What the PulseMate lights mean
Plug PulseMate in between the board and the valve coil. Each pair of lights is one wire going to the coil. The pairs go red, blue, red, blue from left to right. When the board moves the valve, the pulse steps across the pairs.
Turn a phase OFF under the tool to see what a missing phase looks like.
Too fast to follow? Use slow-mo.
A real board can step the valve much faster than this demo, and the lights can blur together. Film PulseMate with your phone's slow-motion camera mode, then play it back to watch each pair light in order.
Good: red, blue, red, blue, over and over
The pulse steps left to right across the pairs, so you see red, blue, red, blue, then it starts over. On half step, it goes one pair, then two, then the next pair alone. On full step, two pairs are always on together. Both are normal.
Opening vs closing
Left to right is one direction, right to left is the other. Opening and closing run opposite ways.
On power-up
The board usually runs the valve fully closed first. The lights spin for a while, then stop. That's normal.
When it stops
All lights off, or one or two left on. Both are normal.
Bad: what to look for
One pair never lights
That phase is missing. The board isn't putting out that step, so the pattern has a gap in it.
Lights jump around or skip
Loose plug or a bad board. Wiggle the wires and watch.
No lights at all
No 12V power, or the board isn't telling the valve to move.
Lights go around fine but the valve doesn't move
The board is good. The problem is the coil or the valve.
Quick flicker?
A short flicker when a pair turns off is normal. It's the coil kicking back.