there over the past year.

 

[Icky]

In 10 days we went from a few bad spots(after I tried lowering my water useage) to a lot of them. Back to what I know works

 

[pronstar]

Zero days so far this year [emoji106]


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[Mr. C]

Twice a day. A few minutes front and back. Along with flower beds and side yards. To much invested not to keep it up.

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[RVRKID]

This is what my grass guy said to do, been working good except for 1 spot in the back.

 

[02HoWaRd26]

I’ve had my B-Hyve for almost two years now, I’ve used the smart a few times for a few days max, but then feel like it’s watering at wrong times vs what my buddy who’s a landscaper told me. I may just try it again.

I will say any do it yourself guys here need to buy this thing, best part is turning it on and off while fixing heads etc i love my B-Hyve.

 

[Marios Metalworks]

@Icky did you end up running the auxiliary sensors?

Took me about a month to figure out a Rachio, running moisture sensors were the ticket. Agree with @02HoWaRd26 that a smart controller with phone access makes tuning the sprinkler heads and zones a breeze

 

[RVRKID]

I’ve had my B-Hyve for almost two years now, I’ve used the smart a few times for a few days max, but then feel like it’s watering at wrong times vs what my buddy who’s a landscaper told me. I may just try it again.

I will say any do it yourself guys here need to buy this thing, best part is turning it on and off while fixing heads etc i love my B-Hyve.

I also like that it does rain delays automatically so I don’t have to.

 

[Icky]

@Icky did you end up running the auxiliary sensors?

Took me about a month to figure out a Rachio, running moisture sensors were the ticket. Agree with @02HoWaRd26 that a smart controller with phone access makes tuning the sprinkler heads and zones a breeze

No, I still need to do the cup test. Maybe after I do the cup test I'll try it again in smart mode.

 

[Marios Metalworks]

Yup. Maybe mess with the sprinkler nozzles too. From the looks of the wall I’d bet the root structure under that area is real nice. Get a cheap analog moisture gauge and start poking.

 

[941Punk]

It rains everyday at 4pm in Florida for 10-20 mins, so 4pm.

 

[Tom Slick]

Watering your turf isn't a set it and forget it deal. You need to make adjustments throughout the season because of temperature changes and day time hours. You also need to learn what your lawn likes with regards to how much water volume your sprinklers put out. Different parts of your property may require longer watering duration than other parts depending on sprinkler volume, run off and soil composition.

The time of day that you water is also very important. Watering during the middle of the day is like pissing in the wind. The water dries and evaporates before it can soak deeply into the soil. Watering in the early evening is also a poor choice, as the water and grass will sit for an extended period of time which creates mildew. The optimum time of day to water is early morning hours between 2 and 6 AM.

Cycle and soak is also a great method. This is where you have your system go through each station and then repeat again. This allows the water to have time to soak deep into the soil and then when the sun comes up it drys the grass and soil surface to prevent mildew.

Here's how I water: My first station turns on at 3 AM and runs through all 7 stations. Each station has it's own run time length, as some areas require less water. It then repeats the cycle a second time. Depending on the time of year, length of day and weather I water 2, 3, 4 days per week. In the Spring time I start off at 2 days per week. As the weather starts to get warmer I look at my lawn to see if it is looking weaker and up my watering day to 3 days. When the weather turn really hot I will up it to 4 days max. I also change up the duration that each station runs by looking at the lawn. If I'm growing mushrooms I dial it back because it's getting too much water. If my lawn is turning a little grey in color I dial it up.

It is good to allow your lawn to stress from time to time by reducing the watering a bit. This trains the roots to seek moister and grow deeper into the soil looking for water. Cycle and soak helps to get that moister to soak into the soil deep, therefore giving the roots something to chase. If you water just a little bit every day, the water stays on the surface and your roots will have nowhere to go.

Hope this helps!