Common sprinkler system controller programming errors

We love the Hunter Pro-C controller so much that we use it almost exclusively in all of our residential and commercial lawn sprinkler installations. It is very user friendly, functional, compatible with all automatic lawn irrigation systems and comes with a great warranty from the factory

Hunter Industries has several lines of commercial and residential controllers, but they all operate similarly. These timers are pretty easy to understand, however there are a couple common programming mistakes.

The most common mistake is confusing the “Set watering start times” and “Set station run times” features.

Customer: “My sprinkler system runs through the entire cycle just like I programmed it, but then it starts all over and runs through the cycle again and again.”
Well trained Irrigation Incorporated technician: “Check the program start times and be sure that only Start Time #1 is programmed. The others should read “off.”

Most Hunter controllers can operate several times per day if desired. The Pro-C has three programs… A,B and C. Each of these three programs can run up to four times per day. That’s a total possibility of watering up to 12 times per day.

​Most customers will only need to utilize Program A and water their lawn and landscape once a day. If Program A has all four start times set up, then it will run four consecutive cycles leaving the customer baffled as to how this happened!

Here a few easy steps to prevent this from happening:

1. Press the PRG button until the display reads “program A
2. Turn the dial to “Set watering start times”
3. Use the + or – keys to “Start time #1” for 8:00 a.m.
4. Press the right arrow button to advance to “Start time #2”
5. Use the + or – keys to set “Start time #2” to the “off” position
6. Repeat for start times 3-4

The controller is now set to water only once per day. Now turn the dial to “Set station run times.”

1. Use the right or left arrow to advance to “Station #1”
2. Use the +or – keys to set the amount of minutes that you want Station #1 to water for (Example 10 minutes)
3. Use the right arrow to advance to “Station #2”. Set the amount of time with the + or – keys.
4. Repeat for the rest of your stations.

The controller is now set to water once per day for 10 minutes per zone.

Sometimes your irrigation controller can look intimidating, but it really isn’t. Actually, it’s very simple and you should feel comfortable with it and make changes in the scheduling when needed. This will help keep your lawn and landscape healthy and probably help save money on your water bill!

If you need help programming your sprinkler system controller, give us a call at (440)935-1182 or send us an email at [email protected]. We’d be happy to help you!