QUICK START GUIDE - RAIN BIRD 2.0 MOBILE APP - Rain Bird Connected Device Support

Getting Started

Connect your Rain Bird controller to your mobile device with the new Rain Bird 2.0 app!

Turn on sprinklers, set up customized watering schedules, and automate weather adjustments, saving you water and money.

New with Rain Bird 2.0 app:

Device mapping – see where your controllers are located on the map
Search and filter – quickly find the controller you want to connect using the search function or commonly used filters
Custom photos – upload photos of your site location or stations
New look – updated user interface and user experience
Fast connect – improved controller connection speed

Download the Rain Bird 2.0 Mobile App

Now available for iOS and Android
The Rain Bird App version 1.0 can still be used for Controller models that are not yet available on the Rain Bird App 2.0.
- Note – the legacy Rain Bird App does not integrate with IQ.

Opening the Rain Bird 2.0 App

If you have a Rain Bird IQ4 login, login now. If not, click on “Create Account”
Follow the prompts to create an account, accepting the Rain Bird license and terms of agreement.
Once created, log in with your username and password.

To connect your Rain Bird irrigation controller and get started:

Click on the yellow “Add Controller” button
Select the controller you want to add from the list.
For personal use, select “Permanent Access.” Connect a controller to a WiFi connection for permanent remote access from anywhere.
For temporary access or to connect directly to the controller without WiFi (short range only), select “Guest mode.”
Follow the prompts on the screen to set up your controller.
Your controller may update the firmware on the irrigation controller as needed.
Enter your controller’s zip code and time zone location for automatic weather updates if prompted.
Pro users can create and load a template during the setup process to quickly and easily load the same programming repeatedly for multiple controllers.
Once complete, you are connected to your controller!

Mapping

Mapping allows users to locate their controller on a map and also search for the controller on a map. For pro users that manage multiple controllers, this is a useful tool to see and access specific controllers based on location.

Filter and Search

If you are controlling more than one controller, from the main screen, click on the search area at the top to search by controller name. Click on the filter icon to Sort and Filter multiple controllers, including last connected, controllers powered off/on, rain delay, distance, etc.
These features help users manage many controllers to find specific controllers quickly.

Sharing Controllers With Other Users

As a homeowner, you may want to share your controller with other members of your household, friends/family, landscapers, or maintenance contractors.
To share, ask the user you want to share with to open their app and click on the gear/”settings” icon from the main screen. Then, go to the sharing section and click on the “Share Code” option. The user wanting access to your system should send you the share code from that screen via text, email, or other communication.
Once you have the share code from the user with whom you want to share your controller, Go to the gear/”settings” icon from the main screen. Then click on “Share Controller” – select the controller that you would like to share. You can decide how long you want to share access to the controller by adding an expiration date or you can choose to share without any expiration date. Enter the share code in the box and click on “Share” and you have now allowed the other user to access your controller.
If you want to remove or change access to your controller, click on “Manage Shared Controllers” from the Manage Sharing menu.
From here, you can click through the controller you are sharing, remove sharing from any user, or edit their access time frame. You can also remove any controller shared with you if you no longer need access.

For Pro Users – Guest Mode

To temporarily access a controller that you do not currently have access to, click on “Add Controller” from the main screen and then select “Guest Mode.” Follow the prompts to appropriately move the controller into the correct access mode (by pressing the Status button on the controller – the LED should flash Red/Green, indicating AP Hotspot mode.)
Once connected, users can quickly load up templates as desired by clicking into the controller desired and then clicking on Program, then “Add Program” and then “Apply Schedule Template”.

Templates

Templates allow pro users who find they are creating the same program over and over with a simple way of creating a program once and then loading it quickly onto other controllers with their mobile app.
To create a template, click on the Settings Gear Icon from the main page
Click on Schedule Templates and then “Create Schedule Template”
Click on the Controller Type from the list – for what type of controller for which you want to make a template, then continue.
Type in the name for the new template, then click on “App Program”
Next, select which program slot you want to create. (e.g. “A” “B” “C” etc.)
Create the program, selecting which stations and start/end times are desired. Programs can include odd/even days, Custom days of the week, and Cyclical programs. Automatic seasonal adjustment can be selected to reduce or increase base runtimes daily using internet-connected weather. Add additional programs to the template, up to the maximum programs available for that type of controller.
For example, if you want to add three different controllers to an RC2 controller—no problem. Add them into one single template, and when you load it in, all three programs will appear in the program spots for that controller quickly and easily!
From the Schedule Templates screen, you can edit (“pencil icon”) templates or delete them (“…” icon)

Unit labels (Metric, US)

You can choose your desired Units through the main screen by clicking on the “Settings” gear icon to select Gallons/liters, F or C, etc.

