Smart Cycle, Manual Cycle and Soak Features

Last Update:May 20 2024 4:40pm • Est. Read Time:Est. Read Time: 8 MIN

Summary

Rachio devices are capable of splitting total watering times into smaller segments to give the soil enough time to absorb the water. This helps you save even more water and avoid run-off, as no one likes to see water running onto the sidewalk during watering!


Soak features are available both for Rachio Smart Sprinkler Controllers and Rachio Smart Hose Timers. Click on the respective device below:


Rachio Smart Sprinkler Controller


Rachio Smart Hose Timer


Rachio Smart Sprinkler Controller

Now that you have your Rachio up and running, you may have had the chance to create a schedule. You may be wondering what is the Cycle and soak technique and how does Smart Cycle uses it to improve efficiency. This article is for you!


Cycle and Soak is a proven landscaping and irrigation technique that splits up watering durations into multiple, short watering durations. This method prevents wasteful and harmful water runoff while increasing plant health by encouraging deeper root growth. By including Smart Cycle or manual cycle and soak in your watering schedules, you can prevent soil erosion, stop harmful lawn chemicals from washing into fragile rivers and streams, and even save money on your water bill!


This feature affects your total watering duration, but not the amount of water delivered.

With Smart Cycle activated, watering times may seem longer on the surface. But don't worry - your schedules are not applying more water, just watering more efficiently.


With Rachio, you can choose how to apply this technique to your watering schedule. You can select: 

  • Rachio's Smart Cycle feature, which uses your unique zone settings in order to automatically apply cycle and soak technology to your schedule if needed.
  • Manual cycle and soak, which allows you to determine the soak and cycle times. 
  • No cycle and soak

What is Smart Cycle?

Smart Cycle is Rachio’s implementation of the “cycle and soak” technique. It automates the cycle and soak process and removes the guesswork of how long to cycle and soak. It intelligently breaks up run times to maximize your watering capabilities. Smart Cycle is recommended, and enabled automatically on all schedules, but can be edited (see below for instructions). 

The duration of the cycle and the soak times for each zone is calculated automatically by the Rachio, utilizing the zones unique zone settings. For example, a zone with a 14-minute run time may be irrigated for 7 minutes, and then turned off while the controller advances to irrigate another zone. While the second zone is being watered, the original zone has time to soak up all the water into its soil, thus preventing water runoff. Then, after the second zone cycle is complete, the original zone is then irrigated for the remaining 7 minutes to achieve the total 14-minute run time. This 14-minute run time may also be irrigated for 2 minutes, turned off while the controller advances to irrigate another zone, then irrigated 2 more minutes, continuing this pattern until 14 minutes is achieved. 

What is manual cycle and soak? 

The manual Cycle and Soak feature allows you to do the same thing as Smart Cycle (split up watering durations into multiple shorter watering durations), except that you define the parameters instead of Rachio doing this for you. Unlike Smart Cycle, applying a manual cycle and soak to your schedules takes some work and configuration to implement. 

How can I use Smart Cycle, manual cycle and soak, or edit my selection? 

You can make your cycle and soak selection during the schedule creation process. Want to edit cycle and soak or add Smart Cycle to a schedule? 


  1. Select the "Schedules" tab

  2. Tap the schedule you would like to edit, then scroll down and tap "Cycle and soak."

  3. Tap the option you would like to apply to your schedule (Smart Cycle will automatically apply to your schedule, unless you make a different selection). Want to try manual cycle and soak instead? After making your selection, use the plus and minus buttons to adjust the length of "cycle" (minutes of active watering) and length of "soak" (minutes of delay between watering repeats).  


Note: Smart Cycle/Cycle Soak/Well Delay is automatically disabled on zones with Drip Nozzles (Emitter, Bubbler, Mister, Drip Line)


FAQ


How does Smart Cycle affect my watering times? Why do watering times sometimes seem longer?

With Smart Cycle activated, watering times may seem longer on the surface. But don't worry - your schedules are not applying more water, just watering more efficiently. Watering less frequently for longer is usually the best long-term thing to do for your lawn.


How does Smart Cycle affect drip zones and turf zones?

Smart Cycle has been enhanced and is now smarter than ever! Previously, if there were any drip zones in a schedule, Smart Cycle would not be applied to any zones in the schedule (even turf zones), even if it was enabled. Now, Smart Cycle can be applied to just the turf zones in a schedule, even if there are also drip zones in the same schedule. This means that you may begin to see Smart Cycle applied to your schedules when it wasn't previously. 


How long can a zone's watering duration continue before it needs to get cycle-soaked?

