Using an Ohmmeter to Troubleshoot a Sprinkler System

Jeffrey Knight and Dennis Hyde of Ewing Irrigation demonstrate how to use an Ohmmeter to troubleshoot sprinkler system electrical problems.
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Ewing Outdoor Supply is the largest family-owned supplier of landscape and water management products in the country. As your business partner, we offer products and education for irrigation and landscape, turf and land management, outdoor living, sports fields, golf and sustainable solutions. Our nationwide network of friendly, knowledgeable staff helps green industry professionals discover products and services for business success.

[@brianb4745]

This video is so good. Using it for each new tech I hire. Thanks!

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

Thanks for the comment Brian! Glad you found the video helpful!

[@MYPERMACULTUREGARDEN]

Hi ,,, thank you for featuring my channel on your live,,,, I am playing your playlist all night long !

[@hamachi21]

You guys are awesome. This video is exactly what I needed to fix the one station that has been out for months. Finally! Great video. Really helpful. Thanks.

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

+Matt Fish - Thanks for the feedback Matt! Glad we could help!

[@vipergts1997]

Thanks for the video it put me in the right direction. After testing at the control unit one wasn't getting any voltage reading. I looked closer and noticed the screw was out just enough so it would not send signal. Wouldn't have found that without this video! Thanks again.

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

Glad we could help! Thanks for the comment!

[@antoniovillanueva1119]

Straight to the point. Love it.

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

Thanks for watching!

[@harrisbrent]

Great job, very helpful.

[@H.pylori]

Very well done and to the point.

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

Thanks for watching and for the comment!

[@BillGarza]

Am I wrong in pointing out that there is a switch that shows the controller on in the video? Why are you checking for continuity with the controller on with power? Before doing anything you first check to make sure the unit is off, and not carrying a load of 120v, right? Just saying, other than that helpful video.

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

+Bill Garza I believe the switch you are referring to in the video is the switch to engage the controller module. The controller dial itself was in the off position. You are correct though, one of the early steps is to verify that there is good voltage from the source. Then you verify the (19v - 30v) from the terminal strip. The first step would be to check the program to see if the controller is set-up correctly to begin with. Thanks for the feedback!

[@777espit]

Timer is on o off ? When you put multimeter in timer , thanks great help I know how to did with toner but today I learn a new way

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

You definitely want to make sure the station terminal you are testing is not powered on when doing an OHMs test. If you have an inexpensive meter on the OHMs setting and you send voltage through it then it can blow the internal fuse. It is a good practice to disconnect the common wire from the controller so you don’t accidentally send voltage through your meter. If you are positive the power is off then you do not have to disconnect wires. Some of the better meters will switch from reading OHMs to reading voltage and the scenario above will not damage the meter. Thanks for watching!

[@johnkosheluk1041]

My.nane is John that is right but u can check 2 c if u have 24 to 30 ac at the wires coming from the timer 2 the valve box

[@JoseGarcia-eadgbe]

💜💜

[@silk8188]

I like your video, but not sure how to use multimeter to solve my specific problem. If I may, I recently bought a new (older) home and trying to fix 2 adjacent zones (e.g. 5 and 6), where the valves are right next to each other. The problem is that the individual zone wires are the SAME color, and they all have been cut. So I can't distinguish between the zone 5 wire, zone 6 wire, or common. [ If they were color coded to match the controller side, it would be simple to wire it] I could "wing it" and try all combinations, but there has to be a way to determine which wire belongs to which zone using multimeter. Suggestions?

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

This video should help answer your questions. Thanks for watching! m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/nZWwkn-imduNY6M

[@kevreilly7]

I guess blue copper wires means i am replacing them?? Any idea why they turned blue after appr 7 yrs?

[@UBAYBE]

How do you figure out valve is which station?

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

This video should help you. Thanks for watching! kzbin.info/www/bejne/nZWwkn-imduNY6M&ab_channel=EwingIrrigation%26LandscapeSupply

[@McFunnyBone]

I've been working on one and all my stations have good resistance except the one I am trying to figure out. It does some weird thing when I check resistance, it will read zero and flash off and on. Won't give me any kind of steady reading. Im guessing it is a short but I am not sure. Was hoping someone would help

[@heroknaderi]

thanks

[@jamiem6330]

What if two zones are reading between 10 and 20 ohms? We have 2 zones that when activated bring up 3 zones. Voltage seems correct from the controller

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

It's difficult to give you an answer without being on site but If you have a Ewing location near you, you can contact them for advice or a contractor referral should you need one. www.ewingoutdoorsupply.com/locations That said, If you have a reading below 10 ohms then you likely have a short on that zone. If your controller is setting off multiple zones when only one should be running, you may have an issue with the controller or it's possible someone wired multiple valves to a single station on the controller. Thanks for the question!

[@FireguyNtx]

So you don't have to remove the wire from the controller before you ohm it out huh?. I thought that the controller would give internal resistance readings on their own. Also, do you have to remove power from the box before you take an ohm reading? Obviously you don't want the station operating or putting out AC voltage when you do that, duh, but was wondering if you needed to remove power first. Thanks for the great tip.

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

Thanks for the question, FireguyNxt! No, you do not have to remove the wire from the controller when doing an OHMs test. However, it is a good idea to do so and this is why: You definitely want to make sure the station port you are testing is not powered on when doing an OHMs test. If you have an inexpensive meter on the OHMs setting and you send voltage through it then it can blow the internal fuse. It is a good practice to disconnect the common wire from the controller so you don’t accidentally send voltage through your meter. If you are positive the power is off then you do not have to disconnect wires. Some of the better meters will switch from reading OHMs to reading voltage and the scenario above will not damage the meter.

[@kevreilly7]

Anyone know why my zone would close almost every time time after exactly four minutes??? Tia

[@bonsummers2657]

What's the value of a multi-meter versus an ohm meter? Using an ohm meter is valid when voltage from the power source is good, and the controller is functioning?

[@ewingoutdoorsupply]

Thanks for your question, Bon! A Multimeter has the ability to read 2 or more electrical values. Typically these are voltage, amperage, and ohms. An ohmmeter only reads ohms. After testing to verify that the voltage output of the controller is good, you can then test the circuit for each station (ohms). Disconnect power to the valves by disconnecting the field wires; this will help to ensure an accurate measurement. Live power to the valves could also damage your multimeter when measuring ohms. You can also measure the resistance of the solenoid itself at the valve. Please see this article for details on troubleshooting irrigation system electrical problems: www.ewingirrigation.com/news/blog/the-basics-of-troubleshooting-an-irrigation-controller/

[@bonsummers2657]

@@ewingoutdoorsupply Thank you very much! Much appreciated,…. my apology for the delay! I do a moderate amount of sprinkler system problem solving in residential landscapes. I take care of nearly all issues for single residential.

[@macsrule94]

more like get your pulser out