# Any recommendations on a home weather station



## DieselDave (Dec 25, 2002)

I am wanting one in about the $150-$300 range. I don't know anything about them except that I want the outside box to be wireless and have a 500 lumen rain guage, (just kidding about the last part)

Thanks,
David


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## McGizmo (Dec 25, 2002)

DieselDave,

I haven't kept up with these but I know Davis Instruments has been making many variations and the quality is very good from all I have heard. 

- Don


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## Saaby (Dec 25, 2002)

heh...funny you would say that because I got a wireless weather station for Christmas...(Read on)

It's nowhere near what you want though--just inside and outside temp+humidity...great starter station though IIHO.


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## DieselDave (Dec 25, 2002)

I hve done some research today and have narrowed it down to somewhere between the Oregon Scientific Cable Free™ Weather Station [WMR968] and a wet index finger searching for wind direction. My wife thinks I need the indoor only model but oh for a wind and rain guage. I live about 50 yards from the water here in Pensacola,(bayou not beach) and we get some exciting weather. Thanks for the input. I imagine my wife will win out on this one. It would be kinda hard to hide the stuff mounted on the chimney. I got away with the Tigerlight, for now. If I get the "big dog" I will post a review.

David


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## Saaby (Dec 25, 2002)

Well let me tell you a little more about mine then because if you end up with just an indor model it's a fairly nice one.

It's a GE "Smart Home" model from super Wal-Mart. At my Wallyworld they have a whole isle devoted to it. They come in 3 "levels" if you will--the cheapest is just an indoor+wireless outdoor--$20. Next model adds an alarm clock--$30. Nicest model adds humidity to temperature. Using the humidity and temperature and some algorythms it predicts the weather--no barometer but it predicts the weather. It's a nice little unit made in China--I think it might be Oregon Scientific at heart. I'll post pics later, there is NOTHING about it on the internet.

The nice thing is that you can add 2 more sensors if you want...I think you have ot buy a $20 kit though


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## Sigman (Dec 26, 2002)

I've got an Oregon Scientific BAR888A, it's only an inside temp/outside temp/"barometer"/auto clock. I'd love to get one of those that has the rain gauge & anemometer! 

I like the OS line, but if I were buying another would definitely "educate" myself as to what's available. Take a look here: Epinions Weather Stations.

** EDIT: My "barometer" is the type that Saaby is speaking of in his post below: "Using the humidity and temperature and some algorythms it predicts the weather--no barometer but it predicts the weather". It shows whether the BP is dropping, stable, or rising along with a "pictorial" of the next 24/36 hrs of weather (i.e. rain, cloudy, sunny, clear)


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## Chris T (Dec 26, 2002)

Stay away from Davis. I got one of their units as a Christmas present a few years ago. The wiring setup is real cheap, especially if you need the extension cable. The wind vane/anenometer (sp?) has to be glued together by the consumer (For the price my father paid it should have been ready to go from the box!). The console was cheaply made with pressure switches that weren't very responsive. Oh, and after all that, you need to calibrate it before use. I got so disgusted with it that I never installed it. Sadly, I waited until spring to open the box and couldn't return it because too much time had elapsed.

Chris


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## Saaby (Dec 26, 2002)

You will have to callibrate any weatehr station. I am assuming you are refering to the barometer? To get accurate readings, us more pressure...less pressure...you have to callibrate the barometer because it measures air pressure--which changes with altitude, and it's highly unlikely that you live within 10 feet of the altitude it was manufactured at.


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## Chris T (Dec 26, 2002)

> Originally posted by Saaby:
> *You will have to callibrate any weatehr station. I am assuming you are refering to the barometer*


<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">. Saaby: Mine did not have the barometer. The calibration was for the wind speed indicator. Apparently the system is designed to accept more than one type of sensor.

Chris


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## DieselDave (Dec 26, 2002)

I would really like the Oregon Sci. that is wireless for the obvious reasons Plus, I want the software that automatically updates the weather data to a web page. 

Here is the funny part...My sister called me Christmas and asked how I liked my present, I said, "what present", she replied you will see. I get the same call from my Mom and Dad as well as my Father-in-Law. I usually get about $300-$400 in checks for Christmas but got none this year, hmmmm! When I asked my wife, "what's the deal with this Christmas present everyone keeps asking me about"? She replies, "Oh yea, I meant to talk to you about that. You said you wanted a weather station and the one you showed me cost over $300. I told everyone so they sent me the money to get it for you. I found another one that is only $129 and is about the same as the one you showed me. I haven't bought it yet but it makes more sense than spending $300 and I want a new camera". 

Bottom line, she wants to buy me a cheaper weather station and keep $170+ of my Christmas money for her camera. The one she wants to buy is NOTHING like the one I want. I may cave on this one seeing I have two Tigerlights on the way she is not aware of, I guess we are even. With all she tolerates from me after 15 years of marriage I can live with the lesser unit, FOR NOW.

Anyway, I am not really sure why I need it in the first place. It's not like it can blind someone or be carried around the neighborhood to impress everyone. Thanks for the input.


