[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[Luc Heijst]

On Sunday, 18 December 2016 18:09:40 UTC+1, mwall wrote:
>
> as for a davis co-located with low-end hardware, you might want to ask luc 
> about his setup.  he is running a klimalogg, ws28xx, and a vantage.
> http://www.lucdesign.nl/data/weewx/ws28/
> m 
>
 
Recently the batteries of my KlimaLogg base station lost their power and 
the Synology NAS with the four instances of weewx software and their 
databases is painstakingly slow because of a degrading raid 1 disk, so the 
graphs don't show actual data.
I'm at 7000 km distance of my hardware (and local documentation), so a 
quick fix or answer isn't possible right now.
Luc

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[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[vince]

another Davis support tidbit.my VP2 rain gauge isn't registering too 
well these days after 8 years so I called Davis phone support to see what 
my options were.  Options included:

   - new VP2 of course
   - new Vue of course
   - new VP2 sensor suite
   - new Vue sensor suite
   - replace the whole rain gauge assembly and cone ($85)
   - replace just the rain gauge bottom with tippers etc. ($65)
   - replace the reed switch ($5 but soldering needed)

The guy on the phone suggested the latter, and said he'd toss a few reed 
switches in the mail to me, with instructions, for free.I mentioned 
they have the base available too and he said 'yeah we have a bunch of them 
sitting around, I'll toss one of those in the mail too'.  Anxiously 
awaiting what'll show up in the mail, will it be the collector base 'with' 
tipping mechanism or just the unpopulated baseman they are nice on the 
phone.

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[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[mwall]

On Tuesday, December 13, 2016 at 5:29:17 PM UTC-5, ponolan wrote:
>
> Interesting graph, and much closer than I'd have imagined. Sorry, I meant 
> to say to say side-by-side *for co-located systems*. 
>

the graphs are for co-located systems.

as for a davis co-located with low-end hardware, you might want to ask luc 
about his setup.  he is running a klimalogg, ws28xx, and a vantage.

http://www.lucdesign.nl/data/weewx/ws28/

you can still find the lacrosse variants of the ws28xx discounted to 
50-80$US.

m 

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Re: [weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[Les Niles]

One of the factors that led me to go with Davis is the wind update rate. When 
it's really blowing it's usually pretty gusty and I want to see something 
approaching real time. I'd never believe an anemometer that's only showing 30 
second averages or even 30 second latency.  Also, after doing some research, 
and my own experiments with stand-alone thermometers, I decided that a 
fan-aspirated radiation shield was going to be necessary to get reasonably 
accurate temperatures. 

That pretty much means a VP2. The other problem with integrated instruments 
like the Vue is that the anemometer really should be sited differently than the 
temp and rain collector. My anemometer is 25' above the roof, on a pole that 
couldn't support an integrated instrument package (and that would be a bad 
place to measure temperature anyway). The rain collector and thermometer should 
also be sited somewhat differently but putting them together is not so much of 
a compromise. So while the Vue may measure accurately, putting all the 
instruments in one package ends up making the weather data less accurate than 
it could be. 

  -Les


> On Dec 13, 2016, at 3:20 PM, vince  wrote:
> 
>> On Tuesday, December 13, 2016 at 2:29:17 PM UTC-8, pon...@gmail.com wrote:
>>  I'd rather just buy a "VW" that works (not a Rolls Royce). It's certainly 
>> been interesting to see the reports of driver problems with other hardware. 
>> Working with weewx is now a requirement for me and I wouldn't consider 
>> anything that doesn't. Thanks again. 
>> 
> 
> You have to ask yourself what your time and stress level are worth to you. 
> Personally, I spent the money for the VP2 a long time ago.  Worth it for me.
> 
> Back then, the Vue was just announced, so I didn't go with a model new to 
> market. I'd probably go with the Vue if I was buying today, due to its 
> smaller size, unless there were quality or accuracy things saying it wasn't 
> comparable in quality that I haven't been keeping up with.
> 
> And Davis support was 'great' the two times I had to contact them.  They even 
> sent me a ISS circuit board replacement a month 'after' mine was out of 
> support.  Great service.
> 
> 
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[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[ponolan]

Interesting graph, and much closer than I'd have imagined. Sorry, I meant 
to say to say side-by-side *for co-located systems*. The other killer 
advantage of weewx is the support offered here. 

