WeatherStation Buying Advice

c hris527

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Hi Gang,
I know NOTHING about weather stations, I was asked to replace one at one of our satellite facilities, The current system works part time and they are looking to replace it. The current system is a 20 year old Davis system Battery powered., I have looked at them and a few others. I believe the pole has AC if needed, Its about 350 feet from the office. Whats everybody using, the good and the bad. I see reviews good and bad for every system out there. Battery or solar ?We are looking for wind, temp and anything else is a bonus.

Thanks
Chris
 

gwminor48

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I have a Davis too, but only for a couple of years now. I'm not sure if I would replace it with another Davis or not although I've had no trouble with mine, maybe a bit overpriced. Have you checked out the weather forum? WXforum.net - Index
Maybe information overload.
 

c hris527

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Thanks, I have read that Davis has had issues, I will look at wx..o_O
 

WA3PNT

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I have been using the DAVIS WX Stations for over 11 years. I currently have two of the Solar Powered stations in operation. One has been operating for 6 years. The second one for 4 years.
The only maintenance/repairs that I've had to do over the years is replace one Anemometer, in which the directional potentiometer became intermittent.
I also added the UV and Solar Radiation sensors to the array.
I know that they (DAVIS) are one of the highest priced systems, but their quality and support for uploading to Weather Services is unsurpassed.
You can view my WX Station by Googling KAZCHINO3 or going to this link KAZCHINO3

RodeoGeorge
 

c hris527

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I have been using the DAVIS WX Stations for over 11 years. I currently have two of the Solar Powered stations in operation. One has been operating for 6 years. The second one for 4 years.
The only maintenance/repairs that I've had to do over the years is replace one Anemometer, in which the directional potentiometer became intermittent.
I also added the UV and Solar Radiation sensors to the array.
I know that they (DAVIS) are one of the highest priced systems, but their quality and support for uploading to Weather Services is unsurpassed.
You can view my WX Station by Googling KAZCHINO3 or going to this link KAZCHINO3

RodeoGeorge
Its good to know the solar has held up.
 
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I have a Davis Vantage Pro 2 wireless that has been running for over 12 years now. No problems with this setup at all. I did replace the aspirating fan and Ni-Cad batteries in the Fan-aspirated radiation shield a couple of years ago. Only to ensure continual operation without problems. I was surprised the Ni-Cad batteries lasted as long as they did. And honestly, really don't know how long they could have lasted.

My vote, Davis. Pricey, but extremely reliable and accurate. The cheaper manufacturers out there, just don't measure up.
 

c hris527

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I have a Davis Vantage Pro 2 wireless that has been running for over 12 years now. No problems with this setup at all. I did replace the aspirating fan and Ni-Cad batteries in the Fan-aspirated radiation shield a couple of years ago. Only to ensure continual operation without problems. I was surprised the Ni-Cad batteries lasted as long as they did. And honestly, really don't know how long they could have lasted.

My vote, Davis. Pricey, but extremely reliable and accurate. The cheaper manufacturers out there, just don't measure up.
Thanks for the Info.
 

Rickoo

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I also have the Vantage Pro. (Not the 2, but the original model.) Its been running for around 15 years. The rain gauge is way off and has been for years. I don't really use it, so I've lived with it. When it's really cold, (single digits) the anemometer is pretty noisy. I've thought about replacing it, but to be honest, it's probably time to replace the station.

I've emailed Davis inquiring about an updated version of the Vantage Pro and they say there's nothing in the works. I'm surprised they don't do a refresh on the console. It's pretty dated. The LCD display looks like something from the 80's.

Having said that, if I update my station, it will be another Vantage Pro. At the price point, I haven't seen anything that comes close to its capabilities.
 

gwminor48

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I bought my Davis after reading about the reliability and accuracy and so far it has done very well for me, I am pleased.

