RainMachine SPK3-12 Operating instructions

Brand: RainMachine

Model: SPK3-12

Type: Operating instructions

RainMachine SPK3-12 is a smart irrigation controller that helps you save water and keep your lawn and garden looking their best. With its advanced weather intelligence, the SPK3-12 automatically adjusts watering schedules based on real-time weather conditions, soil moisture levels, and plant needs.

Here are some of the key features and benefits of the RainMachine SPK3-12:

Weather intelligence: The SPK3-12 uses real-time weather data from a local weather station to adjust watering schedules automatically. This ensures that your plants are getting the right amount of water, even when the weather changes.

Here are some of the key features and benefits of the RainMachine SPK3-12:

Weather intelligence: The SPK3-12 uses real-time weather data from a local weather station to adjust watering schedules automatically. This ensures that your plants are getting the right amount of water, even when the weather changes.

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RainMachineTouchHD12

QuickStartGuide

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RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

2

TableofContents

WiringDiagram..........................................................................................................3

HardwareInstallation.................................................................................................6

InitialSetup................................................................................................................5

Howitworks…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..7

Operation...................................................................................................................8

Creatingfirstprogram............................................................................................8

Zones....................................................................................................................11

ZonesProperties..................................................................................................12

Dashboard(RainMachinemobileapplication).....................................................14

WeatherData.......................................................................................................15

Snooze..................................................................................................................16

FreezeProtect......................................................................................................17

HotDays...............................................................................................................17

Sensitivity.............................................................................................................18

FieldCapacity.......................................................................................................18

Specifications...........................................................................................................20

Features................................................................................................................20

Environmental......................................................................................................20

Mechanical...........................................................................................................20

Electrical...............................................................................................................20

Certification..........................................................................................................20

WarrantyandLegal..............................................................................................21

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

3

 

RainMachinedevice(frontview)



24VACpoweradapter(cable1.5mlength)



2drywallsscrews&miniscrewdriver

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Userdocumentation

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Visitusatwww.rainmachine.comforsupportandtobrowseour

Knowledgebaseorcontactourteam.

UserDocumentation

InsidetheBox

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

4



WiringDiagram

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

5

Tip:Takeaphotoofyouroldtimerwiringforreference!

ForaninstallationvideopleasevisitourRainMachineYouTube

channel



1.Fasteningunit

• Usingthe2provideddrywallscrewsandtemplatecard,fasten

theunittothewallat4to5feethigh,oreyelevel.

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2.Electrical

• Insertyourvalvewirestotheterminalblocksandtighten

screwstosecure(screwdriverincluded).

• Youcanuseanyorbothofthe“C”terminalsascommon.

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3.PowerUp

• Connectthepowerleadstotheterminalsmarked“24VAC”

andplugtransformerintoACwallsocket.

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Thesystemwillbootupandwillenterintheinitialsetupmode.

InitialSetup

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

6

OnceRainMachinehasenteredtheInitialSetupmode,Followthe

onscreeninstallationstepstoconfigureyourWiFinetwork,

location,andcreateremoteaccessloginaccount.

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Sometips:

• Besureyouareconnectingtoyourhomenetworkandnotan

unfamiliaropennetworknearby.

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• Enteryourexacthomeaddressforthemostpreciseweather

forecasts.EnteringacityorZIPcodeonlywillreducethe

accuracyoftheweatherdata.

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• Besuretoconfirmyourverificationemail!Withoutthisstep,

remoteaccesswillnotwork.

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Withyourremoteaccessemailandpasswordconfirmed,download

theRainMachineAppfromtheappstore.Afterlaunchingtheapp,

selectthe3LinesMenuintheupperleft,andthenRemoteAccess.

Thisiswhereyouwilladdyouremailandpassword.

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HardwareInstallation

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

7

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WeatherAdaptiveWatering

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TheRainMachinewilldynamicallyadjustwateringduration(e.g.

Roses,5minutes)usingEvapotranspirationcalculationsbasedon

weatherdatasuchasforecastedtemperature,wind,rainand

humidity,sunexposure,etc.Inshort,wefollownatural

environmentalconditions,andwhennecessarywedecreaseor

increasewateroutput.

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Whencomparedwithregulartimercontrollerswithfixedwatering

duration,theRainMachineallowsyoutosavewaterandmaintain

healthyplants.

