Thanks for your quick reply.
#1. Perhaps then for me it makes sense to move the sensor to where it ISN'T in full sun during the heat of the day. My concrete driveway is almost all shaded by a large tree, so it gets filtered light for 1/2 a day, then is in the shadow of the house the rest of the day. As for the asphalt street, it's separated from a bed by a 1 foot wooden wall, and it, too, is only in sun for the first half of the day. The back yard/beds are in shade for the 1st half of the day, and then partial sun the rest of the day, and have no street or hardscape to reflect and hold heat.
#2. Makes sense. But an 89 minute soak period? That zone is set to 8% slope, but still, 1.5 hours seems a huge soak time!
#3. Based on your comment, I'll keep the watering window. Is there a way to tell with the smart controller whether the full desired cycles ran completely as the controller, in its infinite wisdom, decides? And, better to push into the day (bad for evaporation) or earlier in the am/night (worse for things like diseases, mold, etc., right?)
#4. Looks as if I should do some digging to test the kind of soil I actually have.
New question:
#5. Is there a way to determine, other than by poorly performing plants, whether the amount of water is reasonable? The old "1 inch per week of water for lawns" seems like a way too general rule of thumb, given all of the other considerations.
Thanks again!