Does a blank sprinkler controller screen mean I need a new controller?

The power supply needs checking first. A tripped outlet, transformer, fuse or wiring problem can resemble a failed controller. We check the supply and field wiring before recommending replacement. A working controller can also be upgraded if you want weather-based scheduling and phone control.

Which smart sprinkler controllers do you install?

Rachio and Hunter X2 with Hydrawise. We choose capacity for the existing zones and check Wi-Fi at the mounting location. Setup includes identifying the zones, running them and setting a schedule for the landscape and water provider’s current rules. Check rebate eligibility with the provider on your bill before buying.

Will a smart controller fix a high water bill?

It can help with scheduling; it does not repair a leak. Weather-based scheduling can adjust watering as conditions change. A broken head, leaking pipe or valve that will not close still needs attention, so we check the field system as well. Savings depend on the old schedule, the system and how the new controller is set up.

Does a smart sprinkler controller need Wi-Fi?

Connected features need a suitable connection. Weather updates and phone control depend on the controller’s connection requirements. We check signal at the proposed wall location before installation and explain how to pause, run or skip watering. If the signal is weak, discuss that before choosing the controller or location.

Sprinkler Controller Replacement in the Fairfield Area

We replace failed sprinkler controllers and install Rachio or Hunter X2 with Hydrawise for weather-based scheduling and phone control. Power and field wiring are checked first so a wiring fault is not mistaken for a bad controller. We run the zones, label them and set the watering schedule as part of the installation.

Call for a quote(707) 329-8391

Illustration: a hand in a light blue sleeve connects colour-coded wires to a new white sprinkler controller on a garage wall, next to an old dial sprinkler timer. — Illustration

What does a smart controller do?

The schedule: how long each zone runs, when it starts and which days it skips. The wires, valves and heads in the yard stay as they are, which is why we test them first.

Example week

Every 3 days, as Fairfield advises for summer lawns. Zone 1 runs its full time, starting inside the city’s hours.

A. Minutes follow the weather.
A weather-based controller shortens the runs when the weather cools and adds time back in a heat wave, so the yard gets what it needs and no more.
B. Days follow the season.
Fairfield’s own advice: water summer lawns every 3 days and winter lawns every 5. A clock timer set in July keeps watering like July in January.
C. Start times stay inside the provider’s hours.
Napa: No watering 10 am to 5 pm. Fairfield: Skip noon to 6 pm; midnight to 6 am is best. Pick your provider below.
D. Rain means skip.
Vacaville, Vallejo and Napa ban watering during rain or within 48 hours after measurable rain.

Start times, by water provider. Pick yours.

Solano

Napa

Fairfield. Skip noon to 6 pm; midnight to 6 am is best.

Hours to avoidThe city’s suggested hours

Toward a smart controller in Fairfield

Up to

50% of a WaterSense weather-based controller, up to $300. Paid by the Solano County Water Agency. Checked Sep 2026.

Check the provider on your water bill. These city examples apply to that provider’s customers, and the provider serving a neighborhood may be different. Confirm the current rules and rebate terms before you buy. More in Watering rules by city and Lawn and irrigation rebates by city. The field has its own pages: Valve replacement and Sprinkler & drip repair and installation.

What should a new controller come with?

C · common
1 Front lawn
2 Front beds
3 Back lawn
4 Back beds
5 Trees
6 Side yard

Example: the terminal strip of the same example controller, every wire labeled for whoever opens the cover next.

Rachio or Hunter X2 with Hydrawise
Weather-based, sized to your zones and your provider’s rebate rules. In the yard, we install Rain Bird valves and heads. Gerri Hogan’s Google review (2024–25) (opens in a new tab) mentions “…installing my new Rain Bird Controller and solenoid”.
Every zone named and labeled
Every zone runs while you watch. Each one is named in the app and labeled at its terminal, so whoever opens the cover next knows which wire waters which bed. Start times sit inside your provider’s hours, and lawn zones get short cycles with a soak between.
…even programmed a weekly schedule for our lawn to be watered Zac Post, Google review, Jun 2026 (opens in a new tab)
Pause, run or skip from your phone
Before we leave, you can pause a zone, run one by hand and skip a day from your phone. Ask which parts of your job fall under the 3-year warranty on qualifying irrigation and lighting systems.
Carlos took a lot of time to explain to me how things worked Cassandra J., Yelp review (opens in a new tab)

Why test the wires before replacing the controller?

A bad wire looks like a dead controller. A taped splice that has let water in, or a nicked wire under a bed, gives you a zone that won’t start or won’t stop, the same as a failed controller would. Every zone hangs on one buried wire to its valve, plus a common wire they all share, so swap the box and the fault stays.

So Carlos and his crew start in the field. Each connection at the valves is checked, a patched run gets a new section of wire instead of more tape, and splices go into waterproof connectors. If the fault is out there, that’s what gets fixed, and the controller stays on the wall.

How the whole system gets tested: Irrigation.

Because the best irrigation repairs aren’t just about getting the system working… They’re about making it last.

Eco Scapes on Nextdoor

Replaced my sprinkler valves, drip line timer, and drip line wiring Luke Vera, Google review, Sep 2026 (opens in a new tab)

Eco Scapes technician wiring a sprinkler valve manifold in a gravel side yard next to a wood fence — Wiring a sprinkler valve manifold in a gravel side yard.

Technician in gloves wiring a new Rain Bird anti-siphon valve on a PVC manifold against a stucco wall — New Rain Bird valves wired on a PVC manifold against a stucco wall.

Blank screens, brands and Wi-Fi

The power supply needs checking first.
A tripped outlet, transformer, fuse or wiring problem can resemble a failed controller. We check the supply and field wiring before recommending replacement. A working controller can also be upgraded if you want weather-based scheduling and phone control.
Diagnose a controller or wiring fault
Rachio and Hunter X2 with Hydrawise.
We choose capacity for the existing zones and check Wi-Fi at the mounting location. Setup includes identifying the zones, running them and setting a schedule for the landscape and water provider’s current rules. Check rebate eligibility with the provider on your bill before buying.
Water-provider irrigation rebate information
It can help with scheduling; it does not repair a leak.
Weather-based scheduling can adjust watering as conditions change. A broken head, leaking pipe or valve that will not close still needs attention, so we check the field system as well. Savings depend on the old schedule, the system and how the new controller is set up.
Find and repair irrigation leaks
Connected features need a suitable connection.
Weather updates and phone control depend on the controller’s connection requirements. We check signal at the proposed wall location before installation and explain how to pause, run or skip watering. If the signal is weak, discuss that before choosing the controller or location.

Where we take new bookings.

All our services are available in the neighborhoods below. Our workday starts in Fairfield. We aim to keep routes within about 15 miles, serving the neighborhoods listed here rather than every address in the surrounding cities or counties. Call with your neighborhood and location before arranging a visit.

Fairfield: Cordelia, Rockville, Green Valley, Rancho Solano, Mankas Corner
Vacaville: Elmira, Browns Valley
Vallejo: Hiddenbrooke
Suisun Valley: Suisun Valley
Napa: Silverado Country Club, Browns Valley, Alta Heights, East Napa
American Canyon: All of American Canyon

Tell us your neighborhood and the work you need when you call. We confirm the property is on our service route before arranging a visit. Check our service area.