Run More Than One Zone At A Time

Video originally published September 2020.

Accessing Your BaseStation Controller

1. Open a web browser and navigate to baselineapps.net.

2. Log into your Baseline Apps account using your username and secure password.

3. Once logged in, click the BaseManager icon on the left side of the screen.

Adjusting Program Concurrent Zone Settings

To run more than one zone at a time, you need to adjust settings inside each program individually.

1. Click on the Schedules tab.

2. Open the first program you want to change.

3. Click on the Edit tab to make changes.

4. Scroll down until you find Concurrent Zone Operations.

5. Update Program Concurrent Zones to the number of zones you want to run simultaneously within this specific program (for example, 2 zones at one time).

6. Change Controller Concurrent Zones to the total number of zones you want the entire controller to be able to run at once across all programs (for example, 6 zones at one time).

This configuration tells the controller that in this specific program, no more than two zones can run at any one time. Across all programs in the entire controller, it can find up to six zones to run at once. This means two zones can run in this program and an additional four zones can run in other programs, up to a total of six zones.

Excluding Non-Hydraulic Programs from Controller Concurrency

These manual concurrency settings work well when you know how many zones your system can handle at once based on experience. For example, you may know that a four-inch main line can supply enough water to run more than one drip zone at a time.

When programs operate something non-hydraulic like a lighting system, they don't impact site hydraulics. In these cases:

1. Uncheck the box that says Include with Total Controller Concurrency.

This means the program would not be counted against the controller concurrent zones limit since it doesn't impact the hydraulics of your main line.

Setting Up Flow-Based Concurrency Using Design Flow

A more efficient way to run more than one zone at a time is to use the flow setup menu and let the controller manage concurrency based on your main line's hydraulic capacity.

1. Navigate to the Flow Setup menu.

2. Under Main Lines, select Edit.

3. Scroll down until you find Design Flow.

4. Enter the design flow value based on the hydraulic capacity of your main line. This value is determined by referencing a pipe pressure loss chart for your specific main line size and material. For example, a two-inch Schedule 40 main line can safely carry up to 50 gallons per minute.

⚠️Note: Different pipe materials have different capacities. A two-inch copper main line and a two-inch PVC main line each have different flow capacities. If you're not sure how to find this information, reach out to your Baseline distributor for help.

5. Select Manage by Flow.

This allows the controller to run any combination of zones up to your design flow limit (for example, 50 gallons per minute), but no higher than that limit. You're giving the controller the ability to sort out the puzzle pieces of all your different learned flows and fit them together in the most efficient way. Since the controller uses real-time data, it can adjust if a zone faults or fails to run.

🚨Important: Make sure that you've learned flow for your zones or this feature won't work correctly.

6. Save your work before leaving this screen.

Updating Program Concurrency for Flow-Based Management

After setting up flow-based concurrency, you need to return to the program settings to adjust the concurrent zone limits.

1. Go back to the Schedules tab.

2. Select the program you previously edited and click Edit.

3. Scroll down until you find Concurrent Zone Operations again.

4. Change Program Concurrent Zones to 15 zones.

5. Change Controller Concurrent Zones to 15 zones.

The number 15 is selected because that's how many zones a two-wire controller can operate all at once, which is based on the size of the transformer. The controller now has the capability of running up to 15 zones and 50 GPM worth of zones at one time (using the example design flow from the previous section).

The controller may find 15 three-GPM zones, two 25-GPM zones, or five 10-GPM zones. It will never run more than 50 gallons per minute and never more than 15 zones at one time.

Concurrent Zones for Conventional Wire Systems

Conventional wire systems treat concurrent zones differently than two-wire systems.

For an enclosure that fits 48 zones of conventional wire over two different powered decoders, concurrency for powered decoders is set at two zones for each group of twelve. Each decoder has twelve zones on its section, and it can run two zones for that group.

For example, if there are four groups of 12 zones, each group is able to run two zones at one time. This means the enclosure can run eight zones at once spread out over all the powered decoders.

Expanding Concurrency with Substations

Some systems may have very large main lines and hydraulics that can run more than 15 zones at once. You can expand concurrency by adding substations.

A substation that's wirelessly connected to a BaseStation 3200 gets another 15 zones concurrent. On a site with a BaseStation 3200 that can run 15 zones on two-wire, when you add a substation and connect it back to the BaseStation 3200, you get another 15 zones concurrent.

With each additional substation that you add, you get another 15 zones concurrent. In a configuration with one BaseStation 3200 and three substations, you can run 60 zones at one time, assuming your hydraulics allow it.

Benefits of Running Multiple Zones Concurrently

Regardless of whether you're using a conventional wired system or a two-wire system, running more than one zone at a time is an effective way to reduce your overall watering time and take advantage of the hydraulics on your site. This capability helps you manage your site's water window more efficiently.