However, the question is really, what's the alternative to the FineOffset 
WH1080 and variations thereof. Apart from the USB port lockup it's 
serviceable enough with replaceable parts, for now. What we, well some of 
us, would like is hardware to complement the Pi and weewx. I have a 
bookmark somewhere of a blog post of someone who was doing it all DIY from 
first principles but I'd rather just buy a "VW" that works (not a Rolls 
Royce). It's certainly been interesting to see the reports of driver 
problems with other hardware. Working with weewx is now a requirement for 
me and I wouldn't consider anything that doesn't. Thanks again. 

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[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[mwall]

On Monday, December 12, 2016 at 7:57:16 PM UTC-5, ponolan wrote:
>
> For now I care more about avoiding gaps than higher resolution and 
> accuracy. It would certainly be interesting to see side-by-side data. 
>

sensors on the low-end hardware track pretty closely.  unfortunately i do 
not have a co-located davis or rainwise station with which to compare...

the low-end hardware and mid-range (davis, rainwise) differ in build 
quality.  they all discolor and get brittle when exposed to uv.  all of the 
uv sensors burn out faster than other sensors.  spiders like to nest in a 
davis just as much as a fine offset.  but the davis and rainwise build 
quality often means repair instead of replace.

you'll also spend more time putzing to avoid data loss on the low-end 
hardware, whereas mid-range just works.  i must say that tom's 
architectural decisions in weewx bring the low-end hardware much closer to 
mid-range performance, especially compared to the software that ships with 
the low-end stuff.

m

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[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[mwall]

On Monday, December 12, 2016 at 7:57:16 PM UTC-5, ponolan wrote:
>
> A 2nd console on batteries would provide some insurance against data gaps. 
> But if I upgrade to a station recording radiation and UV I'd lose the 
> redundancy. (I'm assuming that a 2nd console could receive the same data 
> and that the comms are one way, but I'm not sure of that. Comments welcome 
> if anyone knows.) 
>

any number of consoles can receive data from a single fine offset 
instrument cluster.

beware that not every fine offset console can speak with every fine offset 
instrument cluster.  aside from the us/eu frequency differences, there was 
also a change in rf protocol in 2011, so consoles pre-2011 cannot hear 
sensors post-2011 and vice versa.

an even less expensive approach is to use a 20$US sdr dongle to capture the 
data.  however, with this approach you also need to build/install a 
pressure sensor and temperature/humidity sensor to match those of the fine 
offset console.  this is easily done directly on a raspberry pi.  it used 
to be even easier to do it with one-wire, but since hobby boards went out 
of business there aren't many places to get one-wire pressure and humidity 
sensors.

m

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[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[ponolan]

I'm also running a Maplin branded Fine Offset (WH1080) with a Raspberry Pi. 
Have also had spiders (and spider's egg sacs) in the rain gauge but I 
unplug it (lesson learned the first time) and give it a clean every few 
months. Presume you're in the UK, and that you get enough rain that a few 
mms either way isn't all that critical. 

I haven't needed to replace anything so far but I'd quite like to upgrade 
to a station that recorded solar radiation and UV. Wouldn't mind having a 
cheap backup too, because what's the point of collecting data and having 
holes in it? I've lost data a couple of times in c.3 yrs due to the 
WH1080's USB port locking up. I plan to use a Yepkit YKUSH to have the Pi 
reset it automatically if it happens again. A 2nd console on batteries 
would provide some insurance against data gaps. But if I upgrade to a 
station recording radiation and UV I'd lose the redundancy. (I'm assuming 
that a 2nd console could receive the same data and that the comms are one 
way, but I'm not sure of that. Comments welcome if anyone knows.) I'd also 
like to get a UPS for the Pi to tide it over a power outage of a few hours 
at least.

A "neighbour" (about 20km away) runs a Davis Vantage and has certified 
meteo station on his land, with every conceivable kind of instrument (the 
crystal ball thing, thermometers at several different soil depths etc.). I 
have occasionally checked my live data against his out of curiosity. It's 
sometimes surprisingly different in some respects but a lot of this is 
undoubtedly a function of local variation, topography etc. I considered 
buying a Davis but decided that the FineOffsett was good enough and, for my 
needs, better value. For now I care more about avoiding gaps than higher 
resolution and accuracy. It would certainly be interesting to see 
side-by-side data. 

