Stringing mains power overhead to the Rachio location would be obtrusive. Running mains power, underground, in a 2-foot trench (required by the regulations here), means lifting up newly paved landscaping and severing thick tree roots (a row of about 30 tall pencil pines). Access is limited, and so, trenching must be done by hand, destroying the established garden. The connection for mains power must be carried out by a certified electrician (again, local regulations), which adds to the cost. A 100-foot run of multiple core cable and shielded cable, further adds to the expense (more copper and greater potential for electrical interference). The Wi-Fi nearer to mains power, is poor, and so I would have to install additional hardware to extend the signal…
I could go on, but, why?
A length of heavy duty 2-core low voltage wire, costs peanuts to fit. Even a dedicated stabilized power supply would cost less to install (and be superior to the unregulated power adapter that comes stock with Rachio 3).
I could also opt for a beefier power adapter, but it troubles me that I read here in various posts, conflicting suggestions that the Rachio controller, might, or might not like, any more than 1000mA. I seek certainty, not maybe’s.
As I said earlier, I am questioning the suitability of Rachio for my purpose. I was kind of hoping that someone might chime in to persuade me that Rachio is a robust system. Rachio have not been able to confirm this to date, whereas, the big boys, like Rain Bird and Hunter (or even Opensprinkler at the other end of the scale), are much more transparent, with well-documented manuals that, for the most part, does away for the need of community support to begin with.