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ForafullexplanationofhowitworksvisitourKnowledgebaseat

www.rainmachine.com

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HowItWorks

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

8

CreatingYourFirstProgram

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Inordertoenableautomaticwatering,youneedtosetupatleast

oneprogram:

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1.FromtheRainMachineapp,gotoSettings>Programs>Add

NewProgram

2.Labelyourprogram.Example:“RoseGarden”

3.SelectaFrequency:howoftentheprogramruns

4.SelectaStartTime:whentheprogramstarts

5.Inputabasewateringduration

(CustomorSuggested)foreach

zoneinthisprogram

6.Save

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BaseWateringDuration–durationofwateringrequiredforeachzone,duringa

regularsummerday.Example:RoseGarden,5minutes.TheRainMachinewill

constantlyadjustthisdurationbasedonweatherconditions(temperature,rain,

humidity,wind)andthetimeofyear(basedonsunexposureanddaylighthours).See

nextpagefordetails.

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RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

9

CustomvsSuggestedDuration

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Wateringdurationsforeachprogrammedzonecanbesetby:

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1. Customduration:Theusersetsadesiredwatering

durationforatypicalsummerday.

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2. Suggestedduration:calculatedfromthepropertiesof

yourzone(soiltype,planttype,sunexposureand

location)foratypicalsummerday.

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TheRainMachinewillthenadjustthesedurationsbasedonthree

choices:liveweather,seasonaladjustments,or“donotadjust”.

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Forexample,hotdaysrequiremorewater,cooldaysrequireless,

andonrainydaysitmaynotwateratallachievingsubstantial

watersavings

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RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

10

ProgramProperties

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AdjustwateringDurationbasedonweather:Whenenabled,the

basewateringdurationwillbeadjusteddailybasedonweather.



RainRestriction:DonotwaterifRainexceedsacertainamount.

Usethisifyouabsolutelydon’twantanywateringactivityduring

rainoveracertainamount.



CycleandSoak:splitsthebasewateringruntimeintomultiple

cyclesseparatedbysoaktimes.Thisfeatureimproveswatering

efficiencybyallowingtimeforthesoiltoabsorbwaterandthus

avoidrunoff.



Delaybetweenzones:setstheamountoftimebetweentwo

consecutivezonesinaprogram,toaccommodatespecificirrigation

systems.(Example:extratimetofillupwatertanksortobuildup

waterpressure).

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RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

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ManuallyWateringZones

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FromRainMachineapp,gotoZonesandtapontheplaybutton,

andselectadesiredduration.



Alternatively,FromtheRainMachinedevice,touchtheUP/DOWN

touchbuttonstoselectthezonenumberandstartwateringby

pressingthewateringcan.Defaultis5minutes.



NOTE:Thedurationdefaultsto5minutes,butitcanbechangedandsaved

fromtheRainMachineapp.Manualwateringdoesnotaffectanyscheduled

programs.

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RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

12

ZoneProperties&MasterValve

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

Tomodifyzoneproperties,tapEdit



Note:Ifyouhaveamastervalveorapump,Zone1canbere

assignedasaMasterValve.



Weatherandseasonaladjustments.SelectLiveWeatheror

SeasonalAdjustmentsforyourzone.Ifbothoptionsaredisabled,

theRainMachinewillnotadjustwateringdurations.



SoilType,SlopeandExposure:Differentsoiltypeshavedifferent

waterretentionproperties;claysoilstendtoexperiencerunoff,

whileloamysoilsmayholdwaterforalongduration.Theamount

ofwatercontentheldinthesoilisreferredtoasFieldCapacity.

SunExposuredirectlyaffectstheevaporationrate(moresun

requiresmorewater).Slopeincreasesrunoff.

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RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

13

VegetationType:Differentvegetationandplanttypesrequire

differentamountsofwater.TheRainMachinealgorithmuses

differentvariablesassociatedwitheachtypeofvegetationtomake

accuratewaterconsumptioncalculations.



SprinklerHeadType:Sprinklerheadtypedeterminestheflowrate

ofazone,orhowmuchwaterasprinklercandelivertoyourplants

overagivenduration.Certainheadtypeshavehighflowrates,and

canirrigateyouryardquickly,whileothertypesareslower.

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RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

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Dashboard

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Thedashboardscreenallowsyoutoviewpastandfutureweather

andwaterconsumptionstatistics.Taporswipeleft/rightoneach

graphtoviewdetailedinfo.



WeatherChartshowsyouweatherstatuswithhightemperatures

andrainamountforeachday.



ProgramsChartshowstheoutputofwateringforthatrespective

program.Eachprogramhasagraphshowingyoubothrecorded

andforecastedwateroutput.



UsingtheWeek/Month/Yeartabsyoucanchangethetimespanof

theDashboardgraphs.Settings>Dashboardallowsyoutotoggle

variousgraphs.



NOTE:Bypressingtheupperright“Edit”button,youcanrearrangethe

graphsorder,orhidethemfromtheDashboardscreenview.