I'd be happy to pay for better hardware at the garden end of things, 
especially if I could buy open source hardware. Davis's proprietary 
interface is something I'd prefer to avoid, both philosophically 
(especially in the context of weewx and the pi) and operationally 
(expensive and not quickly replaceable). That was actually the real 
deciding factor.

If I can piggyback on your post, I'd love to hear what people have upgraded 
to OTHER than a Davis.

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[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[WindnFog]

I've been using a Davis Vantage VUE for about 5 years with no issues 
except you have to change the backup transmitter battery about once a year 
(in Nova Scotia, anyhow . . . maybe not as often in warmer latitudes.)  
Anyhow, Davis is as you describe, the Rolls Royce of personal weather 
stations.  There have been a few reports of Raspberry Pi systems missing 
data occasionally from the Vantage VUE, but I think that's been sorted 
out.  I'll find out shortly as my new Pi is slated to take over the weewx 
duties from my main server.  I have nothing but good things to say about 
Davis' products.

- Paul


On Sunday, December 11, 2016 at 12:40:36 PM UTC-4, Mike Thompson wrote:
>
> I know it sounds like another one of those stupid questions you get on 
> forums, but on the other hand I would only know the answer after I've 
> splashed out loads of cash on a Davis weather station. 
>
> Here's the background, for about 4 years now I've been running a Maplin 
> branded Fineoffset with weewx on a raspberry pi. The fineoffset has been 
> pretty reliable I replaced a couple of components but they are readily 
> available and cheap. However as I've gathered more data I'm after greater 
> precision. Firstly the rain gauge isn't capturing rainfall accurately for 
> three reasons;
> a) Splashback - I think I've almost eliminated this by raising the sides 
> b) Cobwebs - spiders get in and are proving very difficult to keep out. As 
> the cobwebs increase the see saw needs more force to cause it to tip
> c) Occasionally I get one huge spider under the see saw and it jams.
>
> I've seen a resolution to b) & c) using smaller gauge gauze to stop the 
> spiders getting in in the first place.
> The second precision area is wind speed and direction. The Fineoffset's 
> sampling rate is something like 48 seconds which means that gusts are 
> significantly under reported.
>
> I've got a bit of spare cash so I thought I'd 'upgrade' to a Vantage Pro 
> or Vue as Davis seems to be the Rolls Royce of weather stations and the 
> sampling rate is so much shorter, but  would I get the extra precision that 
> I'm after?
>
> If you've upgraded to a Davis from a Fineoffset (or something similar) I'd 
> be interested in your experiences. 
>
> Thanks in Advance
> Mike
>

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[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[Mike Thompson]

Thanks Vince

On Sunday, December 11, 2016 at 5:45:14 PM UTC, vince wrote:
>
>
>> I've got a bit of spare cash so I thought I'd 'upgrade' to a Vantage Pro 
>> or Vue as Davis seems to be the Rolls Royce of weather stations and the 
>> sampling rate is so much shorter, but  would I get the extra precision that 
>> I'm after?
>>
>> If you've upgraded to a Davis from a Fineoffset (or something similar) 
>> I'd be interested in your experiences. 
>>
>>
>>
> After 8 years battling a LaCrosse 2315, I upgraded to a VP2 just shy of 8 
> years ago.  Just plain works.  Love the data logger (though not its price) 
> and weewx's catch-up feature.
>
> Also ran across this earlier today, which might be relevant - 
> http://www.davisnet.com/product_documents/weather/Doc_Sensor-Maintenance.pdf
>
>

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[weewx-user] Re: Is it worth swapping from fine offset to Davis Vantage?

[vince]

>
>
> I've got a bit of spare cash so I thought I'd 'upgrade' to a Vantage Pro 
> or Vue as Davis seems to be the Rolls Royce of weather stations and the 
> sampling rate is so much shorter, but  would I get the extra precision that 
> I'm after?
>
> If you've upgraded to a Davis from a Fineoffset (or something similar) I'd 
> be interested in your experiences. 
>
>
>
After 8 years battling a LaCrosse 2315, I upgraded to a VP2 just shy of 8 
years ago.  Just plain works.  Love the data logger (though not its price) 
and weewx's catch-up feature.

Also ran across this earlier today, which might be relevant 
- http://www.davisnet.com/product_documents/weather/Doc_Sensor-Maintenance.pdf

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