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How To Choose a Weather Station
From High Precision Professional Weather Stations to Basic Temperature Weather Devices, This is the Guide You Need to Select Weather Monitors and Weather Instruments
There
are so many different ones to choose from at so many different prices,
it might seem a daunting task to pick the right one for you by
yourself. That's why we answer our phones and emails! So, don't
hesitate to call or write when you need help. For you
do-it-yourselfer'ers, here's a quick guide to selecting a Weather
Station in any price range: - You
only get three things from a scientific instrument: Reliability,
Features & Accuracy. The more you spend, the more you get. The less you spend, the less you get.
- Decide which feautures are most important to you, i.e.
- display of barometric pressure
- pressure tendency arrow
- pressure graph
- rain, rainfall rate per hour / day
- rainfall rate per week, month, year
- wind speed
- wind direction in compass points or degrees
- outdoor humidity
- touch screen display
- LED or LCD display
- solar radiation for evaporation
- UV (ultra violet light)
- heat index
- wind chill
- solar powered outdoor sensors
- wireless transmission distance required from outdoor sensors to indoor weather station display(s)
- weather forecast
- moon phase
- atomic clock, day, date
- sunrise and sunset times for your latitude & longitude
- adding more sensors
- do you need a completely sealed unit because of dust, sand or salt (Orion)
- do you want to hook up to a computer and/or upload your station to the internet
- do you want to store your weather data permanently to your computer
- might you desire home automation or irrigation control now or in the future
- are quality, dependability & accuracy important? If so, what can you "handle" in inaccuracy and how much are you willing to pay? The less you pay, the less of each you get.
- Write down the maximum you want to spend.
- If you are looking for a full featured weather station, stick to High Precision Stations & Professional Stations.
- If you are looking for a limited temp only or outdoor temp and humidity station, look under Temperature Stations.
- If you want an accurate, long range wireless, interference free, durable station, you must choose from High Precision Weather Stations.
- If
you choose from any other category, do not be surprised if wind and
humidity report low or if temps and humidity vary a bit more than you
might like.
- High precision stations DO NOT have atomic clocks. They have manual set, digital clocks for time stamping of data. Most high precision manufacturers consider an atomic clock to be somewhat of a novelty and have chosen to spend their resources on what they consider crucial elements that lend more accuracy and durability.
- Do you need a computer interface with software. If so, most Pro Stations have this ability as an option. Temp stations do not.
La Crosse Pro Stations come with serial port only except for the WS-2810 and WS-2811, but these have failed initial testing and we are waiting for arrival of new and improved stock (as of 3/5/2010). Honeywell Pro is USB. Davis has USB &
Serial (opt). RainWise, Capricorn & Orion are Serial.
- Do
you want a regular backlight, EL backlight, LEDs or the red luminescent back
light? Or is no backlight OK? All Pro and High Precision stations are
back lit one way or another. If you want an "always-on" display, choose
Professional Stations from Honeywell, OSI WMR200, and all High Precision Stations. RainWise is the only LED console that can be seen from across
a large room from any angle.
- Almost
all the units come with a one year warranty. RainWise comes with a 5
year warranty on its solar panel and battery; 2 years on everything
else. If the amount you are spending is a disposable amount in your
mind, warranty is not an issue. If this is a lot of money to you,
warranty should be a big issue.
- MADE
IN THE USA? Only Davis, RainWise, Kestrel, Columbia Weather (Capricorn, Magellan, Orion, Pegasus). All
others including Honeywell are made in China predominantly. Some
Germany, France & Canada for a few items, especially clocks and analog weather devices like nautical barometers, barographs, analog nautical temperature and humidity gauges.
- Are
you shopping for value which is the most features for the dollar, or
are you shopping for the highest quality and accuracy in a product? If you don't mind a few degrees, a few % or a few mph's, then the value priced stations are an excellent choice. But if you're a bit particular about data accuracy, stick with the high precision stations.
