diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index 797c3a5..49a1130 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -3,8 +3,18 @@ name: CI
 on:
   push:
     branches: [main]
+    paths-ignore:
+      - '**.md'
+      - 'docs/**'
+      - 'LICENSE'
+      - '.gitignore'
   pull_request:
     branches: [main]
+    paths-ignore:
+      - '**.md'
+      - 'docs/**'
+      - 'LICENSE'
+      - '.gitignore'
 
 jobs:
   lint-python:
diff --git a/.github/workflows/run-top-query.yml b/.github/workflows/run-top-query.yml
index 9a934e1..58d5c7f 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/run-top-query.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/run-top-query.yml
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ name: Run top-pending query (hourly)
 
 on:
   schedule:
-    - cron: "0 * * * *"        # every hour, on the hour
+    - cron: "0 */4 * * *"      # every 4 hours, on the hour (was hourly — cut to reduce Actions noise)
   workflow_dispatch:           # allow manual trigger
 
 permissions:
diff --git a/.github/workflows/watchdog.yml b/.github/workflows/watchdog.yml
index cec530e..2c6224d 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/watchdog.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/watchdog.yml
@@ -1,17 +1,12 @@
 name: Watchdog (keep deploy warm + detect stuckness)
 
-# Runs every 10 minutes. Hits the deploy with a demo-mode agent call to:
-#   1. Keep Vercel function warm (avoids cold-start latency for the next user)
-#   2. Detect when the deploy is broken (5xx, hang, missing route)
-#   3. Detect stuck GH Actions runs on main (>15min in_progress)
+# Manual-trigger only. The */10 cron was removed to cut Actions noise — at low
+# traffic levels the keep-warm value didn't justify ~4,320 runs/month. Re-enable
+# the schedule here if cold-start latency becomes a real complaint.
 #
-# When something fails, the job fails red — visible in the Actions tab. We
-# do NOT auto-revert or auto-rerun deploys; humans decide what to do.
+# Trigger from the Actions tab (workflow_dispatch) when you want to probe prod.
 
 on:
-  schedule:
-    # Every 10 minutes (cron syntax: m h dom mon dow)
-    - cron: "*/10 * * * *"
   workflow_dispatch: # allow manual trigger from the Actions tab
 
 permissions: