Performance
Installing this particular Rainmachine, the touch HD 12, was a abreeze. Especially if you already have all the cables and lines for each zone in place. Since my irrigation system was already set up, all I had to do was replace the wiring from my existing controller, in to the HD 12 sprinkler controller. The next step was truning the device on. Guiding you through the initial set up process is the HD 12’s set up wizard. Registering an email address is the first step using the set up wizard, while verifying your wifi connection is the second step. In the next step, you enter your home address. This will allow the device to download the weather from NOAA.
Once you are done with the initial set up process you will need to create a program in order to enable automatic watering. Creating a program is very easy! The manual provided by Rainmachine guides you through with detailed step by step information. In the advanced program properties I was able to split the base watering duration in multiple cycles using the cycle and soak feature. This allowed soak times between cycles, improving the water efficiency by avoiding run offs. Another great feature in the advanced properties is the delay between zones feature. This allows you to set the amount of time between two zones in a program, which basically means that you are able to run one zone at a time. Great if you have low water pressure!
During the process of setting up and programing the touch HD 12, I never once had any problems using the touch screen. There seemed to be no delay clicking on each setting. Using the touch screen you are also able to manually turn off and on each zone. Since the HD 12 comes with an application for both Android and Apple devices, I rarely ever changed any settings using the controller after the initial set up. The applications allows you to use most of the features that comes with the HD 12, while also being very easy to navigate. Using the application you are able to manually name each zone, turn off or on the device, and set timers.
Well that is the HD 12, now lets move on to the conclusion!