- Will
you maybe enjoy expanding your system with more air, soil or water
temperature probes? Soil moisture or leaf wetness sensors? Solar
Radiation and/or UV sensors? Home automation like fans, motorized
shutters, automatic sprinkler or irrigation control? Make sure the
system you choose is one that will accomodate your current and future
needs. Most La Crosse pro stations and the RainWise MKIII are closed
systems; not expandable. Most Honeywell, Oregon Scientific and all
Davis are easily epxandable with readily available sensors. In general, RainWise, Capricorn & Orion can be "pre-expanded", that is, many additional sensors can be configured but these must be ordered in advance.
- Wired
or Wireless? Not much of an issue anymore unless you live near high
tension power lines. But atmospheric bounces, nearby radio or TV
broadcast antennas, cell phone towers/repeaters, emergency services
departments, hospitals, military bases or SETI sites can cause
electromagnetic, electrostatic and/or RF generated interference(s). All
units running a 433mhz or lower are much more susceptible to
interference that are the relatively impervious Davis, RainWise,
Capricorn, Pegasus, Magellan & Orion systems with their combination of power and
frequency. Davis' 1000ft/300m range and its 900-915mhz frequency
hopping technology and the RainWise 2.4ghz systems have not encountered
interference issues ever with us! In our experience, a cable connection
may be necessary if you are planning to use a 433mhz device in an
interference prone area. But cabled systems seem to be more susceptible
to lightning induced interference. So, unless you are forced to, GO
WIRELESS!
- Will
it drive you nuts if you are experiencing 40-50mph winds outside but your
non-Davis, non-RainWise, non-Columbia Weather station says 28mph outside? We hear this as a
common complaint, that is, the wind speed reported is SUBSTANTIALLY
lower in lower priced stations. And from our personal experience, our
opinion is that the customer complaints are valid. How can this be when
the less expensive units claim + or - 3% or better? What if the specs
were true but were based on a less than accurate, power saving
methodology? What if the + or - spec is based on that methodology's
performance instead of comparing to the "real" wind outside? If that
will not drive you nuts, then you can get a wonderful, full featured
weather station by any of our manufacturers at any price level. No
joke. But if variances from reality will drive you nuts, please choose
a high precision station!
- If
your weather station is for business, government, public or private
safety or investment (i.e. wind generator), please choose a high
precision station. If you are going to be basing critical decisions on
the data, please choose accordingly. If safety is involved, please consider at the least a Davis unit which can be individually certified with a NIST certificate which is good for one year from date of calibration.
- Some
folks are quite concerned with the maximum wind velocity that can be
captured by their weather station. Generally, this issue is moot.
Because when the wind is sustained at 80mph with Gusts to 120mph+,
debris begins flying. Serious debris. Your Davis or RainWise could
measure up to 150+. but realistically, high speed debris will contact
and destroy the sensor between 100-130mph max. The Capricorn system has
a steel, high performance anemometer option to help resist debris field
damages, but at some point, as we've seen in Tornados and Hurricanes,
nothing survives in one piece. An ultrasonic Orion would be the most
likely to survive. but at 100mph+, flying branches, boards, RVs, and cows can ruin
anything.
- If
you want evaporation rate: Davis, RainWise,
Capricorn, Pegasus, Magellan & Orion. If you want UV: see many Oregon
Scientific, one Honeywell (TE923) and all Davis Vantage Pro2 Plus, 6162, 6163. If you want a big,
easy to read screen, see the La Crosse WS-8035, Honeywell TE821W,
Oregon Sci WMR968 & WMR200, Davis and the exceptionally easy to
read RainWise MK-III.
- If
you want a great looking, compact station: La Crosse
WS-7014 in Cherry Wood or the.
Best wind and temp station under $100: Honeywell TE852.
- For Heat Index, see the WMR200 or Davis.
If
all we've done is confuse you, pick up the phone or send us an email.
We're here to help and sometimes it's just easier when we talk or write
directly to one another!
WeatherBuffs.com
1+ 925 685 2873 PDT
California, USA
GMT -8:00
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