Weather station, any favorites?

[Kev Williams]

I've had a fairly decent LaCrosse for several years now, too old as to internet/wifi but that's not been a problem... has wireless sensors, all separate which I like, but it's starting to act up, not getting readings to the base unit after new batteries, etc. So I'm looking for another one.

I've liked the LaCross, it's actually my second one, first one was similar to this one, but both had the same issue: the wind speed almost always reads about half of actual windspeed. Other than that no real complaints. I LIKE the separate sensors, I have the wind gauge on a mast on the roof, the rain gauge is sitting on a cinderblock wall totally unobstructed by anything, and the temp/humid gauge I have parked in spot where it never gets hit by direct sunlight. These days, all I can seem to find are all-in-one units. I have to ask, how do you get a good temp reading with the sun bearing down on the gauge? Before moving my current one into all shade I was getting readings over 100° on 80° days. I'll assume the makers are adjusting for that--

As for full-on stations Amazon has the basics I recognize like LaCrosse and AcuRite, and some I don't know like Davis, Ecowitt, Ambient Weather, Weatherflow, ProWeatherStation... As to reviews, Ambient Weather seems to be the only one with more than a few dozen reviews to push past 4 stars. First vid clip of an AcuRite I saw was a guy throwing his second failed sensor unit off his roof ;)...

I'm liking the Ambient Weather 2902 model, price is okay at around $160, I like what I see and read about it. Curious of other's experiences before I click any 'buy' buttons :)

[Steve Schlumpf]

Kev, I have the AW 2902A and really like it but have nothing else to compare it to as it is my first weather station. The temp sensor is located out of the direct sunlight and has been accurate when compared to local weather reports. All the sensors work well but wish the wind gauge was a little less sensitive as it shows every little variance in direction. I do use the online feature (wifi) to track weather events over the day/week/month and wish there was some way to measure snow!! I know there are other weather stations available but I think the AW 2902A does everything the more expensive stations do and the price is easier on the pocketbook. Good luck finding what works for you! If you have any questions, please ask.

[Bruce Page]

I also have a LaCrosse. I haven’t had any problems with it and like that you can buy extra temp/humidity modules and place them where you want wirelessly. However, it is lacking in long term data collection, IMO.
I have been looking at the Davis Instruments 6250 Vantage Vue. I will probably pop for it before the weather turns cold. It’s a little pricey compared to the LaCrosse but has good reviews and much better data retention. A friend of mine also speaks highly of it.

https://www.amazon.com/Davis-Instrum.../dp/B002LLVFK0

[Ole Anderson]

I have the Acurite 02064CDI. I don’t have it linked to my computer as it is too far from my computer but it is WiFi capable. Rain gage is spot on with a second digital gage. On cloudy or windy days temp is within one degree of a second gage. Calm sunny days it reads high. Wind velocity seems low compared to other local stations. Max recorded in 2 years is only 39 mph when 60 mph wind was reported. I have the sensor mounted 5’ above my roof line. Curious, are you planning on joining the Weatherbug or Weatherunderground network?

[Curt Harms]

We have an Ambient Weather WS - 900 IP, had it for a couple years. We did have the wind/rain unit replaced under warranty. We have it 'talking' to Weather Underground so have records going back I guess to when we installed it. I can also check the weather in our backyard from pretty much anywhere in the world, keep track of rainfall etc. A pair of lithium batteries last at least a year in the outdoor devices, I replaced them in last fall and will do so again this fall just for luck. I wanted something I could connect to the internet without involving a PC, this device accomplishes that. I've had good luck with other AcuRite devices, don't know much about their weather stations.

This is an older unit, don't know about the newer devices. https://www.ambientweather.com/amws0900iparray.html

[Lee Schierer]

I have a Lacrosse ws1516-IT that I've had for at least 10 years. Just a month ago it quit transmitting temp and humidity. Lacrosse no longer supports it. I purchased a used system from Ebay, but it arrived with corroded batteries in the transmitter. I hot a full refund and then located a new transmitter, that arrived this week. Unfortunately the new transmitter doesn't work so it s going back.

I've been looking at the AcuRite 01512 Wireless Weather Station (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00N1XCA9M/?coliid=I1683LIJ4ATCFF&colid=1D4LOQ4GYUNA5&psc=1) since it has decent reviews. If I order it I will also purchase the remote battery pack for the unit so I don't have to climb a ladder to replace batteries.

[Kev Williams]

My old LaCrosse is a WS2813-U IT, just checked Amazon and was surprised to see they're still selling the exact same unit-
https://www.amazon.com/Crosse-Technology-WS-2813U-Professional-Transceiver/dp/B005MEE8H0

- and like mine, it's still a stand-alone, no wifi or internet. It does run on a computer though, but I never quite got the hang of setting up the computer program, instructions assume I'm not feeble minded ;)..

