North Texas Sprinkler Runtime Calculator
How many minutes should each zone actually run? Pick your grass, your head type, and your shade — this calculator gives you minutes per watering day with a cycle-and-soak split built for DFW clay. No guessing, no runoff down the curb.
Run this zone
10 min per watering day
× 2 cycles of 5 min — wait 30–60 min between cycles
Weekly: 20 min total ≈ 0.50 in of water
This zone's pre-dawn timeline
Drip note: treat this as guidance — drip beds in DFW typically do well on 30–45 minutes twice a week. No cycle-and-soak needed; drip applies water slowly enough for clay to absorb it.
Seasonal tip loads here.
Rain in the last week? Skip a day — 1 inch of rain replaces a full week of spring watering.
How this works
The calculator answers a simple question: how much water does your grass need this week, and how long does your sprinkler take to deliver it?
We start with a baseline — Bermuda in full DFW sun needs about 1.25 inches of water per week in summer, 0.75 in spring, 0.6 in fall, and only 0.25 in winter when it's dormant. Then we adjust for your yard: St. Augustine drinks about 15% more, Zoysia about 10% less, and Buffalo or native grasses roughly 40% less. Shade cuts the need too — a partially shaded zone needs about 20% less water, and a mostly shaded one about 35% less.
Next, we divide by how fast your heads put water down. Fixed spray heads apply roughly 1.5 inches per hour — fast. Rotors apply about 0.6 in/hr, and MP Rotators only 0.4 in/hr. That's why "run every zone 10 minutes" is bad advice: 10 minutes on a spray zone is a real drink, while 10 minutes on an MP Rotator zone barely wets the surface.
Why cycle and soak matters on DFW clay
North Texas black clay absorbs water slowly — far slower than spray heads apply it. Run a spray zone 20 minutes straight and after about 8 minutes the water stops soaking in and starts sheeting into the street. So the calculator caps each cycle (about 8 minutes for sprays, 15 for rotors, 20 for MP Rotators) and splits your daily runtime into multiple cycles with a 30–60 minute soak break between them. Same total water, but it all ends up in the root zone instead of the gutter. Most modern controllers have a cycle-and-soak or "smart cycle" setting that does this automatically.
City restrictions vary. Most DFW cities allow twice-weekly watering with time-of-day limits, but schedules differ by address and can tighten in drought stages — check your city's watering schedule before setting your controller.
The DFW watering year
typical lawn water need, inches per week · Jan → Dec · seasonal calculator targets labeled
Common questions
How long should I run each sprinkler zone type in North Texas?
As a summer starting point for Bermuda in full sun: fixed spray zones about 25 minutes per week, rotor zones about 125 minutes per week, and MP Rotator zones about 190 minutes per week, split across your two allowed watering days and broken into short cycles. Spray heads put down water roughly 2–3 times faster than rotors, so identical minutes on every zone is the most common scheduling mistake we see. Use the calculator above for your exact grass, shade, and season.
Why do I need cycle and soak on DFW clay soil?
North Texas black clay absorbs water very slowly — often only about a quarter inch per hour. If you run a spray zone 20 minutes straight, most of the water sheets off into the gutter after the first 8 minutes. Cycle and soak splits the runtime into short cycles (roughly 8 minutes for sprays, 15 for rotors, 20 for MP Rotators) with a 30–60 minute soak-in break between them, so the same water actually reaches the roots.
What is the best time of day to water a lawn in DFW?
Start early morning and finish by about 6 a.m. Wind is calmest, evaporation is lowest, and grass blades dry quickly after sunrise, which limits fungus. Afternoon watering in a DFW July can lose a third of the water to evaporation before it reaches the soil, and evening watering leaves the lawn wet overnight, inviting brown patch. Most DFW cities also prohibit watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. in summer.
How do I measure how much water my sprinklers actually put out?
Use the tuna-can test. Set out 6–9 straight-sided cans (tuna or cat-food cans work) scattered across one zone, run that zone for 15 minutes, then measure the depth of water in each can with a ruler and average the readings. Multiply the average by 4 to get your zone's precipitation rate in inches per hour, and use that number in place of the calculator's default rate. It also reveals dry spots — if one can catches half of the others, that area needs a head adjusted.
Do I need to run my sprinklers in winter in North Texas?
Rarely, and far less than most controllers are left running. Dormant warm-season grass needs only about a quarter inch every couple of weeks, and winter rain usually covers it. Water only during extended dry, warm spells — and never when a freeze is in the forecast. If a hard freeze is coming, skip the cycle entirely and make sure your backflow preventer is insulated.