SCX User Manual
Contents
1. the SCX to the sensor zone terminal Connect the removed Sensor Zone signal wire to the red wire from the SCX and secure the connection with a wire nut Connect the orange wire from the SCX to one of the two 24 volt AC terminals on your timer If the display on the SCX comes on when you re apply power to the timer you have selected the correct terminals If you intend to use one or two zones as timed zones independent of the sensor connect the blue and brown wires from the SCX to the terminals that water those zones Do not disconnect the valve wires from those terminals Installation is now complete NOTE Remember to plug in the power to your timer SCX Operation Take a moisture reading The SCX displays the last moisture reading taken every Weleing neey 4668 10 minutes To take a current moisture reading press oe Today ead Watering Allowed The display will show then display the current mere DS moisture 12 SCX User Manual Set turn on moisture threshold To set the turn on moisture threshold press and hold Read then toggle the or button to change the threshold View soil temperature To view the soil temperature press SCX Operation ent Watering Allowed Tewp Farc HoD PRESS HOLD FOLD FREES Read Sensor nsor Bypass ca m tI Watering Allowed Tea ore HOLD PRESS Read Sensor v2. SCX User Manual ACC SYS 000X Digital TDT Soil Moisture Sensor Irrigation Timer Add on Device s Closed Loop Irrigation Systems Table of Contents View soil EC eeeceecseecseeseeessseeseeeeeeeee SCX Add On Device 3 Manual Items NCD sesccsesscssesesseseseesestesesteseaee g Watering Bypass seseceee Panel DeSCription c ccccccssescsteseeteseeeeee g Watering History seceeee HOW it WOrkKS ssssssssssssssssssssssscssssssssteeseeeeees 4 Suspended WAG NG cicnees Basic Irrigation Principles ICIS CAPACI scccccscascssssseddsscscosastacsssaassacses 5 5 Setting the Watering Schedule Allowable Depletion Calculating Field Digitat TDT Sensor Installation 6 Capacity Moisture Threshold Selecting the Fiel Sensor LOcation cece eee eee 6 etc Bee ese Sensor Installation cee eee eee 7 Automatic turn on SCX Controller Installation 10 threshold Method ccecceeeeeeeneees SCX Operation 12 Troubleshooting guide Take a moisture Warranty redding sana een parame LEERE L Ee 12 Set turn on moisture threShold eecceeceeeeeeeeeeeees 13 View soil temperatu S si nn 13 Watering Allowed 0 ccee ee SCX User Manual SCX Add On Device SCX Add On Device Congratulations on your purchase of the Acclima SCX timer add on device employing the finest soil moisture sensor on the market You have joined those interested in conserving water earth s mo
3. Soil Moisture Levels Saturation WASTE AREA 5 Field Capacity 6 OPTIMUM AREA 2 H Allowable STRESS AREA Depletion 5 Permanent k Wilt Point p DEAD AREA K Allowable Depletion is the Volumetric Water Content at which vegetation begins to stress as water is depleted from the soil The point where the force required to draw water from the soil begins to affect the physical characteristics of the plant is the lowest Volumetric Water Content that your plants should be exposed to At this point your lawn begins to wilt Irrigation below Allowable Depletion stresses your vegetation The Allowable Depletion for grasses is in the range of 80 of Field Capacity Maintaining Volumetric Water Content between Field Capacity and Allowable Depletion saves water protects the environment and promotes healthier landscapes Your SCX can keep your soil moisture within this range SCX User Manual Digitat TDT Sensor Installation Selecting the Sensor Location Select an irrigation zone having the following characteristics this will be the sensor zone Full sun for most of the day Southern or western exposure is best Represents the predominant soil type Does not receive runoff from car washing pools running hoses driveways etc Near a valve box with no side walks in between Then carefully select a location within the SENSOR ZONE to bury the sensor having the following characteristics Well drained avoid lows spots Rec
4. assumes no responsibility for installation Acclima also assumes no responsibility for removal or unauthorized repair 21 SCX User Manual Acclima s liability under this warranty is limited solely to replacement or repair of defective parts and Acclima will not be liable for any crop or other consequential damages resulting from any defects in design or breach of warranty THIS WARRANTY IS EXPRESSLY IN LIEU OF ALL OTHER WARRANTIES EXPRESS OR IMPLIED INCLUDING THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR PARTICULAR PURPOSES and of all other obligations or liabilities of manufacturer No agent employee or representative of the manufacturer has authority to waive alter or add to the provisions of warranty nor to make representations or warranty not contained herein 22 Acclima Closed Loop Irrigation Systems 2260 East Commercial Street Meridian Idaho 83642 www acclima com call toll free 866 887 1470 for service 2007 Acclima Inc Accli Acclima Inc e d LLLE 2260 E Commercial St Closed aa oa L LEJ Meridian ID 83642 eked aa al Jia SCX User Manual Rev 5 12 12 2007
