Question
I purchased a home with an existing system the controller was struck by lighting it fried it and blew it right out of the box, the box was not locked, A electrician found a grounding problem within the barn and that has been corrected I would like to get this system in operation. My question do you think the control valves got fried also and how can I check them for operation??

Answer
Hey Rick, the easiest thing to do, is that when you get a new controller, the Rainbird ESP-16LX, has a Raster program you can run. Basically it checks all the valves for you automatically. It will either tel you "Okay" (the valve is fine), "open" ( there is a problem in the wire from the controller to the valve) or "short" ( the solenoid is bad, or the wire is crossed). If you need a manual go to www.rainbird.com and you can download a manual. You can also check the valves by turning each one on manually, and checking to see if they come on or not. Let me know if I can be of anymore help, thanks and have a great day.