Rachio 8 Zone Sprinkler Controller Price: $99.99 Shipping Options:: $5 Standard OR $10 Two-Day OR $20 One-Day Shipping Estimates: Ships in 1-2 business days (Friday, Aug 19 to Monday, Aug 22) + transit Condition: Refurbished
I bought it last time it was up, Says refurb, but mine has a sticker that says “new”
Easy set up, working well so far (about a week).
can manually start it with my amazon echo
How do you connect the sprinklers to the unit? I currently have 3 sets of wires coming into my current controller. Do I simply wire the Rachio the same way?
It wires in the same way as your old controller. The instructions are clear and easy to follow. My installation took about 15 minutes, 10 of which was spent dithering and thinking, “Can it really be this easy?” Yeah, it can.
Indeed, there’s a new model, with changes “based on user feedback.” It’s smaller (not a big deal) but is now one-piece instead of two, with more spacing to hook up the wires, and with a WiFi setup that’s more like you’re used to with smart devices.
The last two ARE big deals – I’m an electrical engineer but I decided to purchase and have it installed professionally, and I’m glad I did. The tech did not have an easy time fitting in and connecting all the wires in the space provided, and the “blinkup” process to connect to “WiFi” didn’t work at all with my Android phone.
We spent a long time, rebooting, holding the phone directly against and slightly away from the sensor, in my darkened basement. It only worked when they brought around an iPhone – evidently although the vast majority of mobile phones are Android, the geeks all are Apple fans, so little testing was done to confirm compatibility.
The new one also adds another sensor port, e.g., for a freeze or flow sensor. It already could handle a rain and moisture sensor. You’re going to be using this controller for a long time – spend the extra and buy the newer one instead!
To add to the previous answers, the second gen unit has manual buttons that the first gen does not. You can manually start the sprinklers on the second gen units where you cannot manually start them with this unit.
I bought one of these during the last woot…BUY IT! While the install is the same, v1 and v2 use the same web based programming, and it is fantastic.
I switched to this unit from a Hunter irrigation controller…which was an absolute programming nightmare! Every spring I would spend over an hour programming three zones. The entire install and programming process on this unit took 20 minutes(even with blink-up problems). I added four more zones and programmed them all in five minutes. I hate that Hunter controller so much I might do an office-space stomping of it.
ATTENTION ANDROID USERS!! I was having no success on probably 6 blink up attempts…holding the phone flush with the sensor eye. Finally I backed the phone away from the sensor about 1" and it blinked up within seconds.
This thing is SMART, using local weather conditions from the net to adjust watering schedule. My unit skips several waterings a week. Today it anticipated showers in my area (very localized) and skipped, sure enough it’s raining here now. I have a rain sensor installed, but this anticipated the rain and skipped.
The instructions are deceptively simple, it comes with a quick install card and that’s really all there is to it.
I have had mine for two weeks, and I agree with almost everything posted above (I don’t agree you need the more expensive model - this one is all you need), I will say that if you find you have wasted more than 2 minutes trying to blink-up, just call the 1-800 number. I did this and they had me set up in minutes. I LOVE this thing!!!
I recently bought an 8 zone box from HD and it needed 8 wires. My current set up only has 2 wires for 6 zones. It is from 1975. The system has a dial with tabs that you put into the timer dial and it cycles through the zones. Will this box work with that wiring setup?
Also, we live close to the ocean in south florida and the weather regularly says rain and we get no rain. Is that going to make this not water my lawn or is it more accurate that the forecasters?
Thanks for any help!
Bought this back in May. Installation was a breeze.
Love the system overall.
However occasionally two of the zones appear to go offline for some unknown reason. Those zones tested with a different controller seem to have no issue.
The two zones do eventually come back online. However this has happened 2 to 3 times.
I haven’t contacted the company as of yet, still trying to do some troubleshooting. Generous 1 year warranty on refurb gives me time.
Sprinkler system was installed in September of 2015, and I’m confident it is not an issue with the wires themselves.