Can’t wait to see it!
Hi @knighti10, I do have some concerns about your install. We have seen inconsistent readings with the ball valves on both ends of the flow meter. This is due to the change in size from 3/4" to 1" and those ball valves have a particularly small opening. We’ve found that this causes too much turbulence and can cause bad readings. I’d highly recommend switching to an install like mine and illustrated in the 3/4" copper support article:
That said, I totally understand your concerns about getting the sharkbites off. Have no fear! I did the same thing as you to test and was able to get the sharkbites off. It’s a little tricky, so I’ll post a video of it as soon as I grab another flow meter Monday morning. Basically, using two small flatheads you can release the sharkbite a few mm. Then using two larger flatheads you can release the sharkbite and get it all the way off. I know it’s not ideal and it’s something we’ll address in any future versions of flow meter.
For now, if you want to leave it can you DM me your flow meter serial number and I’ll review the calibration data to make sure everything looks alright? It may be that you found slightly different ball valves that work better. Mine had an orange handle.
Brad
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Brad, thanks for the reply my serial # F15747195. On the installation web site for 3/4 Copper the links to the fittings for Home Depot, Lowes and SupplyCenter shows ball valves, so that needs to change… The biggest issue I have now is I had back surgery 5 weeks and just managed to get the new flow added with some challenges, so I will leave it for now, but I will change it out later once I go through some physio. Will you be able to send a replacement Flow meter?
Before sending a new meter if required, yes pls review calibration data, these were from Lowes and yes the restrictions from 1 in PVC to 3/4 Copper is a smaller gap in the valve, so understand reading may be off. Let me know what you find.
Hi @knighti10, the article does link to the ball valve but it’s only to be used on the downstream end as illustrated in this image at the top:
Thanks for sharing your serial number. I’m looking up your information and will get back to you shortly. Needless to say, we will get you up and working no matter what!
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@knighti10 The meter seems to be working now. It may be due to the fact that most of your zones run well below 10 GPM where we start to see issues without the 6" run of 1". If you have a link break that goes to a higher flow rate we may not detect that properly without the install described above. We’ve started a support ticket and will work with you that way to get you squared away. Someone will be reaching out to you from support shortly. My apologies for the confusion.
Brad, support did contact me and hopefully I will see them this week as I live just outside Denver luckily… Thanks for great support…
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Nice! Thanks for being a local supporter!
I’m scheduled to have mine installed tomorrow so this is pretty timely. I have several tree and shrub zones that are on drip. The 7 trees each have three 2GPH heads, so the flow should be somewhere around 42 GPH, or 0.7GPM. The tech specs. state that the low end of the meter range is 0.7GPM, so I’m getting close. Is there something that I can have my plumber do to improve my chance of success with low flow zones ? Will longer than 6" of run somehow help? Here’s a picture of the location where the install will take place. The pipe is the one furthest to the left. Thanks in advance!!
I’m also wondering where you think a good spot is for the unit given these requirements.
- For ¾- inch copper or Poly pipe, you will need 16 inches of straight pipe between the backflow preventer and valve box.
- For accurate flow measurement, there must be 6 inches of 1-inch pipe before the Flow Meter.
With the house being close to the pipe for a stretch I would prefer to go above or below that portion of the house. If I have it placed below that section, just after it clears the house I only end up with 13" of straight pipe downstream. Placing it above and I’m shy of the 6". I think it can be placed in the area where the house juts out, but it would have to be turned such that the flat part is flush with the wall, and I’m not sure that it would be able to turn. Will that be a problem ? Do you have any recommendations? If I have to change the elbows to get more clearance from the wall it will add more work/cost. Thanks in advance for any advice.
@azdavidr - I’ll take a stab at it, but I’d go with what @Brad or @Emil has to say. My sprinkler system is underground and Rachio hasn’t provided the underground installation instructions yet and I haven’t pulled the trigger on a Gen 2 -> Gen 3 upgrade.
Edit: One bullet is the total length of everything including the flow meter and the second bullet is the lead in which is included in the total length (first bullet). If I was in your position, I’d place the flow meter low (below the house outcropping) and replace the pipe from there to the top 90 degree elbow with 1" pipe. So that would be more than 6 inches of 1" pipe to allow the water to settle down more, if the plumber is going to replace 6" of pipe another 7" won’t make much cost difference. From what I’ve read in the other post the main issue seems to be at higher flows - which you won’t have.
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@azdavidr exciting! Please share photos after.
I’ll defer to @brad on this question.
Looks like you have plenty of room to install the flow meter on the lower portion of the house. If needed, you can dig out around the pipe as it goes into the ground. Also, the fittings for the 3/4" to 1" transition could be placed along the house where the pipe is closer (you might need to spray paint it after if you don’t want the copper to shine).
Here’s a crude mockup of how I imagine it being installed:
Hope this helps!
Will do !
Looking forward to @brad’s recommendation!
Thanks. Your annotation helps. I was hoping to do that, but this requirement from your Quick Start article has me wondering.
I dug down to see what’s happening underground, and there is an elbow below the soil. With the flow meter placed there I would have somewhere around 10" of straight pipe before the underground elbow. I’d have more with the horizontal run to the valve box after the underground elbow (which might actually be PVC, but I’m not sure). Here’s an annotation showing the 10", and the horizontal run that I’m referring to.
Thanks!
Thanks @DLane. I like this idea and agree with the cost part being a no-brainer. Let’s see what @brad thinks.
I’ll double check the measurements of the transition pipe, flow meter, and fittings tomorrow. The 16" includes the flow meter; not sure if you’re including that in your measurements. However, I think you could have the transition pipe start higher (closer to the house) to accommodate the limited clearance you have by the ground.
Hope that makes sense 
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Hi @azdavidr, as @emil mentioned just now the 16" includes the flow meter, fittings, and 6" of 1" pipe. I would second Emil’s suggestion to place the meter closer to the ground.
In regards to improving performance below 1GPM, basically just follow the recommended install guide and that will put you in the best position to measure low flow. We are working on improving accuracy between 1GPM and 0.5GPM through some averaging techniques. One big challenge below 1 GPM is that the flow itself is actually just inconsistent. We see this on our highly calibrated mag meter and that’s why they have reasonably long averaging built into those meters. When you calibrate right now, the readings below 1GPM are going to be hit or miss because we’re only making a single measurement at the pressurize time you specify. There are a couple improvements coming soon…
Glad to see you’re upgrading your system with the flow meter @azdavidr! It’s really cool. I was so pumped when I finally got to install mine! We’ve been working on this for a while 
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Thanks for the great explanation @brad. I can see what you mean about low flow rates and variability causing issues. My run times for my shrub and tree zones are 7.5 hours and 5 hours respectively, so one would think averaging would work well! My guess is I’ll be reaching back out about the cal, but either way I’ll provide feedback.
Is there any downside to having more than 6 inches of 1" upstream pipe?
Sorry, one more question @brad or @emil. The plumber coming by in a few hours mentioned using something other than the Sharkbit ball valve that you recommend. He said it would be the same thing but without the ball valve. Should I be concerned? Is there something I should watch for with regards to the part he wants to use instead?
Sorry @azdavidr, behind on my community posts today. You don’t need the ball valve. Curious to see/hear what part he ended up using. Excited to see photos of the installation!
No worries @emil. His shop ended up ordering the wrong parts for him, so I’m waiting to hear back from him on a new install date.