The solar sync sensor on my unit completely quit working at less than 2 years old. I called Hunter Tech Support (very nice and very helpful folks), and learned those sensors are warrantied for 5 years. But...Hunter cannot send you a replacement, you must go through the installing dealer. The dealer confirmed the sensor warranty, but wanted $115 labor to install. They would not simply provide me with a new sensor to install myself.

I wound up replacing my controller with a Hunter WiFi controller, and have been very happy with that decision. The WiFi controllers don't need the external sensor, have many more features and benefits, and you can control them with your phone. Yeah, it was an expense of about $140, but in my view, money well spent. Then again, maybe the solar sync sensor going bad just gave me an excuse to go WiFi!

LaCosta Sod on 466 has zoysia ($3) per piece

Zoysia types
 

Uh oh. I somehow got the idea that the zoysia in my lawn is of the emerald variety, but looks like LaCosta's is palisades. From the way they describe it on their website, I'm now wondering if mine is actually palisades, as it has a wider blade than zoysia I had been around previously. Would love to chop up a slab and tuck pieces into some "holes" that we have. I suspect that mixing the two would be less than optimal. . . From their website:

Palisades Zoysia Compared to Emerald Zoysia

The Palisades Zoysia grass is a little lower maintenance, but it does not have the shade tolerance that the fine-bladed Zoysias do. Shade tolerance, I guess, is probably the key difference between Palisades and Emerald Zoysia. Emerald only needs about four or five hours of direct sunlight per day to survive, whereas Palisades Zoysia needs six or seven hours for the most part.

Installing new sensor
 

I just replace the outside sensor for my Hunter System after 7 years. A wired sensor comes with a very long wire attached. You remove the old sensor and cut the wire on the existing sensor. Tie the wire for the new sensor to the old sensor's wire and then pull the wire through the low voltage box in your garage. You open the Hunter controller and look at where the sensor wires are placed making sure you have the correct color with the correct terminal as you remove the old wire and put in the new wire. You'll have a significant amount of extra wire from the new sensor, you can cut this and strip the ends for putting in the low voltage box.

Thanks. It looks easy enough as long as the conduit is free of other stuff.

I disconnected mine, no more issues of time going from 2 minutes to an hour. Set the timer and all done!

When it changes you’ll be watering for hours $$$$$$$$$

Call Hunter and they’ll send you parts for free

It has not changed in more than a year. I think the outside sensor is non-functional.

I tried that, but they wouldn't. The PRO-C controller was warranted for 2 years, and the solar sync sensor for 5 years. I could have gotten a free outside sensor from a local supplier in Summerfield for free during the warranty period by taking the old one to their office, but it is now out of warranty. On Amazon, you can buy the outside sensor for $105.97 and the PRO-C inside controller for $110.38. At this point, if I do anything, I will replace the sensor with a wireless rain sensor, and not use a solar sync system. The problem with the solar sync system is that it can change your watering times without your knowledge, and not always the best timing for your lawn. Also, you cannot permanently disable the solar sync function without also disabling the rain sensor. I never did like the system even when it "worked".

Lake Jem Farms in Tavares sells Empire Zoysia. $2.25 a slab. However, I used it to replace a dead spot, and it has been quite slow to grow. I bought a slab on Amazon, of all places, and it grows like crazy. It is quite expensive, however, thus my looking to find someone more local and cheaper.

Sod
 

Go to Lowes and buy St Augustine sod. It's more hearty and blends fine with the Zoysa.

To deactivate the "seasonal adjustment" setting open the sprinkler box and disconnect the blue wire.

You must have a different controller. The Hunter PRO-C controller has a green and a black wire. You must disconnect both wires to disable both the solar sync and the rain sensor. Disconnecting only one wire will not do it.

#1, I'd rely on LOCAL Home Depot or Lowe's to pick up sod, they ONLY stock varieties that are appropriate for our area.

#2, We took the free Florida lawn maintenance classes provided by the U. of F. when we first built our home here. Don't know if they have changed over the years, but, we were give the following advice and through the years it has proven very very reliable:
. remove as much of the dead "thatch" as you can in the bare areas, but don't obsess over it, just see that it's "roughed" up.
.fill in the spaces between the pieces of sod with Black Cow (comes in bags where garden soil, manure, etc. is stacked)
. and lastly, they taught us that if you only have small bare spots, places here and there, perhaps from grubs, after spraying for the grubs, you can just "rough up" areas smaller than a dinner plate, and simply fill them with Black Cow... they WILL fill in with the need for purchasing sod if they are small areas.
#3 As for the system, they are a headache, why not just manually set the number of minutes ? But, I understand if you are seldom here and really need to rely on the auto. The university extension USED to also offer free classes on irrigation systems, Hunter and one or two others. You might inquire (their office is/was in the Sumter Co. Sheriff's annex on route 466 near Morse Blvd.) if they still offer these very helpful classes. Many of us have found the "rain sensors" are also frequently not working, or are completely useless ! Good luck. The extension classes are GREAT, and "free"(well, our taxes support the ag. extension office of course) makes them even better.