S2, E15 -Tech Talk Tuesday: Multiple Zones at Once

Video originally published September 2020.

Understanding Zone Concurrency

Zone concurrency, or running multiple zones at one time, is a powerful feature that addresses several common irrigation system challenges. There are several key reasons to implement zone concurrency on your site:

Narrow water windows: When you have limited time available for watering, running multiple zones simultaneously allows you to complete irrigation cycles within the available timeframe.

Program overrun issues: Program overrun occurs when a program is still running and another start time begins, or when you run out of available watering time. Increasing zone concurrency helps prevent these conflicts.

Pump cycling: A pump that cycles on and off repeatedly has a shorter lifespan than one that runs at constant flow. Running multiple zones at once maintains more consistent flow and reduces cycling.

Maximizing water source capacity: Your limiting factors for completing irrigation are the size of your water source or main line (how much flow is available) and your water window (how much time is available). Zone concurrency ensures you're taking full advantage of your available flow capacity.

Two Limiting Factors for Zone Concurrency

When increasing zone concurrency, you must consider two separate limiting factors:

Hydraulic capacity: This is the physical limit of how much water can safely flow through your pipes. Each pipe size and material has a finite limit based on physics. You can only push so much water through a two-inch or three-inch pipe before encountering friction loss (which lowers pressure) or high velocities that can cause water hammer and damage.

Electrical capacity: This is the limit of how much power your wiring system and transformer can handle to operate multiple solenoids simultaneously.

Both limits must be addressed to successfully implement zone concurrency.

Understanding Hydraulic Capacity and Pipe Velocity

The industry standard for velocity through pipe is five feet per second. Exceeding this velocity can result in friction loss and potentially damaging water hammer conditions.

To determine the safe flow capacity for your system, reference a pressure loss chart (also called a friction loss chart). These charts are available from major manufacturers and are typically included in the back of product catalogs. Different charts exist for different pipe materials:

• Class 200 PVC pipe
• Schedule 40 steel pipe
• Copper pipe

Each material has different flow characteristics. On these charts, shaded areas typically indicate flow rates that exceed the recommended five feet per second velocity.

To use a friction loss chart, locate your pipe size on the chart and cross-reference it with the flow capacity. For example, a two-inch Class 200 PVC pipe can carry approximately 50 gallons per minute, while a two-inch Schedule 40 pipe will carry less due to its different wall thickness. A six-inch main line can carry approximately 380 gallons per minute.

Getting this design flow number correct is absolutely critical, as it forms the foundation for the controller's zone concurrency calculations.

Setting Program Concurrent Zones in BaseManager

1. In BaseManager, navigate to the Schedules tab.

2. Select the program you want to configure (for example, Program 1).

3. Click Edit to view all program settings.

4. Scroll past the zones section and the water window settings to locate the Program Concurrent Zones and Controller section.

5. In the Program Concurrent Zones field, enter the number of zones you want this specific program to run simultaneously. The default setting is 1, which means zones run one at a time in sequence.

6. In the Controller concurrent zones field (below the program setting), enter the total number of zones the entire controller can run at once across all programs.

7. Click Save to apply your changes.

Understanding the Relationship Between Program and Controller Concurrency

Think of these two settings as containers: the controller concurrency is a large container, and program concurrency settings are smaller individual containers inside it. The zones are contained within the programs.

The controller will always default to whichever setting is more restrictive. For example, if you set a program to run four zones concurrently but set the controller limit to two zones, the system will only run two zones at a time because that's the most restrictive value.

If you set the controller to allow six zones concurrent and have multiple programs each set to run two zones at a time, the controller could run two zones from Program 1, two from Program 2, and two from Program 3 simultaneously (totaling six zones across the controller).

Alternatively, you could configure each program to run one zone at a time but set the controller to run four zones total. This means the controller would run one zone from Program 1, one from Program 2, one from Program 3, and one from Program 4 simultaneously.

Determining Zone Concurrency Without Flow Data

You don't necessarily need sophisticated calculations to determine safe zone concurrency. The "eyes on site" approach is valid and relies on field experience:

Visual verification: If you've physically turned on two zones at the same time and observed that they operate properly with good pressure and desired coverage, then you know you can safely run two zones concurrently.

Pressure checking: Turn on multiple zones and measure the pressure to verify the system maintains adequate pressure.

Experience-based grouping: If you know from experience that you can run three drip zones simultaneously on your main line, you can configure concurrency accordingly.

This experiential approach is particularly useful when you don't have detailed flow data or haven't performed a learn flow process yet.

Balancing Hydraulics Across Programs

You can balance hydraulics across your site by strategically organizing zones into different programs. Since you have 99 programs available, you can create separate programs for different areas or zone types:

For example, you might create Spring Program A with large rotor zones and Spring Program B with small rotor zones, then adjust the concurrency for each program based on the flow requirements of those head sizes.

