Irrigation Controller Settings

Question:

When is the best time to adjust my irrigation controller settings?

Answer:

As there is no clear change between seasons these days, it is best to use your judgment based on recent rainfall, soil moisture (you can purchase an inexpensive probe from Bunnings) and visual cues from your lawn. Remember it may be still cold, but lacking in rainfall for some weeks and when the warmer weather arrives, your lawn may not respond as well as it could of.

The ideal time to water is early in the morning, between 4 am and 8 am, as the lawn will have time to absorb the moisture deep down before the day starts to heat up. 

Watering at this time will also help reduce fungus and other problems; watering in the middle of the night is about the worst thing you can do to a lawn.

We recommend using the Seasonal Adjust option on your controller to make global run time changes without re-programming the entire controller.  

Using the Seasonal Adjust option, you can increase the stations to run longer than the programmed time. For instance, during hotter times of the year, the lawn may require more water. Conversely, as winter approaches, the Seasonal Adjust can be used to reduce the watering durations.

For example: If your Run Times in the summer are set for 1 HOUR, and you adjust the Seasonal ADJUST TO 50% (for winter), your Run Times will now change to 30 MINUTES.