And the ones I'm looking at are cheaper- but are they 'cheaper'? I like the internet capabilities, sounds interesting. But not sure I'll be able to make use of it; I use Ooma for my 'wired' phone service, and for it to work decent the 'Telo' must be connected 'in front' of my wifi router- modem/Ooma/router. Everything works great this way EXCEPT for my Samsung security cameras. The Telo is also a router, but no matter what I try using it's IP addresses and protocols, I cannot get my camera's to connect to Samsung's website. If I take Ooma out of the loop everything works fine. If I put Ooma BEHIND the router- modem/router/Ooma, everything works fine, but then phone calls become non-prioritized and calls sound like someone's constantly dropping marbles onto guitar strings the whole time. So, I do without online cameras. Just wondering if I'll have the same problem with a weather station...

[Curt Harms]

Hi Kev

The internet box - I think they call it a bridge - plugs directly into a router LAN port. I guess there's a security risk plugging something like that into your network, I try to keep the firmware recent, it's pretty easy to update. I may have to power cycle the devices 'talking' to the bridge after an update.

[Rob Luter]

I have an old AcuRite that works well. The outdoor sensor is shielded from the sun and seems to be accurate. To be honest all I use it for is to check the outdoor temp and humidity when I make coffee in the morning. I have an app called Dark Sky (https://darksky.net/app) on my phone that is alarmingly accurate. It includes radar, satellite, etc.. Everything is based on your GPS coordinates. Temp is identical to my weather station and when it says "rain in five minutes", you get rain in five minutes.

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[Kev Williams]

I'll have to check into that Dark Sky--

Thanks everyone for the input! :)

[Bruce Page]

I'll have to check into that Dark Sky--

Thanks everyone for the input! :)

I downloaded it yesterday after reading Rob's post. It looks pretty cool. So far temp & wind speed readings are spot on with my weather station. It'll be interesting when some stormy weather moves in.

[Kev Williams]

I just did too, it is pretty cool, I'll be keeping it handy on my computer at least! I have an in/out thermometer with the outside probe on the north side of the garage shop in the shade, I'm showing 57 to their 61, but that's a reasonable spread considering. I like the overall layout, easy to read and make sense of--

[Scott Brader]

I bought my wife the wireless Davis Vantage Pro 2 a while back. She is a weather geek and she loves it. It logs everything and she can access it all from anywhere. It also connects to the Weather Underground network and appears in all of their NWS data. It wasn't cheap, but it wasn't ridiculously expensive, either.

Scott

[Dick Mahany]

I have an AcuRite 01536-RX and want to upgrade to something more accurate. I like the features but this model just doesn't like the desert. It often forecasts rain when it is bone dry for weeks so we just ignore that part of the display. The temperature is often 5-7˚ F above the actual temp in the daytime , so I know the radiation shield isn't effective. Maybe the AW model referenced above would be a good choice for a reasonable cost.

[Roger Feeley]

What a timely thread! A weather station has been on my wish list for a long time. here's what I want:

1. No computer required. I want it to connect to Weather Underground so I can see it from anywhere. My router is upstairs and the inside unit would be downstairs so wifi is a must.
2. I want to see current precip in inches/hour or something.
3. The outdoor unit needs to be wireless and solar powered. I plan on putting a mast on my grandson's playset. No wires out there.

[Scott Brader]

What a timely thread! A weather station has been on my wish list for a long time. here's what I want:

1. No computer required. I want it to connect to Weather Underground so I can see it from anywhere. My router is upstairs and the inside unit would be downstairs so wifi is a must.
2. I want to see current precip in inches/hour or something.
3. The outdoor unit needs to be wireless and solar powered. I plan on putting a mast on my grandson's playset. No wires out there.

The Davis Wireless Vantage Pro 2 with their Weather Link Live to connect it to the Internet without requiring a computer connection. It's a great solution. Here's a link to my wife's weather station site: https://www.wunderground.com/dashboard/pws/KWINORTH14.

Scott

[Lee Schierer]

I have an AcuRite 01536-RX and want to upgrade to something more accurate. I like the features but this model just doesn't like the desert. It often forecasts rain when it is bone dry for weeks so we just ignore that part of the display. The temperature is often 5-7˚ F above the actual temp in the daytime , so I know the radiation shield isn't effective. Maybe the AW model referenced above would be a good choice for a reasonable cost.

They make an upgrade kit for the fans (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00T0K8MJW/?coliid=I9VBASNBH9TEW&colid=1D4LOQ4GYUNA5&psc=1)that are supposed to keep the ambient temperature reading closer to reality. It may not fit all models.

