Rain Dial Repair and Exchange (dedicated to CP)
The leader in RD-600, RD-900, RD-1200 (including R series) repairs & reconditioned Irritrol / Hardie timers
Rain Dial Timer / Controller failures include:
1. Buzzing or chattering of values including several valves that become non-operational. You will hear the values clicking like a small hammer hitting the inside of your pipes. The chattering is due to the solenoids opening and closing very rapidly, which will cause your drip system to pulsate water. Chattering valve YouTube video example
2 Erratic or flashing LCD display. The LCD may appear to be pulsating, fluttering, flickering, rippling, fading-in & out or rotating. It is no longer a solid looking LCD number but pulsates like a neon sign.
3. Timer settings will not stay programmed after several days or unit will not hold manual settings.
4. When the "Manual" button is depressed, the unit flashes the run time and then suddenly displays "OFF" in the LCD display. When "OFF" is displayed none of the values come-on in "Manual" mode.
5. You experience and notice intermittent watering behavior. Your plants & grass suddenly appear to be dying. Most likely your Irritrol / Hardie timer has defaulted back to factory settings and is no-longer following your programmed watering schedule.
6. The 9VDC battery has a very short battery life. The back-up battery becomes drained after a few days or weeks.
7. The timer LCD window displays a flashing fault code SEN or FUS. FUS DOES NOT mean your fuse is bad!!!
Note: Very rarely have we seen the 24vdc weather proof protective case power supply (transformer) fail, fuse blow or the internal weather proof case terminal board fail but it does occur. Again, if you experience any of the above 7-symptoms, it is most likely your timer module that is malfunctioning.
1. The removal or replacement of a valve / solenoid wire on the terminal board screws seems to make some of the valves work intermittently. .
2 When you physical push on the terminal board, some of the values or your Rain Dial timer LCD display screen goes intermittently on & off or the LCD screen is completely blank.
3. The 9VDC battery has a very short battery life. The back-up battery becomes drained after a few hours or days even after your replaced your RD-600 / RD-900 / RD-1200 timer. The photos below show the Hardie / Irritrol terminal boards from 1991 - present including the Type "R" 20-pin connector model, which is on the right side.
4. The timer LCD window displays a flashing fault code SEN or FUS. FUS DOES NOT mean your fuse is bad!!!
Note: We do sell refurbished terminal boards on a case-by-case basis for $30 each with an exchange but please call us to determine which model you require and your troubleshooting conclusions.
1. None of the valves / solenoids come-on when programing the timer. All the valves appear to be off.
2. When you remove the 9VDC battery, while the Rain Dial timer is still plugged into the 16 / 20-pin terminal board, the LCD display goes completely off. You reconnect the 9VDC battery and the programing display comes back-on.
3. When you connect a voltmeter to the 24VAC terminals (red & yellow wire) on the terminal board you do not measure 24 - 27VAC. This is the main indication the exterior / interior (AC brick) transformer is bad, especially if you checked your home circuit breaker panel for power. This is the best test to determine if your transformer has failed!!!
Note: We do sell used transformers on a case-by-case basis for $29 each but please call us to determine your troubleshooting conclusions and product availability. Transformer removal and installation instructions can be found at the bottom of this web page.
Hardie / Irritrol Terminal Board failures include:
Hardie / Irritrol Transformer failures include:
Outdoor Rain Dial 24VAC Power Supply for EXT 600 / 900 / 1200 & R models
Indoor Rain Dial 24VAC Power Supply brick for INT 600 / 900 / 1200 & R models
AC Brick
Input: 120VAC / 60Hz / 38W
Output: 24VAC / 1250mA
Outdoor Rain Dial 24VAC Power Supply / Transformer removal and installation instructions for EXT 600 / 900 / 1200 & R models
Terminal board 1991-1999
Terminal board 2000-2008
Terminal board 2009 - Present