5. ator _ Acclima y Irrigation Run time Guide ROTORS Field Turn on Total Total Total Soak Time Capacity Threshold Run Run Run Run Run Soak Setting Minutes Max in Minutes Max Minutes Max Min 45 35 58 29 5 95 15 25 40 32 52 26 5 84 15 21 35 28 45 23 7 74 19 12 30 24 29 19 8 63 22 4 25 20 32 16 11 20 16 26 13 z 15 12 19 10 10 08 13 6 y s e Total Run Minutes is total run time required to bring moisture from indicated turn on threshold to Field Capacity 17 SCX User Manual e Soak Time Run Maximum is minutes allowed before surface accumulation causes runoff e Soak Time Soak Minimum is minutes of soaking required to absorb surface accumulation e Match your zone sprinkler head type and Field Capacity If your pop up sprayer zone has 33 Field Capacity and your turn on threshold is 25 your total run time is 23 minutes Set your controller to irrigate a total of 23 minutes using a soak cycle with a maximum on time of 7 minutes and a minimum soak time of 28 minutes This Guide assumes your irrigation distribution system is properly installed and balanced operating between 50 and 70 psi in calm wind conditions Adjustment to your sensor threshold setting or irrigation total run time soak run time maximum or soak time minimum may be required to fine tune your particular system If
6. brown appears in your lawn have your irrigation maintenance contractor audit your sprinkler system and make distribution adjustments to uniformly irrigate your lawn Calculating Field Capacity Moisture Threshold Each lawn is different Your field capacity and turn on moisture threshold are unique The following is the best method to determine your ideal moisture setting Remember you can adjust your turn on threshold at any time Field Capacity Method Near sundown soak the soil to saturation in the area of the sensor It is important that the area is very wet so that the water is standing on the surface This can be accomplished with a 5 gallon bucket of water or a garden hose The next morning before the direct sunlight reaches the sensor location take a moisture reading by pressing the Read Sensor button This reading is your soil s field capacity 18 SCX User Manual Calculating Field Capacity Moisture Threshold Your ideal moisture level should be 80 of field capacity Use the table below to determine your moisture threshold setting Field Capacity 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 Turn on Moisture 8 12 16 20 24 28 32 38 Threshold Automatic turn on threshold Method Near sundown soak the soil around the sensor to WaieingHistoy E_E EEE saturation with a 5 gallon bucket or garden hose Set your PAIRE Today timers to irrigation at 5 00am the following morning Finally simultaneously press and hold bo
7. e moisture in the soil is above the turn on threshold the Suspended Watering icon appears Your system will not water Watering Allowed When the soil moisture is below the turn on threshold the Watering Allowed icon appears This icon is also displayed when the BYPASS SENSOR is activated Your system will allow watering nn mi Watering Allowed Setting the Watering Schedule The amount of water required to bring the moisture content of the soil from 80 of Field Capacity to 100 of Field Capacity is given by the formula Inches of water 0 2 Field Capacity depth If your Field Capacity is 25 and you are watering to a depth of 8 inches then the amount of water needed is 0 2 0 25 8 0 4 inches If you know the effective precipitation rate of your sprinklers then the watering time is given by 16 SCX User Manual Setting the Watering Schedule Run time minutes 60 Inches Effective Precipitation Rate If your Effective Precipitation Rate for the example above is 0 5 inches per hour then the Minutes watering time is 60 0 4 0 5 48 minutes The following chart offers a simple way to set watering times for all zones in your system It is based on the formulas given above After you have measured the Field Capacity of your soil you can use the chart to find watering times for your zones You will need to know the type of sprinkler heads you are using rotor spray impact MP rot
8. eives the same hours of sun as the majority of the zone Unobstructed access to a valve box Not watered by over spray from adjacent zones At least 4 feet from a sprinkler head Avoid areas at or near the bottom of a hill Avoid areas where the turf is unhealthy Avoid areas of heavy foot traffic If your water distribution is uneven ensure that the spot receives average or little below average water coverage for the zone The sensor must be installed at the center of the turf root mass where the transpiration occurs about 4 inches below the surface of the soil SCX User Manual Digitat TDT Sensor Installation Sensor Installation Before you install the sensor make sure that the lawn has been recently watered This will ease digging insure that the grass recovers more quickly and balance the first irrigation cycles Step1 Use a flat blade shovel to cut an 18 inch slit about 4 inches deep in the soil Insert N the sensor into one end of the slit with the top P sensor rod about 3 inches from the surface Z Valve Box gt U shaped Cut Step 2 Arrange the wires from the sensor in the slit and close the slit on the sensor by tromping on either side of the slit Yo Valve Box SCX User Manual Step 3 Pour a five gallon bucket of water slowly over the sensor installation area TF z Valve Box Stomp flat The sensor comes with 3 feet of wire You will likely need to splice additional wire in o