You could also separate zones by location, setting up programs so that zones in one area run separately from zones in another area, while still allowing multiple zones to run simultaneously across the site by setting appropriate program and controller concurrency values.

How Program Priority Affects Concurrency

Program priority settings interact with zone concurrency in important ways:

Priority 1 programs: Only Priority 1 programs run by themselves, taking precedence over all other programs. If you set one program to Priority 1 and all others to Priority 2, the Priority 1 program will run alone and complete before any Priority 2 programs begin.

Same priority programs: If all programs are set to the same priority level (for example, all set to Priority 2), they will run according to the concurrency settings and can operate simultaneously.

Priority override: A Priority 1 program ignores the controller concurrency setting and runs according to its own program concurrency setting. It will run by itself even if you've set higher controller concurrency, unless the program concurrency for that prioritized program matches the controller concurrency.

If you have all programs set to Priority 1, the system will essentially stack them and run them sequentially rather than concurrently.

Configuring Managed by Flow

1. In BaseManager, navigate to the Flow Setup section.

2. Select Main Lines and wait for the page to load.

3. In the Design Flow field, enter the maximum safe flow capacity for your main line in gallons per minute. Use the friction loss chart for your pipe material and size to determine this value. For example, a six-inch main line might have a design flow of 380 GPM.

4. Select Manage by Flow as the management method.

5. Save your settings.

How Managed by Flow Works

Managed by Flow is one of the most powerful features in the BaseStation 3200. When activated, it determines zone concurrency automatically based on the design flow you've entered.

The system will find any combination of zones that totals up to but does not exceed your design flow. For example, if you set a design flow of 380 GPM, the controller might run a 150 GPM zone, another 150 GPM zone, and an 80 GPM zone simultaneously (totaling 380 GPM). It acts like a puzzle, piecing together zone flows to maximize water usage without exceeding the safe limit.

Managed by Flow uses real-time flow data, not calculated estimates. This means it responds dynamically to actual conditions. If a zone faults out due to a wire problem, the system recalculates on the fly rather than leaving gaps in the irrigation schedule.

The system will operate within whichever limit is most restrictive: either the design flow value or the zone concurrency setting. To take full advantage of Managed by Flow, you should set your zone concurrency values high (matching the number of zones in your program or even higher) so that the design flow becomes the controlling factor rather than an artificially low concurrency limit.

Maximizing Managed by Flow with High Concurrency Settings

1. After configuring Managed by Flow in the Flow Setup section, return to the Schedules tab.

2. Edit your program settings.

3. Set the Program Concurrent Zones to a high number that matches or exceeds the number of zones in that program. For example, if you have 15 zones in the program, set it to 15.

4. Set the Controller concurrent zones to a similarly high number (15 or higher, depending on your system configuration).

5. Save your changes.

By setting high concurrency values, you're giving the Managed by Flow system maximum flexibility to optimize zone combinations. The 380 GPM design flow becomes the limiting factor, and the controller has full freedom to run as many zones as needed to reach (but not exceed) that flow limit.

If you set concurrency to 1, the system will only run one zone at a time regardless of your design flow setting. The system always operates within the most restrictive limit.

Electrical Limits: Two-Wire Systems

On a two-wire system, a single BaseStation 3200 controller with one transformer can run up to 15 zones concurrently. This is the electrical limit based on the transformer capacity.

If your hydraulic capacity supports running more than 15 zones simultaneously (for example, if you have a very large main line and many low-flow drip zones), you'll need to add substations to increase the electrical capacity.

Electrical Limits: Conventional Wire Systems

Conventional wire systems have different concurrency limits than two-wire systems. The limits are based on the biCoder configuration:

24-zone controller: A 24-zone Powered biCoder consists of two 12-zone banks. You can run two zones concurrently from the first 12-zone bank and two zones concurrently from the second 12-zone bank, for a total of four zones concurrent across the entire controller.

Optimizing wire placement: If you want to run more zones concurrently on a conventional wire system, you need to distribute your zone wires across multiple 12-zone banks. For example, if you have 12 zones total but want to run six concurrently, you would need a 36-zone controller. Spread your 12 zone wires across the three 12-zone banks (four wires per bank), which allows you to run two zones from each bank simultaneously for a total of six concurrent zones.

Moving wires: If you initially have four zones you want to run concurrently all connected to the first 12 terminals, you'll need to physically move two of those wires to the second 12-zone bank to achieve four-zone concurrency.

Maximum capacity: You can fit up to 48 zones of conventional wire into a single X cabinet. Beyond that, you'll need an additional X cabinet.

There's nothing wrong with having empty zone positions on your controller. You can unassign unused zones from the controller to make them invisible in the system.