[Todd Mason-Darnell]

I have had the Davis Vantage Vue since 2009 and love it.

[Curt Harms]

What a timely thread! A weather station has been on my wish list for a long time. here's what I want:

1. No computer required. I want it to connect to Weather Underground so I can see it from anywhere. My router is upstairs and the inside unit would be downstairs so wifi is a must.
2. I want to see current precip in inches/hour or something.
3. The outdoor unit needs to be wireless and solar powered. I plan on putting a mast on my grandson's playset. No wires out there.

I have no experience with brands other than Ambient Weather. Would this one check your boxes?
https://www.ambientweather.com/amws1500.html

[Kev Williams]

Tried new batteries in all the old LaCrosse sensors to no avail, so I ended up getting the Ambient Weather 2902, found it $10 cheaper on ebay, and still got it in 2 days (I like ebay because they take paypal, I wish Amazon would)...

I really like the thing, the in color monitor is nice. A lot smaller than my LaCrosse but the easy-to-read-ness makes up for it.

It's not perfect, I still would prefer all-separate sensors rather than the all-in-one, if only to get the temp sensor out of the direct sun, this unit does read a bit higher than it should, IMO anyway.

About my only other gripe is, the LaCrosse showed average AND gust wind speeds at the same time, this unit is either-or. However, today we had some good breeze, and it picked up max gust of near 19mph, and max average of 14.5mph- In the several years I owned the LaCrosse the all-time max gust was 39mph, and I KNOW that was off!

The new unit also has UVI and 'light intensity' readings the old unit didn't have. I need to learn about the 'light' reading, not sure what it's telling me yet :)

Haven't connected to wifi yet, still need to try that, maybe I'll get both wind-speed meters? :D

For the money, I'm very pleased with it. Long term testing in progress...

[Curt Harms]

Kev, does this device have an I.P. address on your network? I have a different Ambient Weather device that uses their internet bridge thingy. I'm able to log into said internet bridge thingy and find several pages. One is corrections/offsets. I have several airports that report weather nearby and was able to add temperature/dewpoint offsets so that the Ambient Weather device closely parallels what the airports are reporting. Best time to do this is pre-dawn so solar heating is minimized.

[Larry Frank]

Now, you guys have done it. I really want a weather station.

How far off the ground have you mounted a weather station?

How close do you need yourself wifi router?

[Scott Brader]

Now, you guys have done it. I really want a weather station.

How far off the ground have you mounted a weather station?

How close do you need yourself wifi router?

They can be rather addictive... Ours is mounted on a pole on our roof so it is about 30 feet above ground level. My house is on a hill, so it is probably 50 feet or so over the average terrain in our area.

[Lee Schierer]

I purchased the AcuRite WS 1516 with the optional remote battery pack for the 5 in 1 sensor unit and it arrived in 2 days. Installation was straight forward even though my mounting required me to get on a ladder. The only problem was the display unit that came with mine had the clear plastic frame installed backwards so it wouldn't mount in the stand correctly. After a couple of emails back and forth and some detailed photos sent to show the exact nature of the problem the company is shipping me a complete new display panel. I think the wind speed reads a little low, but part of that could be my mounting location which is only 3 feet above the peak of the roof of my garage. The color lighted display is easy to read, though I wish it would turn off at night.

[Ole Anderson]

Here is a link to Weatherunderground's weather station recommendations: https://www.wunderground.com/pws/buying-guide

[Ole Anderson]

The color lighted display is easy to read, though I wish it would turn off at night. The Accurite I have has a setting which automatically dims the display at night.

[Kev Williams]

Now, you guys have done it. I really want a weather station.

How far off the ground have you mounted a weather station?

How close do you need yourself wifi router?
Last year I put up a 12' mast, connected to the chimney, to mount a Wilson cellphone booster antenna to, thought that would be a good place for my weather sensors :)
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--haven't touched the wifi instructions yet, need to do that!

[Alex Zeller]

I had a cheap Lacrosse unit that lasted decades. About 5 years ago it died so I figured i would replace it. Lacrosse doesn't seam to be an expensive brand but not cheap either. This time around I went with one that had more functions like measuring rainfall and wind. About a year after putting it up I notice what I though was a broken egg on the ground. Turned out the cups on the wind sensor broke off so it became just a weather vane. Then the rainfall sensor died. When the batteries in the transmitter die I have to replace them and then remove the batteries from the main unit otherwise it will not recognize the transmitter. That means going through and reprogramming it. To get to the wind sensor I need a 36' ladder so I haven't replaced it yet (I also think my trees block the wind enough to make accurate readings impossible). But when I do replace it I'm thinking of going with a different brand.