Tickety Tickety Tock: Irrigation Clocks 101

If you’ve been following our weekly blogs, you know that our focus for the last few weeks has been around the “irrigation cornerstones”. If this all sounds a little foggy, here is a little recap. A cornerstone is an important feature in which something is based on, or depends on. In regards to irrigation, there are four major cornerstones. They are: Stop-and-Wastes, Backflows, Manifolds, and Irrigation Clocks. Today, at long last, we are here to discuss the final cornerstone, Clocks! As with the previous cornerstones, this is more of a 101 beginner’s course. So, by the end of this post the goal is to explain an irrigation clock’s purpose, how it works, and some of the key features of one of the more popular models: The Hunter Pro-C.

The Purpose

In the previous blog, we associated a valve manifold to a heart. Pumping water to one location, and separating it out to different zones of your irrigation system. So, if we continue the analogy and the manifold is the heart, then the irrigation clock is the brain. Just like our own brain, irrigation clocks do all the thinking for your set up, sending out electrical signals that switch on the different components of the system. It controls what days to water, the duration, and frequency of watering your landscape needs to survive. In essence, once programmed an irrigation clock does all the thinking for you. This way you have more time to enjoy your landscaping, and spending less time worrying about the watering schedule.

How it Works

Most landscaping company’s have some type of irrigation clock, and every model is different. But here is the overarching explanation of how all clocks function.

Within the irrigation manifold, there are a number of electrical valves. Each valve is powered by a solenoid, or a special battery that is wired to the irrigation clock during install. For each valve, there is a specific station on your clock. To the left is a picture showing the insides of a Hunter Pro-C. Circled in red, is the clock’s module with four wires connected to it. The module is the connection point from valve wire to clock. Once wired in, each station is then programed to reflect the corresponding valve’s watering schedule. Then, when it is time to water a specific station the clock sends out an electrical signal to the solenoid. The electrical signal or voltage, turns on the relating solenoid, and continues to send that signal till the duration of watering is finished.

Hunter Pro-C

When looking at irrigation clocks, there are hundreds of options. So why did we choose the Pro-C?

In comparison to other residential based clocks, the Pro-C is simple to program and use, reliable, and overall is the best bang for your buck. The base model comes with four slots for potential stations. However, if you have more than four stations to control, there is a follow up option of purchasing additional modules to expand the number of stations your clock can control (up to 23 stations).

Now, if a landscaping company is installing your Pro-C for you, the company will most likely program the clock. (Always double check with the install crew, to ensure that this is the case.) However, if you are installing your own Pro-C, the link below is a tutorial from Hunter that gives you a step-by-step guide on how to program it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYh-lWXLLRU 

Once the system is programmed, there are really only a few features that you may need to come across. These features are circled in red above and are as follows: the directional arrows, and the plus and minus buttons located on the top right of the faceplate. And “run”, “system off” and “manual” controls, all located within the central dial.

Why are these features noted? These elements all factor into checking whether or not stations are operating properly. As a bonus they come in really handy during the system’s winterization process. (Which will be discussed shortly, in a future blog.)

Simply turn the dial to “manual”. Then use the arrow buttons to navigate to which station you would like to run. Add how much time you would like the station to run for with the plus and minus keys. Once a duration is entered, turn the dial to “run”. If you need to shut down the station before the time is up (this also applies if you need to turn off a scheduled watering), change the dial towards “system off”.

Now, it is relevant to note that manually running stations DOES NOT mess up the programmed dates and times. However, if you are manually running a station (outside of the purpose of winterization …again we will discuss this at a later date), it is very important to put the dial back to “run”. Otherwise, the clock will not register the previously programmed schedule.

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Irrigation clocks are the epidemy of convenience. Acting as the system’s brain, it sends electrical currents to the manifold, controlling what station waters, and for how long. Program them once, and as long as your system is tip-top, never worry about your watering schedule again. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your outdoor space.