Melnor 3010 Mechanical AquaTimer Hose Timer For Low Pressure Drip And Soaker Hoses

by Melnor

Product Features

• Never over water again, simply set and forget
• Automatically shuts off
• Egg timer design (chronometer) measures actual time not flow of water
• Works with low pressure drip and soaker hoses
• On/off to use like a faucet

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 2.4 x 3.2 x 6.3 inches ; 6.4 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004SDWD
• California residents: Click here for Proposition 65 warning.
• Item model number: 3010
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #21,538 in Patio, Lawn & Garden (See Top 100 in Patio, Lawn & Garden)
  • #42 in Patio, Lawn & Garden > Plants & Planting > Watering Equipment > Hose Timers

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

If you'd rather have time to sip lemonade than spend time watering your lawn or garden, start thinking about a Melnor Aqua timer. Here's how simple it can be: attach the timer to your hose faucet, turn the water on, and set the timer to automatically shut off, after watering from 15 minutes up to two hours. When time's up, the gentle shut-off valve prevents pipe-banging. That's it! You're free to enjoy a frosty beverage on your deck. This water timer is designed similarly to an egg timer, making it exceptionally easy to use. Two-year limited warranty.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Saved Us $100s, But..., March 23, 2005

By 

S. Barnes (Stillwater, OK United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Melnor 3010 Mechanical AquaTimer Hose Timer For Low Pressure Drip And Soaker Hoses (Lawn & Patio)

I purchesed 5 of these last year, and they worked as advertised. They shut off very nicely, saving the pipes, and are generally accurate as timers. We have a large yard (.8 acres) and this product saved us several hundred dollars last summer alone. I too searched extensively for a similar product, and there are no direct (mechanical) competitors that I know of.

However, I agree with several of the previous reviewers--the construction could be more robust. Last year, one timer mechanism gave out, and over this winter, one split (my fault for letting it freeze). A third sheared off at the input side when I tightened it down on the spigot.

Being mechanical, I took one of the broken ones apart to see how it works. It uses a standard diapharam valve that keeps water from the timer mechanism, and looks adequate to the task at hand. Overall, the design is quite effective.

Having said that, I am going to replace them this spring with more of the same, as I love the design concept which, I will repeat, works exceedingly well. I do take measures to protect these timers: I put one of those 10 inch flex extenders and a 50 psi pressure regulator (one of the inexpensive passive types) in front of each timer. This helps to minimize the risks to the timer. The combination works well, and makes our busy life just a touch easier. They are worth the money, even with the noted problems.

UPDATE April 2005: (2 STARS) I bought two more this spring, and the design has changed. Its a very different case and, I speculate, a somewhat different mechanism. They turn off hard with this revision, slamming the pipes, not soft and slow as the older ones did. I will be looking elsewhere for replacements, though I still like the design CONCEPT of a simple mechanical timer. Your milage may of course vary.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Automatic TURNOFF one time only per setting, August 1, 2006

By 

Michele Smollett - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Melnor 3010 Mechanical AquaTimer Hose Timer For Low Pressure Drip And Soaker Hoses (Lawn & Patio)

This timer does what it is supposed to but was very misleading in what it is supposed to do. I thought I could set it and go away for a week and it would water, but that is not the case. It is truly like an egg timer. You set it and it goes off once. Then you must set it again next time. So you can set it and it will turn on and off one time only. There are no instructions included with the timer, so I spent a lot of wasted time trying to figure out how to set it to go off every day while I was on vacation. But now that I know what it does, it is very handy and works very well. I go out and turn it on and it turns off automatically when I want it to.... ONCE.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great value, November 15, 2001

By 

Ron B (Apex, NC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Melnor 3010 Mechanical AquaTimer Hose Timer For Low Pressure Drip And Soaker Hoses (Lawn & Patio)

Just bought two. Nice and small, and reasonably well constructed. No pipe-banging cut off (as advertised). The knob is somewhat tight and slightly hard to turn to manual on/off, but not that big a deal. Although it advertises 15 minutes to 2 hours, mine have settings for 5 and 10 minutes as well, both of which work as indicated.

The only thing that keeps it from 5 stars is that the dot increments are odd. Between 30 and 60 minutes, there are 3 dots, making each dot 7.5 minutes. The same goes with the 60 to 90 and 90 to 120. Trivial, but would it have been that hard to have 5 dots for 5 minute increments or just two dots for 10 minute increments?