NSM wrote:

I'll modify my power supply to run at the appropriate voltage and never
again will trust the word of a landscaper on electrical matters, no
matter how convincing they sound ;-)
....
Like I say, amps closes the valve. If 400 mA AC will do it 400 mA DC will
too.


After much searching in the "treasure house" of my shed, I have finally
found a transformer in the 9-10V range. Hooked it up to a spare
solenoid via bridge rectifier and filter cap an bingo - 398mV! Couldn't
have got closer if I'd tried. And yes, the solenoid operates fine.

I now need to incorporate this new power supply into my controller, but
that's a minor issue.

Many thanks for all assistance on this matter. Now to tell the
landscapers that they've been dishing out bad advice...

Cheers

M