Quick Start controllers from the main screen

To quickly start irrigation for your controller, from the main screen, click on the green “play “ button near the controller. Select the stations and time you want to start, or quickly start all zones, or even start an entire program.
From a specific controller, click on the play button at the bottom center and follow the prompts to start your program quickly.

How to turn off your controller from the mobile app

From the main screen, select the controller you want to turn off.
Click on the Auto/Off button to toggle between Autorun or Off.

How to Customize Photos and Names of Controllers and Stations

To customize a photo of a controller, click on the desired controller and then the camera icon. Select a photo from your camera roll or take a new photo.
To customize a photo of a station, click on the station icon at the bottom. Then click on the pencil icon of the station you want to customize. Add a custom photo from your camera roll or take a new picture.
You can also change the name of individual stations from this same area.
To change the name of a controller, open the controller on your app and then click on the settings gear icon. Click on the “Controller Name” button and enter a name.

How to start a manual watering

There are a few ways to turn on your sprinklers when they are not scheduled to run, called “manual” watering.
You can get to the manual water screen by selecting the Play icon on the center bottom of the controller card in the Rain Bird App controller card and then pressing on the Play icon at the bottom of the screen.
There are 3 options for manual watering, a “Quick Run” where all zones will run the same scheduled time in order, a “Program Run”, where you can run all the zones for the scheduled time in that program, or “Custom Run,” where you can set any combination of time for different zones and press “Start Custom Water” at the bottom of the screen.
You can use the “Skip Next” to move to the next zone in the watering program. Once all the zones have run, the watering will stop.

Automatic Rain Delay

To enable automatic rain delay based on weather conditions and forecast, click on the controller from the main screen. Then click on the settings gear in the upper right corner. Click on “Weather”
Enable the “Forecasted Rain Delay” button to activate it.
Select the Rain Probability threshold for which you would want water to be delayed – 70%, 80%, 90%.
Select the rainfall depth threshold for which you would want watering to be delayed.
Finally, select how many days you would want irrigation to be turned off if the above-listed thresholds are met.
- Example: If I only want irrigation to be delayed for one day if there’s a 90% or higher chance of rain and only if it will rain at least ¼”, I would select those as the thresholds.

How to Use a Rain Sensor With Your Irrigation Controller

Click on the desired controller from the main screen. Then click on the settings gear in the upper right corner. Click on “Sensors.”
Enable the rain sensor by toggling the Sensor State button.

How to Change the Date or Time of the Controller

Click on the desired controller from the main screen. Then click on the settings gear in the upper right corner. Click on “Time & Date”
Select the time/ time zone desired and date as desired. Connected controllers will automatically update time.

How to Find Controller Firmware

Click on the desired controller from the main screen. Then click on the settings gear in the upper right corner. Click on “Controller Info”

How to Check Your WiFi Connection Levels

Click on the WiFi icon from the controller screen to pull up the current signal strength numbers. If your signal levels are low,

How to Manually Delay Watering / Rain Delay

From the controller screen, click on the “delay” button with an icon showing rain/time. Select how many days you would want to delay watering.

How to Enable Automatic Seasonal Adjust

Click on the controller and then “Program.”
Click to toggle Seasonal Adjust on/off.
What is Automatic Seasonal Adjust and what does it do?
Lowering the amount of time your irrigation system waters during the cool seasons and increasing it in the hotter months creates a healthier landscape. It can help you save countless gallons of water, too.
By employing Automatic Seasonal Adjust, you eliminate unnecessary watering. This happens on a monthly and on a daily basis.

What determines the daily adjust value, and how often is it adjusted?

There are three factors Rain Bird considers when creating your daily adjustment values.