9. ew THRESHOLD HOLD SCX User Manual To change from degrees Fahrenheit to Celsius hold and toggle View soil EC Press to view current soil electrical Conductivity EC Manual Watering Bypass mM I asim If you wish to test your sprinkler system or manually water a zone you will need to bypass the sensor function so that it will not interruupt the power to your valves 14 SCX User Manual SCX Operation Sensor BYPASS Watering History L 6622 To do this press the E button The SENSOR BYPASS SENSOR oa icon on the display will slowly turn on and off Watering Allowed TEMA ore aa mn While in this mode actions from your timer will not be aa A inhibited by the SCX control box Sensor VIEW THRESHOLD NOTE Your system will run any programs without restriction and can start manual watering cycles without intervention When in the Bypass Sensor Mode if you happen to leave this mode running for several days you will greatly over water your property since you likely have set your timer to run daily Watering History The SCX displays the past 7 watering attempts If the controller allowed watering a drop is displayed if the system was suspended it will be blank Today indicates the most current watering cycle The history updates 30 minutes after each cycle SCX User Manual Suspended Watering When th
10. n and that the insulation on the underground wiring is not defective SCX User Manual Potential Problem The SCX display suspended icon does not come on when the sensor reading is above the threshold setting OR The allowed icon does not come on when the sensor reading is below the threshold setting One or more of my zones does not get watered during a watering cycle Troubleshooting guide Possible Solution The suspended and allowed states will not change during a watering cycle or for 30 minutes thereafter Any changes made to threshold settings during a watering cycle will not take effect until 30 minutes after the present cycle has finished If you need to have it otherwise you will need to disconnect power from the SCX by disconnecting the orange wire Then upon reconnecting it the new states will take effect If you have time gaps in your Timer Program that exceed 30 minutes the SCX will suspend watering after the sensor gets watered and after a 30 minute inactivity gap Make sure that when using cycle and soak features in your timer that the water is not turned off for more than 29 minutes Your controller is warranted for THREE YEARS from date of purchase to be free of defective materials and workmanship provided it is used within the working specifications for which the product was designed and under normal use and service Unless installed by an authorized Acclima trained technician Acclima
11. onnected to the common wire from your timer The other is connected to the signal wire from your timer Remove the grease caps and wire nuts from both connections SCX User Manual Step 7 Add the white wire from the sensor to Pai wire the common wire connection and replace the hotwire P to the controller wire nut and grease cap Separate the e A common wire solenoid valve wire from the signal wire to the timer Connect the black wire from the sensor to this solenoid wire and fasten it with a wire a4 Hr nut Connect the red wire form the sensor O Alunderground sraao onto the signal wire running back to your timer solenoid valve nee BERA and fasten it with a wire nut Protect all three connections with grease caps Your sensor installation is now complete SCX Controller Installation Mount the SCX control box next to your irrigation timer close enough for the cable from the SCX to reach inside your timer to the terminals where it will be connected Use the mounting holes and supplied screws to secure the box to the wall The mounting holes are aligned for stud mounting if a stud is nearby NOTE Unplug the power to your timer before attempting to wire the SCX control box Run the SCX cable into the timer box Disconnect the common wires going out to your valves from the common terminal in your timer Connect the black wire from the SCX to the common terminal Connect the white wire from the SCX to the common
12. rder to reach the valve box Use only direct burial 3 wire 18 gauge cable in a polyethylene sheath from your hardware store or irrigation supplier that is rated for direct burial applications Itis wise to make the splice in a six inch wiring box that can be installed near the sensor This provides access to the splice and also serves as a marker for remembering where the sensor is installed Step 4 When splicing the wires insure that the wires are twisted together and then protected by a wire nut securely screwed onto the twisted wire Place the wire nuts into a grease cap to prevent corrosion of the wire joint Close the cover on the grease cap other wires common valve wire hot wire valve wire Waterproof Connection sensor wires M I SCX User Manual Digitat TDT Sensor Installation Step 5 Dig a slit trench from the sensor to the valve box where the valve is installed that waters the sensor zone Slit trench LF Valve Box Splice Step 6 Push the sensor wires into the bottom of the slit trench with a stick or other blunt tool Run the wires under the lower valve box side and into the valve box cavity Close the trench around the buried wires and tromp down the turf Cover the Slit trench mK PO Valve Box Inside the valve box locate the valve that irrigates the zone where the sensor is installed Two wires come out of the solenoid on the valve One of them is c