WeatherData

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

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___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________



Settings>Weather:Weatherdataforyourlocationisfetched

severaltimesperdayfromvariousweathersourcessuchasNOAA

(US)orMET.NO(Global).DefaultisNOAAforUSandMET.NOonly

forEUandGlobal.Iftwoormoreweatherdatasourcesareusedat

thesametime,theresultwillbeanaverageofthetwodatasets.



Wedonotadvisemixingmultiplesources,formostapplications

NOAAissufficient.

 

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

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Restrictions

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

Restrictionsareasetofrulestheusercanimposeontherunning

programs.Specifictimespans(Days,Months,Hours)whereno

wateringtakesplace.



Snooze:Thisisatemporaryrestrictionthatskipsprogramsfora

setnumberofdays.



FreezeProtect:Setatemperaturethresholdbelowwhichwatering

activitywillbestopped.Thisisbasedonlowestforecasted

temperaturefortheday,usuallyoccursatnight.



HotDays:Setawateringmaximumbasedonpercentage.During

hotdaysincreasedwateringmightberequired.Cappingat100%is

defaultandallowsyoutosavewater.

 

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

17

RainSensor

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

Aregularrain/freezeclicksensor(usuallythesesensorsdon't

requireanyotherpowersourceandwhentheysenserain,they

simplycutoffthepowergoingthroughtheCommonWiretothe

wateringzones).

TowireuptherainsensortoyourTouchHD12,youwillneedto

wirethesensorwireinwhatiscalled“series”withthecommon

wirefromthevalvesandthecommonterminal.



RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

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Sensitivity

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

Sensitivitysettingsadjusttheresponsivenesstoforecasted

amountsofrainorwind.Forexample,buildingscanprovide

blockagefromwind,andasaresult,windhaslessimpacton

evaporation.Settingwindorrainsensitivitytozeroeliminatestheir

impact.Onlychangethedefaultvaluesifyouhaveagoodreason

todoso.Theseareglobalsettingsandapplytoallzones.



FieldCapacity

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________



FieldCapacityistheamountofsoilmoistureorwatercontentheld

inthesoilafterexcesswaterhasdrainedaway,andismeasuredin

inches.ItisdeterminedfromSoilType.Pleasebesuretosetyour

soiltypeunderzones.

 

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

19

ResettingWiFiSettingsandPassword

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________



ShouldyouneedtochangeyourWiFisettingsorifyouforgotyour

RainMachinepasswordpleasegoto:http://rainmachine.com/reset



RemoteAccessIssues:IfyoucannotconnecttoyourRainMachine

whileawayfromyourhome,pleasemakeyouhavevalidatedyour

email.Duringsetuptimeavalidationemailwillbesentyou.Goto

Settings>SystemSettings>RemoteAccesstochangeorresend

yourconfirmation.



WiFisignalstrength:Nothingwillworkifyouaretoofarfrom

yourrouter.PleaseconsidergettingaWiFisignalboosteror

relocateyourWIFIRouterorRainMachine.



Formoresupport,pleasevisitusatwww.rainmachine.com

 

Troubleshooting

RainMachineTouchHD12QuickStartGuide

20



Features

12Zones,WeatherAware,

WiFiIrrigationController

Forecastspatialresolutionupto1.5

Km

Evapotranspirationmethod:American

SocietyofCivilEngineers(ASCE)

Standardized

Freezecontrolandheatwave

protection

EPAWaterSense℠certified

iPhoneandAndroidmobileapps



Environmental

Indoorsoperatingtemp:20Cto60C

(4Fto140F)

To85%relativehumidity,non

condensingIndooruseonly

Mechanical

Dimensions:115x115x27mm

Weight:170g



Electrical

WiFi:USB802.11N,2.4Ghz,

US/Japan/EU.

Wires:AWG14 22

ACInput:24VAC,50/60Hz,750mA

(adapterincluded).

Valveoutput(compatiblewithall

24VACirrigationvalves):24VAC,

50/60Hz,max10VA.

Mastervalve:24VAC,50/60Hz.



Certification

FCC,CE

Warranty

1Yearstandardwarranty

Specifications

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RainMachine SPK3-12 Operating instructions

Brand: RainMachine

Model: SPK3-12

Type: Operating instructions

Here are some of the key features and benefits of the RainMachine SPK3-12:

Weather intelligence: The SPK3-12 uses real-time weather data from a local weather station to adjust watering schedules automatically. This ensures that your plants are getting the right amount of water, even when the weather changes.

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RainMachine SPK3-12 Operating instructions

RainMachine SPK3-12 Operating instructions

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