Sunday, October 22, 2017

App Enabled Sprinkler Controller by Rachio

I had been meaning to install “modern” sprinkler controllers for the longest time. My daughter got me the Rachio 2.0 for my birthday, but honestly the project stayed pretty far down the list because I was a little daunted by the effort of it all. Then my neighbor put one in and told me “how easy” it was...he was right. 

I set out this morning to put the project into touch with a screwdriver and an iPhone. The instructions were essentially:


  1. Install the app on your phone
  2. Plug in the controller
  3. Walk thru setup for WiFi
  4. Take out the wires from the current controller, put them into the Rachio controller
  5. Walk-thru zone setup and testing
The whole thing took 20 minutes. 
I did end up ordering the outdoor cover for my backyard Rachio (its outside) and have put a 2nd one on my wish list for the front yard. 

The walk through on zone setups was amazing. 
And now, we are ready to save water (smarter watering by zone, time of year and current weather). 


And a side bonus: if the dogs are barking at your neighbors, a quick flip of your phone sends them out of the sprinkler zone (Jeff taught me that one).