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## Evan (Dec 26, 2002)

I've been playing with LaCrosse Scientific WS2310 I paid $199 for it and AMASS raised the price to $229, now has it back down to $225. Use dogpile or your favorate search engine, I know somebody else had it for $219 when I was shopping.

Big plus: At that price it comes with the computer interface built in and the software to load into a Windows 98 system to download and display up to 175 sets of readings that the unit stores between computer sessions. If you set it for one reading per hour, 175 readings is about a week.

Sorta plus: It has one transmitter that serves the entire outdoor sensor package, Temp, humidity, wind speed & direction, and rain guage. This really beats the "solar powered" weatherstation Radio Shack sells that takes 14 batteries for backup. The one transmitter takes 2 "AA", the base station that does barometer, indoor temp & humidity, "atomic" clock, and computer interface can run on 3 "AA", but also comes with an AC adapter. The "sorta" I'm talking about is that in my case, after the wind senstors are on the roof, it seems a bad idea to put the rain sensor there as I'll probably have to clean leaves out of it occasionally. So I'll be runing some wire (rain guage and wind sensors each have 32 foot wire to outdoor temp/humidity). While I am at it, I may also run the 32 foot cord provided as an alternative to the radio link. With a wired connection updates occur every 8 seconds rather than 128 seconds or 32 seconds in high wind.

Of course if I do that, I could have bought the Oregon Scientific WM918, which has no RF link and was $189 a few weeks ago, now $239.

?: The wind speed is measured by a anemommeter that looks like a little fan rather than the traditional whirling ice-cream scoups and time will tell if the newer design is better or not.

-: Wind speed and direction has its own spot on the display, as do the barometer and the clock; but the rest share a line that displays temp & humidity together, but is stepped by a button thru indoor, outdoor, wind chill, dew point, rain in hour, rain in day, and total rain. Displaying max & min is also a little tricky. But if you use a computer it is all there together on the screen and so what if using the LCD is a bit tedeous.

One thing that puzzled me for the first week is there can be a puff of wind that is enough to change the direction while still averaging out to a wind speed of 0.0. I'd like a better record of gusts. All-in-all I'm happy with it, but I don't know if other stations do this better, as I have the one I have.

Edit: I was at Target tonight and they were clearing out the Oregon Scientific BAR888A and BAR338PAs they had laid in for Christmas for half price. These both do indoor & outdoor temp, atomic clock (with alarm), and weather pictures driven by a barometer (no numeric pressure). I like the 888 which has separate areas for indoor & outdoor temp (and can handle 3 sensors) and trend arrows for pressure and outdoor temp. The 338 doesn't have those things but has a backlight and will project time & outside temp on the cieling. Both come with an outdoor temp transmitter. I would really like humidity in & out, and numbers for preasure, but now they are $20 at the 1 out of 3 Targets that still have some and at that price I can't complain at all.


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## DieselDave (Dec 26, 2002)

Evan,
great info. I will take a look at target tomorrow.


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## Saaby (Dec 26, 2002)

Evan, my GE sounds a LOT like the Oregon 888.

It's display is in 3 sections:

Top section
Time/Date/Day of Week/Moon phase. Weather picture. I thought it was barometer driven but according to the instructions it uses math and the difference in humidity from the indoor and outdoor sensors.

Middle section:
A little number for channel 1,2,or 3. I currently only have one sensor so it always says "1"
Temp and Humidity from remote sensor+trend arrows for both.

Bottom:
Same as middle only for indoor so instead of "CH" and a number, it says "IN"

I am wondering if I can pick up spare Oregon scientific sensors and use them with the GE...


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## Evan (Dec 28, 2002)

I think I have that GE (GE5805WS6) and it does not seem to recognise the Oregon Scientific wireless thermometers that come with the 338 and 888, nor do the 338 and 888 notice the sensor for the GE, and none of them get anything from the transmissions of the Lacrosse WS2310. I think the makers have taken care to avoid any interractions, good or bad.

I like the GE better than the 338/888 in some ways, it does indoor and outdoor humidity and automatically resets the maxs & mins at midnight every day. I had a little trouble with the first GE I brought home, I put the sensor on the north side of the building, but I was getting spurious readings of like 114 degrees (F) when I knew it was below freezing outside, so I took it back and got another. I also rethought how I positioned the sensor, I think it needs a bit more protection from the rain so I made a little plastic hood for it. The replacement is working great, but the "weather picture" is not as good as those from a barometer (where they claim about 75% accuracy). I wish they hadn't bothered; it makes a serious instrument feel kind of like carrying a preschooler's lunchpail.

So while I play with a 338 and an 888, I actually trust the GE.


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## Saaby (Dec 28, 2002)

Evan...a typo maybe, but I've got the GE5805WS3

3...not 6

Right now my outdoor sensor is sitting on a small ledge outside my window. I'm in the basement, and the legde is about 1" above a flower bed. This is all under a house overhang so while I'm not too worried about it getting rained on or snowed on right now I will need to move it before summer and watering season.

It is also ratehr windy tonight--hope it doesn't blow away


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## Evan (Dec 28, 2002)

no, it's 6, on the back of the indoor part.

