Poltergeist?

15 years ago

There are tons of "one circuit won't shut off" posts. Here's one that has me stumped.

A little background, I have a large system, 16 circuits (though only about 8 are turned on) and an inch and a half main feeding it. Each year I typically have at least one valve explode on me. After years of frustration, I had the water company check the pressure and found out I have 150 psi at the meter, hence the exploding values. As it's been a cool and wet spring, I've haven't installed a pressure reducer yet and have simply been turning off and on the main shut off valve when I run the system.

When I turned on the system this evening, one of the circuits turned on immediately and won't shut off. The odd thing, at least to me, is that this circuit has not run for several years; I have the timer set to zero.

How did the solenoid for a shut off circuit activate, poltergeist?

Anyway, tomorrow I'll go find the value (the prior owners neglected to document the system. . . .), and play with the solenoid in hopes I can get it to stop.

Thanks for any insight!

Best,

Steve

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Comments (3)

mike1059
15 years ago
The problem is not the solenoid. It's likely the diaphram in the valve dried out from lack of use and tore when it opened.
photohutch
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks Dave!

I found the correct valve and checked out the diaphragm and it looked okay. However, the wires were cut, apparently by the weedwhackers earlier this week (the protective covering had tumbled down the hill. . . .). I repaired the wires, but the valve still didn't shut off. I flipped the manual off/on and that did the trick, at least temporarily.

Is it possible that the switch was whacked into the wrong position, or is it probably more complicated. . . .

Thanks again for the help!

Steve
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lehua49
15 years ago
foto,

I am curious about your high pressure. Is your system separate from your house. If you have a pressure regulator for the house(and you should), is your irrigation connected before your house regulator. Every time you shut off your irrigation system (unless you do it very slowly) you are hammering all your valves. I think you realize that though. Cutting the wires to the solenoid would not cause the valve to open. The pressure probably jammed it open. I wouldn't wait to regulate your pressure. 150 psi is extremely high and probably double what you operating pressure should be for your system. You might need two PR to do the job adequately. A contractor would know what to do. Check the operating ranges for the PR. JMHO Aloha