Hi @nmstough, fittings were never advertised as included with the flow meter. Additionally, straight pipe upstream and downstream of the flow meter is a requirement for most wired flow meters on the market – typically it’s phrased as The flow meter should be installed with 10 times the pipe diameter before and five times the pipe diameter after the flow meter. The Rachio Wireless Flow Meter only needs 6 inches upstream/before the flow meter.
I’ll work with the marketing team to ensure we clarify that fittings are not included and quantity needed vary based installation requirements.
Maybe we can hit the refresh button on your installation and work together to find a solution? I’d be curious to better understand your system – what size and material pipe do you have? Can you post a photo by chance? From your comments I believe you have 3/4" copper.
I believe I’ve found a simple solution for this using a few low cost parts (threaded fittings and unions) if it’s a concern; parts will vary pending the pipe size and type we’re connecting to.
You don’t need the ball valve fitting; it’s just the only 1 inch PVC to 3/4" copper sharkbite fitting we’ve found carried at major stores. Maybe you’ve found a different, better fitting option? If so, please let us know 
End of the day, we want you to love your controller and flow meter. If you’re not happy with either, let’s discuss over DM (or over the phone), and we’ll make things right for you.