More info not in the 338 booklet: The 338 does not care about the channel switch, it seems to glom on to the first sensor it "hears", so right now my 338 is displaying the sensor set to be #3 on the 888. Also the wall wart that comes with the 338 only powers the projector; it supplies 4.14 volts at 38mA when the projector is on, and nothing when it is off, even if the backlight is triggered. The projector is a tiny LCD lit by a very bright 5mm orange-red LED. I'd like to replace the red with blue, but I expect the voltage requirements would make this more complex than just dissasembling the projector to replace the LED.

I've had the 888 apart. The LCD is connected to the main board (about 2" narrower and an inch shorter than the case) with elastomeric rubber strips that require the casework front to supply the required pressure (in case you might have wanted to make a fancy wood case for it). There is a loopstick along the top which I think is for WWVB. There is a small board on one side of the main board that has an antenna and connects to the main board with 3 wires (red, black, green); might be interresting to hook a scope to the green as I think that is where the temperature signals come in. Lots of pairs of half-circles labled as jumpers, none shorted; makes you wonder what other modes there might be, as do the two wires left out in the connection between the main board and the reset switch board screwed to the back. Not a good idea to open the 888 frivilously, I had to reopen it and rearrange the wires a few times to get the WWVB reception to work right again. The 888 draws about .9 mA, but it may draw less once it has the time from WWVB. I hope so; at nearly a milliamp, I'd expect it to want a new set of AAs about twice a year. Finally, the alarm does give up after ringing 2 minutes, what they don't say is it rings again at 10 minutes after the set time for another 2 minutes before it gives up.

Finally a word about the range of the Oregon Scientific tempurature transmitters. They say 85 feet, I find more than about 15-20 feet iffy.


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## Charles Bradshaw (Jan 1, 2003)

My weather station, is my Casio wristwatch 'weather station'. The barometer is the most useful instrument, particularly in how fast it is dropping, and how long it has been.


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## Sigman (Jan 1, 2003)

The only remote temp sensor I have for my OS 888 is about 45 feet from the main unit and works as advertised. I've only changed the batteries 1 time in 1-1/2 years. It was still working fine, but I wanted to make sure the batteries were good. They finished their life in an Opalec Newbeam.


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## Evan (Jan 1, 2003)

Yeh, there's something else going on at my place. It is iffy to get a signal from a sensor in the kitchen to an 888 in the bedroom, about 15-20 feet. But I can get the signal from the bedroom to the parking lot, about 50'. So there must be some interference in the house.

If the 888 or 338 had a numeric reading on the barometer, I'd be real happy with it. The 888 does add three trend arrows to the pictures (which seem to indicate high-medium-low pressure), but that just whets my apetite for a better barometer.

Anybody had some experience with the barometers with bar charts? They indicate to some degree how rapidly the barometer is dropping over the last few hours. I'd expect this to give a good indication not just is it likely to rain, but also how likely as in faster drop/bigger storm. I've been eyeing a LaCrosse 7059 which looks to have all I'd want in a barometer plus atomic clock, indoor temp & humidity and option for outdoor temp/humidity; about all the weatherstation one could want if you don't want to bother with mounting outside sensors, or in the case of my office, can't do outside sensors.

My old barometer in the office quit working, but it was some condolance for lack of windows; it gave me some indication that there might be rain when I leave work.


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## Evan (Jan 3, 2003)

338 & 888 now $10 at Target's 75% off Christmas stuff sale, but dissapearing very fast. My local Target, that had none in December, had 8 on New Year's day, and none today.


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## Saaby (Jan 5, 2003)

I walked into Target with the intent of finding and buying a OS 888. Didn't find one but I ended up with one of these for $10 (Instead of $40)

It's a crazy gadget that I think only a flashaholic could truly appreciate






OH yeah, it's WAY cooler in real life too. I am thinking of ripping the blue dome off except that then if it got bumped off the desk or anything like that it'd probably get runined...so maybe take the dome off just to see what it'd look like without it


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## [email protected] (Jan 5, 2003)

Pics please if you go for it...


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## Sigman (Jan 6, 2003)

That's pretty cool...I've got a caller id next to my computer and the display is angled where you really can't read it without grabbing it and holding it at a different angle. 

That one would be so much easier to read. Does it plug in or battery operated? I went to their website, looked at the retailers where it's "supposed" to be available online...but couldn't find one. I'll do a Google search...GREAT price too!


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## Saaby (Jan 6, 2003)

It plugs in with a battery backup. I have to warn you though, it makes a buzzing noise. It's not that bad if I have my stereo on but when it's off the only other noise in my room is the laptop (Not too noisy) and the buzz can drive you nuts. Might be ok if you had a louder computer though ;-P

You might try going to Froogle and searching for "Olympia Infoglobe" or "Olympia Caller ID globe"


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## budlight (Jan 6, 2003)

Check out some of the reviews here:

http://www.eham.net/reviews/products/64


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## Sigman (Jan 6, 2003)

Saaby...found it for $40 not $10



You SCORED!


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