The following table shows the relationship between soil type (precipitation intake rate) and slope. Notice that clay, which does not have a very high intake rate, is allowed much smaller surface accumulation than either loam (topsoil) or sand.

The Maximum Runtime allowable before runoff occurs will be calculated from the following formula:

Rt (max) = 60 (ASA)/(PR – IR), minutes
ASA = Allowable Surface Accumulation
PR = Precipitation Rate. The amount of irrigation water applied per unit of time.
IR = Soil intake rate
The following are the maximum allowable watering minutes without cycling for different types of soils, slopes, and nozzles.
 
NozzleIn/hrSoilSlopeMaximum runtime minutes
Fixed Spray Head1.5ClayFlat8.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5ClaySlight6.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5ClayModerate4.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5ClaySteep4.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Silty ClayFlat10.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Silty ClaySlight8.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Silty ClayModerate7.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Silty ClaySteep5.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Clay LoamFlat12.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Clay LoamSlight10.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Clay LoamModerate8.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Clay LoamSteep6.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5LoamFlat15.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5LoamSlight13.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5LoamModerate10.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5LoamSteep8.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Sandy LoamFlat18.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Sandy LoamSlight15.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Sandy LoamModerate13.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Sandy LoamSteep10.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Loamy SandFlat21.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Loamy SandSlight18.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Loamy SandModerate15.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5Loamy SandSteep13.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5SandFlat26.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5SandSlight23.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5SandModerate20.0
Fixed Spray Head1.5SandSteep16.0
Rotor Head1.0ClayFlat13.0
Rotor Head1.0ClaySlight10.0
Rotor Head1.0ClayModerate6.0
Rotor Head1.0ClaySteep6.0
Rotor Head1.0Silty ClayFlat16.0
Rotor Head1.0Silty ClaySlight13.0
Rotor Head1.0Silty ClayModerate11.0
Rotor Head1.0Silty ClaySteep9.0
Rotor Head1.0Clay LoamFlat19.0
Rotor Head1.0Clay LoamSlight16.0
Rotor Head1.0Clay LoamModerate13.0
Rotor Head1.0Clay LoamSteep11.0
Rotor Head1.0LoamFlat27.0
Rotor Head1.0LoamSlight23.0
Rotor Head1.0LoamModerate19.0
Rotor Head1.0LoamSteep15.0
Rotor Head1.0Sandy LoamFlat33.0
Rotor Head1.0Sandy LoamSlight29.0
Rotor Head1.0Sandy LoamModerate24.0
Rotor Head1.0Sandy LoamSteep20.0
Rotor Head1.0Loamy SandFlat43.0
Rotor Head1.0Loamy SandSlight36.0
Rotor Head1.0Loamy SandModerate31.0
Rotor Head1.0Loamy SandSteep26.0
Rotor Head1.0SandFlat60.0
Rotor Head1.0SandSlight52.0
Rotor Head1.0SandModerate45.0
Rotor Head1.0SandSteep37.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7ClayFlat20.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7ClaySlight15.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7ClayModerate10.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7ClaySteep10.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Silty ClayFlat25.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Silty ClaySlight20.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Silty ClayModerate17.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Silty ClaySteep14.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Clay LoamFlat31.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Clay LoamSlight26.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Clay LoamModerate21.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Clay LoamSteep18.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7LoamFlat51.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7LoamSlight42.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7LoamModerate36.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7LoamSteep29.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Sandy LoamFlat66.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Sandy LoamSlight58.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Sandy LoamModerate48.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Sandy LoamSteep40.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Loamy SandFlat108.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Loamy SandSlight90.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Loamy SandModerate78.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7Loamy SandSteep66.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7SandFlat240.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7SandSlight210.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7SandModerate180.0
Rotary Nozzle0.7SandSteep150.0
K-Rain Rotary0.54ClayFlat27
K-Rain Rotary0.54ClaySlight20
K-Rain Rotary0.54ClayModerate13
K-Rain Rotary0.54ClaySteep13
K-Rain Rotary0.54Silty ClayFlat35
K-Rain Rotary0.54Silty ClaySlight29
K-Rain Rotary0.54Silty ClayModerate24
K-Rain Rotary0.54Silty ClaySteep20
K-Rain Rotary0.54Clay LoamFlat45
K-Rain Rotary0.54Clay LoamSlight38
K-Rain Rotary0.54Clay LoamModerate31
K-Rain Rotary0.54Clay LoamSteep26
K-Rain Rotary0.54LoamFlat94
K-Rain Rotary0.54LoamSlight78
K-Rain Rotary0.54LoamModerate66
K-Rain Rotary0.54LoamSteep53
K-Rain Rotary0.54Sandy LoamFlat141
K-Rain Rotary0.54Sandy LoamSlight124
K-Rain Rotary0.54Sandy LoamModerate102
K-Rain Rotary0.54Sandy LoamSteep85
K-Rain Rotary0.54Loamy SandFlat540
K-Rain Rotary0.54Loamy SandSlight450
K-Rain Rotary0.54Loamy SandModerate390
K-Rain Rotary0.54Loamy SandSteep330
K-Rain Rotary0.54SandFlat540
K-Rain Rotary0.54SandSlight540
K-Rain Rotary0.54SandModerate540
K-Rain Rotary0.54SandSteep540

