Take control of your outdoor water use! SAWS residential water customers can save 30% on a smart controller through Sept. 23.
If you find your sprinkler system running while it’s raining or the controller loses track of the day and time after every power outage, a smart controller might be the solution. It can help you monitor your irrigation from anywhere and skip watering automatically when rain is in the forecast.
And with special pricing through Sept. 23, SAWS customers can save 30% on the Rachio 3 smart irrigation controller.
Understanding the nuances of these technologies can save you frustration, water and even money. But remember:
- Unlike smart phones or TVs, poorly programmed irrigation controllers can easily end up costing you hundreds or thousands of dollars. It’s important to understand how to program them and how the smart features will operate under current Stage 3 watering rules. (Note: SAWS does not offer technical support for smart controllers.)
- Avoid using “automated,” “flexible,” and “seasonal” watering schedules during the warm season. While automated watering has potential water savings (especially in winter), it can also violate current local watering rules, resulting in a citation for watering outside your day and time.
Whether you have a traditional controller or a smart one, we always recommend using a fixed watering schedule — not an automatic one. This allows you to specify the watering day (based on the last digit of your address) and start time, as well as specific run times for each zone to comply with Stage 3 watering rules (5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. to midnight).
With a fixed schedule, you can still take advantage of smart features like rain skip, wind skip and freeze skip. And by putting the control of your sprinkler system into the palm of your hand via your smart phone, you have the potential to immediately be more in tune and aware of what the irrigation system is doing and when.
