Rachio has a new leak detection device you can install on the pipe that talks to the controller letting it know if there's water flow that shouldn't be happening. Do you guys have plans to do anything like this? Would absolutely be interested in it!

I installed two Netro Sprites to replace the previous controllers. The installation itself went fine, and I was able to verify that the first one waters the zones fine.

However, the second one does not water any zones. All the status indicators are fine, I hear the water getting turned on, and everything but no watering. What could be wrong? The wiring seems pretty simple. One common wire, 4 zone wires, and the power. All the wires are securely in. What are the ways to troubleshoot this?

Thanks in advance!

Select suitable plants for slope

Growing plants in some area with slopes may be more difficult than level gardens. A lot of challenging factors should be taken into consideration, for example, the different soil conditions, the sunlight condition, the slope condition, etc. Netro's smart watering would take care of these factors. Please go to Settings->Zones , select your zone and choose your soil type, slope condition and other settings.

The top priority is to evaluate the pitch and runoff. If the pitch is more than 30 degrees, it might be a good idea to terrace the area to prevent topsoil from eroding and all moisture evacuating every time you water or it rains. Once you have solved any moisture retention and erosion problems, it is time to evaluate the site further for exposure and zone, and plan what plants grow on slopes. The types of plants you choose will depend not only on your visual preference and vision but also the needs of the area. Deep rooted plants help stabilize soil, trees add dimension and shade to prevent excess evaporation, and low growing ground covers cover up unsightly areas with ease of care.

Although growing plants on a hillside can be a challenge, once established they can transform the area and help keep soil from slowly weeping down into the flatter parts of the terrain. Taller shrubs and bushes add many seasons of interest and will help give the area a sculpted appeal. Just remember that young plants will need additional moisture, staking and training as they establish. To keep maintenance down, choose plants that produce very little mess which would otherwise require extra work to clean up annually. Some plants that work well on slopes include:

Burning Bush 

Fragrant Sumac 

Japanese Yew 

California Lilac 

Creeping Juniper 

Dwarf Forsythia 

Snowberry 

Siberian 

Carpet Cypress

Read more at Gardening Know How: Choosing Plants For Sloping Areas – What Plants Grow On Slopes https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/special/slope-hill/plants-that-grow-on-slopes.htm

My phone broke and when I tried to connect my new one to the sprinkler, I get an error message saying that our Netro is linked to another device and must be deleted from it before it can connector to my current phone. Is there anyway to reset the controller? 

My water turns on then about a minute into the cycle it will suddenly shut down. The app says it is still going but water is not coming out of the sprinklers. Help  

There are 2 different levels of Netro’s smart watering you can choose (For Netro watering controller, please go to Settings->Zones->Smart Zone; for Netro Pixie timer, please go to Settings->Garden->Smart Zone)

 1. Smart watering: Level advanced

This is the default setting of Netro watering controller's smart watering. In this level, your zones will be watered automatically by Netro with smart schedules.

Netro will do everything for you, you do not need to set up the program/schedule.

Netro will skip smart watering and programs when there is large amount of rain(>0.2inch/ 5.08 mm) or watering regulations and manual restrictions.

You can inspect the Smart schedules in the calendar view. They are with the blue water-drop icons.

 

 

2.Smart watering: Level basic

This is the default setting of Netro Pixie timer's smart watering. In this level, no smart schedule will be generated. You will need to add programs manually (go to Settings->Programs to add programs) and Netro will skip programs when there is large amount of rain(>0.2inch/ 5.08 mm) or watering regulations.

 If you do not want smart zone schedule to override your own programmed schedule, you can set up the Smart Zone level from Advanced to Basic, which only skip rainning days for your programmed schedule.

Please note when smart zone is enabled, your local regulations will automatic override your own program if there is any conflict. So when you set up your own program watering time, please do not conflict with your local Regulations if there is any. To check up regulations, please go to Settings->Regulations.

 

 

3.Smart-zone feature disabled

If you want to create your own programs and turn off smart zone feature and rain delay feature, go to Settings->Zones->Smart Zone (Settings->Garden->Smart Zone for Pixie Timer) and toggle the enable button. When the smart zone is disabled, the system will strictly follow the user program to water the zones. There is no intelligence here. Netro will not skip your schedules when there is rain. Regulation feature will not be in effect as well.

Hi I was wondering if we could get an update on where Netro is with an EPA rebate? We're aware Netro has applied, but any word or ETA on getting certification for rebates?  Thank you

Live in Hawaii and yesterday we had flood level rains and to my disappointment Netro watered this morning even though I have it set to skip if it rained the previous day. Anyone have this happen?

Listen.  This timer is really bad.  How do I let a service man run my timer I don’t want to give him my phone at least with the Rachio I can grant temporary access this is not worth the money at all

I have this fern area in a desert climate. Is there a way to do short spirt misting multiple times a day?

My controller is blinking. Hasn’t done that before. Ideas?

Hi: i am having issues connecting to wifi.. i have been using the Netro for more than one year..still having issues with connecting to wifi. it gets connected for some time and disconnects. it is been happening. is it issue with Netro it self or something i have to do. i see all the bars on my phone at netro.. 

Customization->set rain/temperature/wind threshold to skip watering

Netro automatically creates dynamic watering schedules according to local weather, so if you turn on the smart zone feature for your zone, season adjustment will be made with smart watering schedules according to weather.

There are different types of weather restrictions: rain, temperature and wind.

By default, If you turn on the smart zone feature, Netro will skip the schedules (including manual schedules from user programs) when there is a chance of significant rain(>0.2inch).

The default threshold to skip watering when temperature is too low is 0 Celsius degree (32 Fahrenheit) for all the Netro controllers.

You can now customize rain, temperature and wind threshold through Settings->Preferences.

Put Sprite in "paused" mode in winter 

To put Sprite in "paused" mode in winter, you will have winterize your system. First you will have to blow out the sprinkler. You can look at this video to find some useful information. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3YRbJYmvgA&t=99s

This video mentioned that you will have to turn on the sprinkler, so you can use the instant manual run feature in the home page to manually start watering for each zone to make sure all the water is out of system.

Then you should put Sprite in "paused" mode just in case some one (for example the kids) accidentally starts a manually run from the app. To put Sprite in "paused" mode, you can go to the Home page->"Enabled". 

My controller shows that it’s online but the app is saying I’m offline. How do I correct this?

I would like to be able to share this account with my wife and my landscaper so they have access to turn things on and off when needed. Especially when I'm going to have my landscaper do work on my sprinkler system to fix the heads he needs to be able to test it easily without me being there.

Here in ocean city NJ, when we seed for new grass we need the water to come on twice daily to start germination. When I set my Netro to “new plant” and the soil type to “sandy clay” which is the top layer, the controller had only been watering every 2.21 days. The soil is dust dry. I don’t want to have to make gross adjustments. That is why I bought Netro. What’s wrong?

It’s winter, I have manual zones and 3 sprites. Is there a way to disable the sprites? There has to be. A simple switch I’m missing. 

How best to winterize system

The app crashes on android phone (S8) when attempting to set rain preferences. This is annoying. None of my messages regarding this have been answered by tech support. Perhaps I should return the device and get a Rachio?