I have a Rachio 3 installed about 7 years ago to run my drip irrigation. Initially used it with a wireless flow meter but 2 years ago I had the flow meter replaced with a Toro wired flow meter and also had an additional irrigation line added with a separate Toro flow meter, both managed by the Rachio controller. The Rachio has worked nearly flawlessly the entire time with only occasional reboots and calibrations required. A few months ago I started getting low/zero flow warnings on all 4 zones on one line although the emitters were watering normally. The warnings could not be cleared by recalibration, and my irrigation company replaced flow meter and found and repaired a broken clock wire. A few weeks later both active zones on my second line developed the same problem. Clock wire was replaced although no damage was found, and the flow meter was replaced. However the first line then resumed the low flow warnings and no problem could be found. Additionally the total water consumed during a cycle has become sporadic and the Rachio sometimes records thousands of gallons used during a 2 hour run, and sometimes just a few gallons when it should be more. These problems are sporadic and seem to have no pattern as to which zone will have a problem on any particular run. My irrigation company advises that they do not believe there is a problem with the controller, but I wonder if after 7 years the controller is starting to fail and should be replaced. Do these symptoms sound like they could be caused by a failing controller? I don’t see how it could be blamed on faulty wiring since it worked perfectly for a few years and nothing was changed prior to the development of these problems. The controller is installed outdoors and receives direct Arizona sun for over half the day.
