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Hunter Pro-C programming
I’ve recently upgraded from an old Toro controller to a Hunter Pro-C Conventional. Also, I live in one of those cities where you’re only allowed to water on odd/even days. If I program it to water only on odd days, it seems to work fine – basically watering once every two days. However I like to water once every four days. When I program it to do interval watering at four days and watering only on odd days, it works fine for the month during which I programmed it, but as soon as there’s a difference in the number of days in the month, it stops watering all together because now every fourth day is an even day. According to the owners’ manual, the unit is performing just as it’s supposed to. Is there a way around this, or am I stuck with watering using the conventional every-other day/odd-day programming?
I don't believe it's possible to program the controller to water every 4 days and on the odd numbered days. I believe there's an illusion going on here. When you program the interval it overrides the odd/even function.
Since you programmed the interval function of the controller on an odd day it gives the appearance the odd/even is working when it's not. Test it for yourself.
Try this. Do everything the exact same way you did before. Program the controller on an odd day. Program it to run on the even days of the week then put the interval to every 4 days. I bet it still runs on the odd days until there's a month that ends in an odd number.
I think I understand what you're saying. Sounds logical so I'll take your word for it.
One of the reasons I bought the Pro-C is because I thought the two programming styles were compatible with each other. I didn't think one would override the other. Hunter certainly doesn't disclose that in their advertising. Certainly misleading and disappointing. Now I wonder if I should be buying any more Hunter products.
Is there a controller that will work the way I'd like it to work?
I think you have to accept that your desires fall out of the mainstream, and that no manufacturer has any financial incentive to meet your watering requirements. For one thing, most systems would run into a time-window problem if they only watered every fourth day.
What you can do is something analogous to what the owners of electromechanical controllers had to do, when odd-even watering restrictions began. You can reset the interval at a selected date. (What the electromechanical-clock owners had to do, was to move the fourteen-day calendar wheels seven days forward on the 31st day of the month, to keep their every-other-day watering in step with the calendar)
Those odd/even day fliers the water district sends out to you is there way to help control there water system's pressure
Ie if 5000 homeowners Watered Mon,Wed,Fri @6am- This puts a huge strain on there water system... But if you tell 2500 of those to water Tue,Thur, Sat..
Point is here.. Unless you are on Water restrictions due to drought conditions. Watering on a off day for a single homeowner isn't a big deal. Just do a every 4 day interval.. A week isn't an even number
Manufacturers incentive - FWIW – my opinion. Given current day technology I would have to think that during the initial design stage it would be a fairly minor thing to have a PCB work with multiple parameters. Cost wise, the difference would be insignificant and the benefit would be having happier customers rather than disappointed ones. But I’m not an EE so I’m not really qualified to say. You are correct though, that to correct it now may be a big deal.
As far as watering every four days regardless of odd/even days – I’ve received a ticket for doing that. We also can’t water between the hours of 10a – 7p even when it is our day. A neighbor received a ticket for watering in the afternoon. The police here are generally pretty nice, but can be a real PITA at times. I have to stick to the allotted days and times.
Thanks for the inputs.
"Multiple Programming Parameters" equals "impossible to learn how to program" and "makes for an instruction manual that reads like War and Peace" ~ if you look at the electromechanical clock owners I work for, they have exactly three days in a watering season they have to walk up to the controller and click the calendar wheel. They could do the same thing if they wanted four-day-interval-watering on an odd-even basis with a solid-state controller.
Another complication here, is if there is also a "no watering on Monday" rule in addition to the odd-even restriction. Unless there was additional logic employed, you could wind up with eight days between waterings.
Is there a reason you don't want to water the odd/even schedule and reduce your watering times in half?
Pro C Interval Question
We are laying sod and want to water every hour for 10 minutes. Based on what I am reading the interval can only be set for days. Is the best I can do with a Hunter Pro-C is to set 3 programs to run every day at different start times the stations I need watering so at least I water 3 times a day? Thank you in advance!
Each program has multiple start times, so you can get a dozen start times a day with a Pro-C, and twelve watering cycles a day is more than enough for any new sod.
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