[aprssig] Low-cost weather station

[Ray McKnight]

Don't assume Davis or Peet conform to NWS/WMO standards!
A few years ago there was a heated argument right here on this SIG
Regarding aligning your wind vane to magnetic north.  Peet's instruction
Manual said magnetic, of course this is entirely wrong, but some folks
Couldn't be convinced even after being presented with the actual gov'mt
Standard.  I'm not sure if Peet has ever changed their manual.

Absolutely you must consider things like wind gust and average wind
speed,
Which are usually hard coded into the weather station firmware, and
rarely
Conform to accepted reporting criteria.  Each manufacturer has their own
idea, often based on the design of their sensor, maybe to correct some
Anomaly that can't cheaply be engineered out.

Most folks don't worry about it and in the long run for hobby use it's
probably "close enough" or better than nothing at all.  It's probably
More productive to focus on siting your sensors properly or as best you
can.
But understand it's usually something that is hard coded and can't be
changed.  That's why a professional system collects the data in a raw
form
And uses a programmable translator to perform those calculations which
can be changed easily either when standards are updated or to satisfy
your specific goals.

If you want a high end, professional system, it's probably attainable.
You can usually find professional sensors and even complete systems
listed
On eBay, so if you're patient you can assemble a very nice system for
about
The same cost as a fully loaded Peet or Davis.

-----Original Message-----
From: aprssig-bounces at lists.tapr.org
[mailto:aprssig-bounces at lists.tapr.org] On Behalf Of Ben Lindner
Sent: Saturday, March 29, 2008 1:49 PM
To: TAPR APRS Mailing List
Subject: Re: [aprssig] Low-cost weather station

By a good quality station like Davis which has all one needs and it 
conforms to NWS/WMO standards. Davis are not the cheapest but in my 
opinion great. Ray,  I agree with you on sending out "bad" data, its a 
total waste of time. You might as well step outside and say " yep its 
windy today" and broadcast that.

thats my Australian 5cents worth

Ben Lindner
VK5JFK

Ray McKnight wrote:
> At some point, someone needs to ask this.
> I guess I'll play devil's advocate.
> Low cost is always a consideration for most of us, 
> especially in various aspects of the hobby which we
> don't directly need in fulfilling our primary goals,
> Getting "on the air" and "talking" or "communicating".
> Increasingly, data may fulfill this role as primary.
>
> My question is, how do these sensors compare, in the following
aspects:
>
> 1)  Durability - will they be reliable?
> When a big blow renders an anemometer dead, at a remote site,
> it may likely be dead for quite a while.  Then the question arises
> as to whether it's financially wise to replace it.
>
> 2)  How is the accuracy?
> How do the sensors compare to the typical, low-end consumer grade
stuff
> (Peet, Davis, etc).
>
> 3)  Is there any provision for upgrading due to changes in things like
> WMO reporting requirements?  I suspect, like most other low end stuff,
> It's pre-programmed and cannot be changed.  Most likely, it doesn't
> Conform to current NWS/WMO standards.  Most folks don't care, but I
> refuse
> To provide "bad" data (i.e. data not in current compliance with
current
> Reporting standards).  If you're using it for your own personal use,
> Not an issue.  If you forward the data to NWS/CWOP, you should care
and
> Be aware of the implications.
>
> 4)  Are there provisions for calibrating these sensors.  Especially
> baro?
> Software offsets... maybe I expect too much.
>
> 5)  Scott, will you assume responsibility for US customer support,
> warranty
> replacement, all that??
>
> Don't shoot me for just asking.
> Ray - WB3ABN
> Kingston, WA
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: aprssig-bounces at lists.tapr.org
> [mailto:aprssig-bounces at lists.tapr.org] On Behalf Of Scott Miller
> Sent: Friday, March 28, 2008 9:04 PM
> To: TAPR APRS Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [aprssig] Low-cost weather station
>
> I think without the humidity and pressure sensors it'll be competitive

> with the AAG 1-wire station - and with the sensors, cheaper than the
AAG
>
> station with the equivalent sensors added.
>
> It should leave me with several cubic meters of space left over in the

> container, so I'll be looking at other stuff I can get at the same
time.
>
>   Lots of cables, for starters - those are expensive to ship in small 
> quantities.
>
> Scott
> N1VG
>
>
>
>
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>
>   

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