Topic(s): Rain Bird 2.0 App

How to Enable Cycle+Soak in Rain Bird 2.0 App

To start, open the Rain Bird App on your mobile device and navigate to your paired Rain Bird controller. Click on the appropriate Station in the Controller Card and toggle Cycle+Soak to ON for the desired Station. While there, indicate the maximum cycle run time and minimum soak time.

For example, if you select a max cycle of 8 minutes and a min soak of 15 minutes for the Station, with the next programmed start time, your controller will first “Cycle” (i.e., water) Station 1 for eight minutes. It will then wait the minimally specified 15 minutes to allow the water to “Soak” into the ground. During the “Soak” period, the controller will continue running other zones in order and then circle back to Zone 1. It will then “Cycle” Zone 1 for another eight minutes, then wait 15 minutes (minimum). If other zones within your program have yet to be watered, the controller will move on to those and return to Zone 1 for a final eight minutes. This would give Station One a total watering time of 24 minutes, broken up into three 8-minute segments.

Why use Cycle+Soak?

When sprinklers come on, they can apply water to your landscape at a high rate. Depending on the landscape, the soil may not be capable of absorbing the water as quickly as the sprinklers are applying it. In cases where there are sloped areas or compacted soils like clay, you may notice water pooling in some places, running onto hardscapes, or potentially even running into a gutter and storm drain. The easiest and best solution is to take advantage of the flexibility of scheduling features in your Rain Bird controller. 

When you open a controller in the Rain Bird App and enter the “Station” screen, you will notice each station (or zone) has the option for Cycle+Soak. Toggling this on for a station effectively breaks up your watering time into smaller cycles, allowing the water ample time to soak into the ground. Moisture deep in the soil promotes deeper roots, which contributes to a thicker, healthier, greener lawn.

Understanding the Cycle+Soak feature in your Rain Bird controller is critical to saving water and improving your lawn’s health. With rising temperatures, your landscape may require more water. The problem with watering for long durations is you may start to get runoff or pool if you have heavy soils or a sloped zone that is quickly oversaturated. Knowing this, your controller can automatically break the watering up into multiple “cycles” with a period of “soak” in between. Typically, the first cycle will penetrate the soil’s surface and saturate the top layer. The second cycle then infiltrates the soil more efficiently and deeply after the first cycle. A third (and sometimes fourth) cycle is beneficial if a slope is involved or runoff occurs after the sprinklers run for just a few minutes.

While it may seem odd to see the same station come on multiple times in a short period, it is a good thing. By doing this, you are preventing run‐off and saving water.