Question
QUESTION: Hello Jim,
My sprinkler controller is an Irritrol Rain Dial-1200. I went on vacation for 17 days and when I arrived home the sprinkler was on.
My neighbor said that while I was away we had a power outage. Is it possible that a power outage occurring while the sprinkler is on can cause the sprinkler to never shut off? That month my water bill went from an average of $190 to $700. Thank you for any any help. Sabrina

ANSWER: Hey Sabrina, I hope this helps. My question to you would be "how did you get the valve to shut off?" Did you simply turn the controller to off, or did you have to turn the water off to the system? Sometimes if you get a power surge, this can cause problems with the controller, that could lead to the controller sending out power to a valve to turn it on. Also, valves can get stuck on without the controller. A valve can stick on if the diaphram goes bad, or if the plunger in the solenoid sticks up, or if a piece of debris gets lodged in the body, etc. Without knowing more information on how you got it to shut off, it is hard to pinpoint what the cause might be. Let me know if you have anymore information, thanks and have a great day.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I turned the water off by shutting off the outside "valve" manually, not the main water system. I reset the controller time and everything is working again (beside the $ 700 water bill. Let's assume the following: 1) the gardener found the sprinkler running 2) in order to do his work, he shut off the outside valve manually and before leaving he turned the valve on again. Under this scenario, would the controller be able to finish the watering cycle or the controller had no impact whatsoever?
Thank you
Sabrina

Answer
Hey Sabrina, yes the controller would be able to finish the watering cycle. Without knowing how the controller was programmed (or re-programmed by a power surge) it is hard to say if the system ran too much by the controller, or by a valve sticking on. I hope this answers your question. Have a good day.