I decided to replace my working Rainbird with a smart sprinkler controller while listening to MPU 622. I went to guest Shane’s YouTube channel and settled on a Yardian smart sprinkler controller. That was the easy part.
My first Yardian install didn’t work at all. It couldn’t pass a self-test. It turned out that was because my sprinkler water is from a well and requires a pump relay connection. Yardian told me they had to redesign their board to boost some signal to work properly with a pump relay. They sent me a replacement unit. That unit would at least self-test.
After physically installing the new Yardian, you have to install the device through their app on the 2.4 GHz frequency. It took me a while to get the controller to connect, but it finally did. I also had to seek Yardian’s support a couple of times because the instruction/installation manual’s electric connection diagram did not always match my existing wiring. They were very helpful ensuring I had the controller wired correctly.
After setup, I tried to turn on some zones to test, but only a few of the sprinkler zones would come on, and those were intermittent. It didn’t matter if the test was through the app or manually from the controller. This was not a problem with the Rainbird.
Thinking it was the Yardian unit, I bought a Rachio3 through Amazon. That didn’t work. I then bought an Orbit B-hyve from Home Depot. That didn’t work either. Same problem: only a few of the sprinkler zones would come on, and those were intermittent. So, I reinstalled the Yardian and returned the others for a refund. One thing to keep in mind, as you chose a controller, is the number of zones you have. I have 12 zones and controllers for that number were not always available.
Since I had now gone through three controllers with the same result, I called in a professional sprinkler system company. They diagnosed the problem initially as a couple of bad valve solenoids. They replaced them but they had the same problem as I did. They then tested the wiring to the valves and determined that the wiring was bad. Luckily for me, the owner of the sprinkler system company is a family acquaintance and he was doing the work, so I felt that I was getting reliable information. But, the wiring was adequate and working with the not smart Rainbird controller. Neither the sprinkler system company nor I tried to figure out why the wiring was OK with one controller and not the others. I had determined to use a smart controller and needed to make it work. So, all 12 zone’s wiring was replaced.
Finally, after a lot of time and money, everything worked. I have enjoyed the ability to control individual zones remotely or set up entire watering cycles. I will say that the ability of the controller to smartly water your lawn only when it needs it, depends upon an accurate weather forecast. I found the weather service Yardian uses to be inaccurate for my area. That’s not surprising. I use five weather apps on my iPhone to get a general consensus of what the weather will be. None of them are reliably accurate enough.
I also tried installing a couple of different rain sensors, but could not get them to communicate with this controller. Or any controller I’ve used. Ever. But, I’m still happy I converted to a smart system. There were just a lot of problems I wasn’t expecting since I started with a fully functional system.
And one last thing. I control the Yardian through its app. I was unable to get it to work consistently through the Home app. That was before iOS 16. I haven’t tried in iOS 16.
Hope this helps. It’s more than a recommendation because I wanted to outline some of the problems I encountered. I will also add that after examining the Rachio and its app, I found little difference between it and the Yardian. I’d guess they they have the same genesis. The NY Times WireCutter has a recommendations page that may be helpful.