Sprinkler system planner for your yard
Design your sprinkler system online before you install it.
Rainplot calculates a sprinkler system for your yard: the pressure at each head, the water each part of the lawn gets, the zones, the pipes and the price of the parts.
A free account is all you need. The tutorial works even without one.
With the makers' own dataRain Bird · Hunter · Toro · K-Rain · Goulds · Franklin Electric · Grundfos
- Garden
- 36,170 sq ft
- Sprinklers
- 18
- Zones
- 3
- Water source
- pump
- Water per watering
- too littletargettoo much
Steps
How it works
Six steps. The images are recordings from the app.
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01Draw
Design your irrigation plan
Draw your yard on the aerial photo of your address, which is to scale. Leave the patio, paths and flower beds out as cut-outs.
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02Sprinklers
Place sprinklers
Pick brand, model and nozzle: pop-up sprays and rotors from Rain Bird, Hunter, Toro and K-Rain. With each head you add, the app works out the precipitation map again.
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03Fine-tune
Adjust the sprinkler's arc
Turn a sprinkler's arc and the water moves with it, live.
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04Planner
Zones and pipes from the planner
The planner splits the heads into zones and draws the pipes, valves and manifold to suit your faucet, water meter or well pump. A backflow preventer's pressure loss counts too.
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05Pressure
Pressure at each sprinkler
The pump curve shows each zone's operating point, and the tables the pressure at every head, in psi.
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06Order
Shopping list
Every part with quantity and price, from sprinkler head to elbow, with the right threads and pipe sizes. Buy it wherever you like.
01–04: the tutorial's demo garden. 05, 06 and the top of the page: a real 36,170 sq ft garden.
Features
More features
Functions that the tutorial does not cover.
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Drawing
Import a drawing
Lay a garden design or site plan (PNG, JPG or PDF) over the map. Make it transparent, scale and rotate it until it fits, and draw the garden on it. No aerial photo needed: the drawing also works on the white map.
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Zones
One zone at a time
Show only one zone and see what it waters while it runs, then the whole program.
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Obstacles
Trees cast a rain shadow
Draw a tree, post or fence. Water doesn't get behind it, and the map shows where.
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Measure
Point at any spot
Measure precipitation: the water per watering at that spot, against your target.
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Pump
Pump too small? See which ones work
For each zone, what it needs at the source, and the pumps that deliver it. Choose one and it's all worked out again.
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Fittings
See the fittings on the map
Tees, elbows and adapters on the map, where the shopping list puts them. Pipes that share a trench lie side by side.
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PDF
The whole plan as a PDF
Map, precipitation map, run times, every sprinkler and pipe, and the shopping list.
Zones, measuring, pump, fittings and PDF: a real 36,170 sq ft garden. Obstacles: a garden on the white map.
Calculations
What Rainplot calculates
For each design you see:
- Pressure at every head
- psi
- Flow per zone
- gpm
- Water per hour and per watering
- in
- Uniformity
- CU · DU
- Dry patches
- sq ft
- Pressure loss in pipes, fittings and backflow preventer
- psi
- Run time per zone
- min
- Price per part and in total
- $
Worked out with the makers' tables and pump curves. Rainplot sells nothing itself.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
How many sprinkler heads can go on one zone?
That depends on your water supply, the pipes and the heads. Rainplot works out the pressure at every head, and the planner forms the zones so that each head gets enough.
Is my water pressure enough, or do I need a pump?
Enter your static pressure (psi) and the flow your faucet or meter gives (gpm), or pick a well pump. Rainplot shows whether your chosen heads get enough pressure.
What can I do if my water supply doesn't give enough water?
Split the heads over more zones, so that only a few run at the same time, or choose a bigger pump.
Will every patch of lawn get water?
The precipitation map colors every spot by how much water it gets. Dry patches show at once, with the uniformity and the dry share as figures.
Do I have to measure my yard?
No. The aerial photo of your address is to scale. Instead of satellite images, you can also upload your own site plan.
Which brands are in it?
Sprinkler heads and nozzles from Rain Bird, Hunter, Toro, K-Rain and Orbit; well pumps from Goulds, Franklin Electric, Grundfos, Flotec, Myers, Red Lion and others; backflow preventers from Febco, Watts and Zurn Wilkins; with the makers' data. Rainplot sells nothing itself.
Which sprinkler heads can I use?
Pop-up sprays and rotors such as the Rain Bird 1800 and 5000, the Hunter Pro-Spray and PGP and the Toro 570Z, each with its matching nozzles. Rainplot works with the makers' tables. In states that require pressure-regulated spray bodies, the app points out a spray body without one.
Can I design my own sprinkler system?
Yes. You design your sprinkler system online on an aerial photo of your yard: heads, zones and pipes. You can also upload your own site plan. Rainplot calculates the pressure and the water across the lawn, so you see whether your sprinkler system works before you buy anything.
Can I install my own sprinkler system?
Yes, that's what Rainplot is for. You get a PDF plan with every head, pipe and fitting, and a shopping list with quantities and prices. The digging and connecting is up to you; local codes (backflow prevention, permits) apply.
Poly or PVC pipe?
Both: poly pipe and PVC Schedule 40 or Class 200. Rainplot works out the pressure loss in every pipe and fitting.
How long should each zone run?
Choose how many inches of water you want per watering; Rainplot works out each zone's run time.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes, though drawing is easiest on a computer or laptop.