13. st important resource Items needed Sensor Installation Controller Installation 18 gauge 3 strand burial wire Med philips crew driver Flat blade shovel Drill e 6 valve box Optional e Pliers e Wire strippers Pliers Wire strippers Panel Description LCD Displays soil moisture temperature electrical conductivity Display watering history and status aie Read noy Sensor Soil Displays soil temperature increments up when Read Sensor is Temp depressed Press and toggle Soil EC to display F or C Displays soil electrical conductivity Increments down when Soil EC Read Sensor is depressed Changes between F or C when Soil Temp is depressed Reads sensor displays and sets the turn on moisture threshold Re Sei Byres Bypass Sets the controller to Bypass mode disabling the the sensor POT SCX User Manual How it Works The SCX uses an Acclima Digital TDT Soil Moisture Sensor buried in your lawn to accurately monitor the Volumetric Water Content of your soil The SCX Controller connects to your existing irrigation timer You program your timer to water every day The SCX takes soil moisture readings every 10 minutes If the water content of the soil is above the turn on threshold for your soil then the SCX will suspend the irrigation cycle by interrupting the power to your solenoid valves During the period where your timer is actively attempting to water the SCX will prevent watering un
14. th the READ SENSOR and SOIL TEMP buttons while you depress and release the SOIL EC button once When your timer attempts to irrigation the following morning the controller will take a measurement and automatically set your turn on threshold to 80 of field capacity NOTE Be sure to re set your timer later to irrigated as desired and to program the proper run time based on your field capacity SCX User Manual Troubleshooting guide Potential Problem The SCX display does not come on The SCX does not display a sensor reading after press the Set button 20 Possible Solution Insure that the power to your timer is on Insure that the black wire from the SCX is connected to the common terminal in your timer and that the orange wire is connected to the hot wire of the 24 volt ac input to your timer Try connecting the orange wire to the other 24 volt ac terminal Make sure that your common wire is not interrupted by an external rain switch The wiring in the valve box or at the timer is not correct Insure that the red wire from the sensor has a wiring path all the way to the red wire in the SCX cable and that the white wire from the sensor has a wire path all the way to the white wire in the SCX cable No other wires should be connected to the red wire connections The white wire should be connected to the common wiring for all the valves Insure that the common wiring is not broke
15. til 30 minutes of timer inactivity If the water content in the soil is below the turn on threshold when your timer begins its cycle the SCX allows power to your solenoid valves and all programmed zones will water The connection will be maintained for the entire watering cycle and for 30 minutes thereafter assuring that all zones receive water even though the sensor may have become wet during the watering cycle The SCX has provisions to water 2 zones independent of the sensor to accommodate drought tolerant planting cacti trees potted plants etc Basic Irrigation Principles Acclima s Digital toT Soil Moisture Sensor allows you to apply two scientific principles long used by horticulturists 1 Soil Field Capacity and 2 Allowable Depletion SCX User Manual Field Capacity Field Capacity is the water a given soil can hold without percolation to the subsoil Soil can hold a significant amount of water without percolation but gravitational forces will draw all water exceeding Field Capacity into the subsoil Irrigation beyond Field Capacity is wasteful Field Capacity is generally measured as Volumetric Water Content expressed as apercentage A Field Capacity of 25 means that the water volume in the soil is 25 of the soil volume Field Capacities range from about 10 for coarser sands to over 40 for finer clays Loamy silty soils fall in between these extremes Allowable Depletion Basic Irrigation Principles
16. wires going out to the valves and secure the connection with a wire nut sensor white wire black wire 10 SCX User Manual Continuous 24V OUTPUT Timer Connection 24V confconf a 1 2 JPE 6 7 8 24V Hot Wire POWER Black Common Wire Controller Green Sensor Zone Wire I Blue Override Sensor Wire I I Brown Red Override Sensor Wire 24V Zone Wire OUTPUT White Former Black Common Wire Field 24V Zone Wire RED Wire SCX Controller Installation IMPORTANT INFORMATION Af Wire connections are the most important part of sensor installation You must use the wire nuts and grease connectors included to ensure the adequate connections and for the unit to function properly The Sensor needs to be installed in an area that is the most representative of the entire landscape being irrigated and can be connected to ANY ZONE Example shows zone 1 Wire connection point I Indicates former wire 1 connection Solenoid Wire that was hooked to 24V dCommen Wire ocommen Wire Zone Wire Q Example shows zone 1 BLACK Wire cr as cts gt aw z v 2 2 v A 2 f g as 5g pH a8 EH SS s os Gg 8S os g OS SCX User Manual Disconnect the signal wire to the Sensor Zone from the terminal block Connect the green wire from
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