Changing Zone Numbers When Moving Wires

When you move zone wires to different terminals on a conventional wire system to optimize concurrency, you do not need to change the zone numbers in the software.

The serial number associated with the physical connection will change, but the zone number can remain the same. To update the system:

1. Unassign the zones you're moving from the controller.

2. Physically move the wires to the new terminals.

3. Go through the search and assign process again.

4. It's recommended to unassign all zones and then reassign them in the order you want, but the zone numbers themselves don't need to change.

This is one of the few situations where you need to move the physical wire connection. Normally, you would leave wires connected to the same terminal.

Exceeding 15-Zone Concurrency with Substations

To run more than 15 zones concurrently on a two-wire system, you need to add substations. Each substation is its own box with its own transformer, and each transformer can power an additional 15 concurrent zones.

A substation is essentially an extension of the programming and operational power of the BaseStation 3200. Each box with its own transformer is capable of operating 15 solenoids at a time on two-wire.

Maximum configuration: A single BaseStation 3200 can control up to eight substations. To calculate maximum concurrency: one 3200 controller (15 zones) plus six substations (15 zones each) equals seven transformers total, which provides a maximum of 105 concurrent zones (though you'd be limited to 99 zones by the controller's zone capacity).

The practical maximum is achieved with one controller and six substations, which equals seven transformers total.

Setting Very High Concurrency Values

In BaseManager, you can set controller concurrency as high as 99 zones. While it's unlikely you'll find a system that can hydraulically run 99 zones simultaneously, this setting becomes practical when you have multiple substations.

For example, if you have a large main line (such as an eight-inch pipe) and the site consists primarily of drip zones with low individual flow rates, you might be able to run many zones at once. With multiple substations providing the electrical capacity and a large water source providing the hydraulic capacity, very high concurrency becomes feasible.

Managing Multiple Controllers with FlowStation

On sites with multiple controllers sharing one point of connection (POC), you need to level up your control system to manage concurrency across all controllers.

A FlowStation manages zone concurrency the same way a single controller does, but at a higher level. The FlowStation knows the design flow of the entire hydraulic system and allocates water to controllers that have programs needing to run, based on the design flow of the water source.

The decision-making for zone concurrency is pushed from the individual 3200 controllers up to the FlowStation level because there are now multiple controllers competing for the same water source. The FlowStation ensures that the combined flow from all operating controllers doesn't exceed the capacity of the shared water source.

Configuring Concurrency at the Controller Interface (Live View)

You can configure zone concurrency directly at the controller or through Live View in BaseManager, rather than using the standard BaseManager interface:

1. In BaseManager, navigate to Live View.

2. Select Programs.

3. Navigate to Concurrent Zone Setup.

4. Use the arrow buttons to navigate through the settings. The best technique is to count the number of boxes you need to move and press the arrow button that many times, rather than holding the button down (there's a delay built into the interface that can cause you to overshoot your target).

5. You'll see each program listed with its concurrent zone setting. Adjust the program concurrent zones as needed.

6. The Total Allowed field at the bottom represents the controller concurrent zones setting. This field is often missed and is a common cause of support calls.

Remember that there's only one controller concurrency setting that applies to all programs. If you change the total controller concurrency in BaseManager for one program, it changes for every program. Each program can have its own individual program concurrency setting, but the controller total is universal.

Using Managed by Flow Without a Flow Sensor

Managed by Flow can work even if you don't have a flow sensor or flow meter installed. The system can use calculated flow values instead of measured flow data:

1. Manually enter a flow value for every zone in your system. You can determine these values by counting heads and calculating their combined flow, or by reading your water meter while running individual zones.

2. Enter your water source design flow value (determined from friction loss charts).

3. Activate Managed by Flow.

The system will use these calculated flows to perform the zone concurrency calculations for you. While the values might not be as precise as measured flow data (a zone might be 17.5 GPM rather than your estimated 15 GPM), they're usually close enough to provide effective flow management.

Entering Manual Flow Values in Live View

1. In Live View, navigate to Flow Setup.

2. Select Main Lines.

3. For zones that don't have learned flow values, manually enter the design flow in gallons per minute.

4. Zones that have completed the learn flow process will already have their flow values populated automatically.

5. Ensure all zones have either a learned flow value or a manually entered design flow value for Managed by Flow to work properly.

Important Note About Zones Without Flow Data

If you have a zone that does not have a learned flow value and does not have a manually entered design flow, the controller will run that zone by itself, separate from all other zones.

This is a safety feature—the system doesn't know how much water that zone uses, so it isolates it to prevent exceeding your design flow. This commonly occurs when you've added a new zone to the system or haven't run a particular zone yet.

To include these "rogue zones" in your concurrency management, either run a learn flow process for them or manually enter their design flow values.