 

How does Smart Cycle REALLY work?

When running a watering schedule with Smart Cycle turned on, Rachio software divides the total watering time for each zone into a number of cycles. For each cycle, a zone is watered for a period of time short enough so that the water will not immediately runoff. The next zone is then watered for its period of time, etc., until all of the zones have had their "cycle". During this process, it's important that the soil in each zone gets enough time to absorb the water. Specifically, Rachio guarantees that each zone will get at least 30 minutes between the end of one cycle and the beginning of the next.

Let's look at an example: imagine that we had 4 zones, all grass with normal topsoil, all with popup sprinklers. The recommended watering time for each zone for this time of year is 30 minutes twice a week (must be August!), starting at 5 AM. With Smart Cycle, the watering schedule would look something like this:

  • 5:00 - water zone 1 for 15 minutes - the maximum recommended watering cycle time for popup sprinklers on topsoil is about 22 minutes (see below). Since our watering time of 30 minutes exceeds that, Rachio will break it up into 2 even cycles of 15 minutes
  • 5:15 - water zone 2 for 15 minutes - same as Zone 1
  • 5:30 - water zone 3 for 15 minutes
  • 5:45 - water zone 4 for 15 minutes
  • 6:00 - water zone 1 for 15 minutes - it's been at least 30 minutes since zone 1 finished its first cycle, so it's OK to water it again.
  • And so on, for zones 2-4

But what if one of the zones was different - say, a tree that needs only 20 minutes of water in zone 4? The number of cycles is different for each zone, so zone 4 will only water once for 20 minutes in the first cycle, the second cycle will only have zones 1-3.

What are Cycle Times / Wait Times in Smart Cycle?

Sometimes, it's not possible to schedule a cycle such that the watering times of all of the other zones gives us our 30 minutes between cycles. If that's the case, the controller will "cycle" or wait, for as many minutes as it takes to make sure that all zones get the soaking time they need before getting more water.

Here's an example: Imagine a watering time with 4 zones that need to be watered for 30 minutes each, all with grass, popup sprinklers, and clay soil. The recommended maximum watering time per cycle for this situation is only 5 minutes (see below), so the controller will break the schedule up into 6 cycles of 5 minutes apiece. The schedule for this would be:

  • 5:00 - 5:20: Water zones 1- 4 for 5 minutes each
  • 5:20: Cycling phase 1 of 6 begins - zone 1 finished watering at 5:05, and it's 5:20 now, so the water hasn't had enough time to soak in. To solve this, Rachio will simply wait for 15 minutes, to give zone 1 enough time (cycling takes 30 minutes per zone)
  • 5:35: 5:55 - zone 1 has had 30 minutes to cycle and let the water soak in. Watering resumes, followed by the rest of the zones, for another 5 minutes
  • 5:55: Cycling phase 2 of 6. Wait for 15 minutes, etc., until all zones have had 30 minutes to soak.
  • 8:30: We're done!

Rachio Smart Hose Timer


Smart Soak

Available under the More Options dropdown menu, Smart Soak splits up schedule runs to allow water time to soak into the ground. It improves watering in clay-rich soils and/or long schedule runs.

Smart Soak splits the total watering time for any individual cycle into two equal parts. At the start, it waters for the first half of the total duration. Then, it pauses to let the water soak in for at least the same duration as the first watering session, potentially extending this soak period if multiple runs or valves are active in the schedule. After the soak, it resumes watering for the second half of the total duration to complete the cycle.


  • When using Smart Soak, each valve will soak for at least 50% of the runtime of the longest-running valve included in that schedule.
  • When a schedule includes multiple valves, the system enhances efficiency by cycling between them to reduce total runtime, operating one valve while others soak.
  • If you’re using the “Open valves at the same time” feature in your schedule, you can expect to see even more soak time; as your valves will not resume their watering until the longest-running valve included in that schedule has completed its soaking.


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