Melnor 3015 Water Timer

Pros: inexpensive, quick set up
Cons: can only have one schedule per device

This spring, my wife and I were setting up an irrigation system of sorts for our front and back yards. We had one in the past only in the back yard, and while the hose was kind of iffy, the idea worked out well. We had bought a $49.99 water timer but ...

Pros: Straighforward, fairly flexible programming
Cons: Can remember only one schedule

Do watering restrictions make it hard to keep your lawn watered during the summer? Or do you prefer to water your lawn when it does the most good? Vancouver may be on the Wet Coast of Canada, but the summer rainfall isn't distributed evenly enough to ...

Pros: Simple, flexible and effective for one-hose watering needs
Cons: Expect to replace it every two years or so

As other reviewers have noted, this timer is great for what it is: * Easy to program: Every setting is visible right on the dial! * Reliable while it works: Running on battery power, with few moving parts, makes for reliable ...

Pros: Easy to set.
Cons: One out of three timers broke after a year. Face flakes off with UV exposure.

I purchased three of these water timers from Home Depot. The first one I purchased three years ago worked great and still works well (I may have changed the battery once so far). I bought a second one to water a different part of my yard, and after a ...

Pros: Easy to use - works exactly as advertised
Cons: Instructions are more confusing that they should be.

The Melnor 3015 does exactly what it claims - nothing more, nothing less. I was a bit skeptical at first - simply because I had never owned an electronic water timer - but I am pleasantly surprised with this product.

It is very easy to use and works as advertised on the box.

My chief complaint is that it can be a bit difficult to get the battery compartment re-sealed completely, but after a bit of coaxing, it all worked out.

Overall a great product and I will be purchasing additional units when I can find them.

Pros: Nice styling. easy enough to program.
Cons: Extremely unreliable over time. 4/4 died on me within 12 months.

When I moved to my new home I chose to install drip systems
and soaker hoses in four different zones. I purchased 4
Melnor timers at a local home center to control them all.
The product is easy to set up, and initially worked well.
However, over the first year, all four of the timers died.
They failed in different ways: one wouldn't remember the
program for more than a few days. Two would start watering at
the right time but never shut off. The forth ceased to turn
on. Yes, I changed the batteries.

As an aside, as a design con to this product, there is no way
to review the current program.

Avoid.

Pros: Reasonably priced and does the job.
Cons: failed to operate at start of 3rd summer.

I was generally satisfied with the operation of the timer. I removed the battery for storage each winter as instructed, but upon installing a new battery this summer, the timer would not operate at all. The lights flashed, which indicates "low battery", but after trying two brand new batteries I could not get it to work at all.

Pros: When they work, they are great... It won't last though.
Cons: Terminally unreliable. Can't trust them for any vacation use.

I have had many of these timers over the years, but this year was special. 3 timers out of 3 in the last 3 weeks have not worked correctly. They have flooded my yard, ran whenever they wanted, and had random cycles run with a mind of their own. I would avoid this product like the plague.

Pros: Relatively inexpensive for an automatic timer.
Cons: Built to fail.

This is a water timer. With a battery. One would THINK that the battery compartment would be, and remain, water-tight. But no, I opened mine up the other day to change the battery and rusty water poured out of the battery compartment. Needless to say, the timer no longer works. Less than 2 years old.

Pros: Easy to program. Worry free watering.
Cons: Worked only one season.

This timer worked great last season, and was easy to program. I bought it from Home Depot. Now I took it out to use this year, and found there was water in the battery compartment and the terminals are all corroded. Even after replacing the battery it would not work.

Pros: Easy to use
Cons: Poor Product Quality

Last year I purchased 3 of these from Home Depot. 3 out of 3 failed with in hours of purchase. The coupler that hooks to the faucet separated under pressure from the timer body - it is a simple friction fitting.

I ended up buying a different manufacturers timer that was even harder to use but stood up to the water pressure.

This year I noticed the Melnor product again and thought I'd give it a go. I may be remembering wrong, but the area where the coupler attaches to the faucet looked re-designed. Apparently not... Same problem as last year. It keeps failing at the coupler where the faucet attaches to the timer body. The black plastic coupler stays attached to the house, and the timer body separates and blows off. I know I'm not over tightening it.

I have yet to have one of these last an entire 24 hours.

Today we are going to Lowe's to see if they offer a brand that is better. If not I'm going to experiment with some Devcon 2-Ton Epoxy to see if I can improve on the Melnor design and get the coupler to stay attached.

Pros: works great if kept DRY
Cons: NOT WATERPROOF and this is not stated in the instructions

The instructions should state that the
"outdoor use only" model 3015 water timer is NOT
WATERPROOF.
I replaced this timer three times and every time it
failed after a rainy month or so. I opened the second
one and let it dry out for two months (it was visibly
wet inside) and it started working again. After
wrapping it in plastic it continued to work fine for
the remainder of last summer and is still working
today.

This outdoor irrigation timer should state clearly
that it needs to be COVERED.