The LCD display looks like something from the 80's.
Yes it does look outdated compared to some of the other consoles I see. When I open the WeatherLink software (which I don't do too often) I feel like I'm on a Commordore 64. The weather station itself is very good though.
 

c hris527

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I have been using the DAVIS WX Stations for over 11 years. I currently have two of the Solar Powered stations in operation. One has been operating for 6 years. The second one for 4 years.
The only maintenance/repairs that I've had to do over the years is replace one Anemometer, in which the directional potentiometer became intermittent.
I also added the UV and Solar Radiation sensors to the array.
I know that they (DAVIS) are one of the highest priced systems, but their quality and support for uploading to Weather Services is unsurpassed.
You can view my WX Station by Googling KAZCHINO3 or going to this link KAZCHINO3

RodeoGeorge
I took a look at your live station, pretty cool setup, I did get the Davis up and running, They had to send me a New anemometer due to a what looks like a machining defect in the shaft where the retainer e clip would hold it in, seems the groove was not cut deep enough to let the clip seat properly. Do you have to pay a monthly fee to have your data posted on the site ? Seems they want $45 a month to post your weatherstation data, Am I thinking that correctly ?
 

WA3PNT

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I took a look at your live station, pretty cool setup, I did get the Davis up and running, They had to send me a New anemometer due to a what looks like a machining defect in the shaft where the retainer e clip would hold it in, seems the groove was not cut deep enough to let the clip seat properly. Do you have to pay a monthly fee to have your data posted on the site ? Seems they want $45 a month to post your weatherstation data, Am I thinking that correctly ?
I post my WX Station Data to three sites:
Weather Underground
Weather Cloud
PWS Tools

None of these sites require that you pay anything to post your data, although I do subscribe to the Weather Cloud so that I can post every minute (free membership can post every 10 minutes).

I also use a Meteobridge to post to Wunderground, and a Meteobridge with Meteostick to post to WX Cloud.

You can really get carried away with some of the options and technology out there.

Glad to have you aboard.

RodeoGeorge
 

windguy

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You can view my WX Station by Googling KAZCHINO3 or going to this link KAZCHINO3
Thanks for sharing. Very nice weather station. Webcam is a nice touch. Also like that horse statue.
If possible, please share a pic of how/where the weather station is mounted.
 

looney2ns

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I've had weather stations for about 40yrs. In today's market. There are a lot of toy weather stations IMHO, the only real options are Davis and Rainwise. The inexpensive off shore stations are really making it tough on US based makers. Several have closed up. Darn shame.
 
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c hris527

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I bought my Davis after reading about the reliability and accuracy and so far it has done very well for me, I am pleased.



Yes it does look outdated compared to some of the other consoles I see. When I open the WeatherLink software (which I don't do too often) I feel like I'm on a Commordore 64. The weather station itself is very good though.
I was also surprised about how the weatherlink software was a bit dated, I have just started looking at its reporting capabilities, They are using it now for historical data retention VS using a manual log book so this is definitely a upgrade for the guys manning this post.
 

looney2ns

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I was also surprised about how the weatherlink software was a bit dated, I have just started looking at its reporting capabilities, They are using it now for historical data retention VS using a manual log book so this is definitely a upgrade for the guys manning this post.
For weather station soft ware, you want Weather Display. Weather Display - the Weather Station software
 

looney2ns

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I post my WX Station Data to three sites:
Weather Underground
Weather Cloud
PWS Tools

None of these sites require that you pay anything to post your data, although I do subscribe to the Weather Cloud so that I can post every minute (free membership can post every 10 minutes).

I also use a Meteobridge to post to Wunderground, and a Meteobridge with Meteostick to post to WX Cloud.

You can really get carried away with some of the options and technology out there.

Glad to have you aboard.

RodeoGeorge
What ftp settings are you using for the webcam upload to WU?
 

WA3PNT

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What ftp settings are you using for the webcam upload to WU?
@looney2ns I gave up trying to use one of my IP Cameras to upload to Wunderground.
I have a separate FOSCAM FI9831P that I use for that purpose.

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, I do not use Weatherlink to upload data. I use a Meteobridge, which eliminates the need for a computer.

Here is a snapshot of the FTP settings. The camera name password is supplied by Wunderground when you add a camera to your devices.

FOSCAM.jpg

RodeoGeorge
 

WA3PNT

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Thanks for sharing. Very nice weather station. Webcam is a nice touch. Also like that horse statue.
If possible, please share a pic of how/where the weather station is mounted.
I'll try to get some pictures, but basically I have the Davis Unit mounted 5' above the ground in an open area. The Anemometer is remoted to the top of a 30' building, so wind velocities are at that 30' height. However, that eliminates any interference from objects on the ground such as the building itself.

RodeoGeorge
 
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