Weather Station Hardware > What Weather Station Should I Buy?
PWS for Rachio?
redcoat:
Ok. Hopefully it comes off the post easily :lol:
Thinking of putting the PWS on the top right point of garage. Would that be ok? Marked on the attached photos. Any other location better? Trying to balance height with accessibility!
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
weatherdoc:
The wind will be blocked by your house, but it looks like you have a nice wooded lot making it difficult to locate a good spot for measuring the winds anyway. If your goal is to mainly use your station to measure rainfall to support your Rachio then this spot is fine. The closer to the ground the more accurate the rain measurement will be - typically 6ft off the ground. I don't believe you'd see a noticeable difference in rainfall accuracy between 6ft above the ground and the peak above your garage. Finding a good spot at a residence is always a challenge. My temperature, humidity and rain sensors are 4.5 ft off the ground, but my wind sensors are only 15 ft off the ground (30 ft is ideal) and partially blocked by a Crepe Myrtle tree (my wife won't let me cut it down!).
Where would you put your CoCoRaHS gauge? An open spot with no trees above, about 4-6ft off the ground, would be best so you can easily access it to empty it.
redcoat:
I could try and put it on a different peak if it will be more accurate? Either the one above the one I suggested, or the front one:
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Alternatively we have a septic field where I could put it closer to the ground - it’s pretty sheltered though with a channel through the trees:
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
weatherdoc:
Either peak would be better for more accurate winds, but there's always the consideration for the aesthetics of your home and the risk of working up high. The center of your backyard might work - looks like the tree canopy doesn't cover the entire backyard. In Florida, I put a 4x4 post about 3ft in the ground and 6ft above ground and mounted the sensors and CoCoRaHS gauge on it. I attached a 10ft galvanized pole to it for the wind sensors. Here in Virginia, I attached the sensors, CoCoRaHS gauge, and galvanized pole to my fence.
In this photo looking south, you can see how the Crepe Myrtle tree disrupts the wind on the east side of the wind sensors - especially when there are leaves on the tree.
BoDuke:
Keep in mind there is maintenance involved with the rain gauge, keeping the tipping spoon clean and the funnel free from obstructions. All-in-one weather stations have some advantages and disadvantages compared with separate sensors. An all-in-one that has solar power means fewer batteries and longer life from those batteries but you lose the ability to separately position the sensors for their best accuracy. Separate wind/rain/temp & humidity sensors allows for better positioning but you have more batteries and few of those sensors have solar panels. Making sure the radio frequency signals are received by the console/gateway from the sensor(s) is another consideration.
Since you have quite a number of tall trees around, I'm not sure you'll get very accurate wind readings. If you're not concerned about the accuracy of the wind direction and speed, then position the weather station for the best accuracy of the rain gauge. I like to imagine a strong rain being driven at an angle by the wind when deciding on a location. If you put it too close to trees, structures, or other similar obstacles, the rain may not reach the funnel and get measured. At my house, the best place for my weather station would be near the street but that is not ideal or allowed for numerous reasons so it's in a less-than-ideal location in the back yard. Positioning a weather station or sensors is almost always an exercise of compromises.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[*] Previous page
Go to full version