Irrigation controller acting funny. Has anyone ever seen this?

[firefightergw]

Lightning strike. Controller is new. No master valve or pump on system. Can't upload video. Many zones have this problem. Zone will come on, run for a couple of seconds, shut off, then run for a couple of seconds, shut off. Does this over and over. No multiple start times scheduled. Has me stumped.

Texas Licensed Irrigator # LI19443

 

[WorthFlorida]

You didn't state what type of timer and with out a pump, is the irrigation system on "city" water? Since you are licensed I assume that you did the following.

Sounds like your system was hit by lightning and you replaced the timer. Right? The lightning strike might have burned the wire for the AC power and you have a big voltage drop. Check all of the ground connections. Disconnect all of the zones and add one at a time with each one tested before adding the next. Also check that you do have 24v AC at the 24 volt transformer. With no load you might read as high as 28-29 volts. Adding each zone and operating the voltage should stay around 24 volts but no lower than 18.

Does your clock have plug in modules? If it does one bad one can cause all kinds of problems. On our new Hunter install at my church we had about three modules out of five bad.

At my church the Hunter timer was upgraded with another Hunter timer and a new problem started immediately. There was some strange problems but I do not remember what they were. The old Hunter clock was powered by it own 120v circuit and the three phase pump was also on it's own circuit. The power to the clock had to be connected to one phase of the three phase for the submersible pump. After that every thing started to work. It might have been a phase problem or some some reason the Hinter clock grounding was different.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[hj]

SOmetimes you get a power surge and have to remove the battery AND turn off power to the timer for a minute or so.