(1) Historical average weather (temperature, humidity, wind speed, etc.) for your postal code for the current month.

(2) Yesterday’s automatic seasonal adjustment accuracy given yesterday’s known weather.

(3) Tomorrow’s weather forecast.

Once Automatic Seasonal Adjust is active, an adjusted watering value is automatically sent to the controller each night and is then implemented the next calendar day.

How should I set my desired watering duration(s)?

When scheduling desired watering durations while using Automatic Seasonal Adjust, it is important to set it for the hottest, driest time of the year. These watering durations will then be automatically adjusted (increased or decreased) when the daily automatic seasonal adjustment values are factored in.

Your Automatic Seasonal Adjust percentage value may be different than you would predict for any particular day. An adjustment value of 100% is representative of irrigation during the average hottest time of year. So, even if you are experiencing warm weather on a summer day, you may not see an adjustment above 100%.

Where can I view the adjusted watering durations?

The amount of watering time (increased or decreased) compared to the originally scheduled duration can be seen on each program card within the Rain Bird App. It is noted as Adjusted Total and is displayed as a duration and percentage.

How do I turn off Automatic Seasonal Adjust?

If Automatic Seasonal Adjust is active and is showing a visible watering adjustment, you can deactivate it at any time.

To turn Automatic Seasonal Adjust to OFF mode in the Rain Bird App, tap Edit Program > Seasonal Adjustment > toggle to OFF to deactivate.

How do I manually adjust Automatic Seasonal Adjust on the controller interface?

Depending on your specific controller model, manually adjusting the Automatic Seasonal Adjust on the controller interface is possible. The seasonal adjustment follows the same rules as mentioned above, but manual Seasonal Adjust will remain the same until it is returned to the middle percentage.

For a program-based controller (such as the ESP-TM2, ESP-ME3, RC2, ARC, or TRU series controller), the middle setting is 100%.

After you deactivate the Automatic Seasonal Adjust, be sure to also adjust the watering percentage back to the middle using the slider so that watering durations are no longer affected.

What happens if I have a non-existent WiFi signal and the Automatic Seasonal Adjust value?

Should the controller get disconnected from the local WiFi network (for any reason) provisioned at setup, and the controller remains in the automatic watering mode, it will continue to use the currently adjusted percentage until the connection is reestablished and a new adjusted value is received by the controller.

How to Enable Cycle+Soak

To get started, open the Rain Bird App on your mobile device and navigate to your paired Rain Bird controller. When in the Controller Card, click on the appropriate Station and toggle Cycle+Soak to ON for the desired Station. While there, also 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 then come back 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 areas, 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 will effectively break 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 not only saving water but also improving your lawn’s health. With rising temperatures, your landscape may require more water. The problem with watering in long durations is you may start to get runoff or pooling if you have heavy soils or a sloped zone that is easily 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 surface of the soil 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 if 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

Edit Stations

Navigate to your paired Rain Bird controller. When in the Controller Card, click on the Station icon and then the pencil icon for the selected station.

In this screen, you can select a station as “Wired” or “Unwired” – Wired stations will be seen and editable throughout the app. If the station is wired up at the controller, select it as “On”

You can also change the custom photo for a specific zone here.

You can also toggle Cycle+Soak to ON for the desired Station here. While there, also indicate the maximum cycle run time and minimum soak time. For more information on Cycle and Soak, see the help article labeled “Understanding Cycle+Soak and your Rain Bird Smart WiFi Controller”

Calendar

Click on the calendar icon to see upcoming and planned scheduled programming for your controller. Red dots indicate a delay, either from automatic rain delay, or manual rain delay, or your controller is in the “Off” position, so scheduled programs will be skipped.

Click on any date to see what programs are scheduled for that day.

Click on the calendar icon in the upper right to pull up the schedule for today’s date.

How to change your WiFi Name or Password for the Rain Bird controller

To Change your WiFi Name or Password for the Rain Bird controller, delete your controller card from the main screen by clicking on the “…” icon and selecting “Delete Controller” Don’t worry – your saved programs are all safe and sound and when you re-add the controller, it will already be loaded.

Once deleted, click on “Add controller” and go through the controller add process. Select the new WiFi router and password as desired and you’re all set.