Author Topic: Atlas anemomiter going bad?  (Read 2648 times)

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Offline jjh92

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Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« on: February 05, 2021, 01:26:05 PM »
My wind speed readings are very spikey.  I see blowing snow, nearby branches moving and even the weather station pole has slight sway while the wind cups are still. Seems to take a very stiff gust to get them moving.  Do I need to replace the whole anemometer assembly or just the wind cups?  The wind vane seems to move fine and flutter in very low winds.  Atlas is 2 years old now.
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Offline worachj

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #1 on: February 05, 2021, 02:53:50 PM »
I would first try pulling the wind vane and wind cups off the shaft and add a lubricant. The vane and cups pull straight off.

https://www.acurite.com/media/manuals/06078M-06079M-instructions.pdf
Quote
To Disassemble:
1.The wind vane is pressed onto the wind cups. Pull firmly to remove it.
2.The wind cups are pressed onto the shaft. Pull firmly to remove them.
To Assemble:
3.To attach the wind cups, align them with the flat part on the shaft and press into place. Tip: Place one drop of light machine oil or spray lubricant on the shaft to ensure the anemometer will spin freely.
4.Attach the wind vane by applying pressure to ensure it is properly secured to the shaft.Place one drop of light machine oil or spray lubricant on the shaft to ensure the anemometer will spin freely.



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Offline DoctorKnow

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #2 on: February 05, 2021, 07:00:12 PM »
You can actually take out the bearings too and clean them I believe. They are tiny and are not sealed, so they have dirt in them I'm sure. There are two of them.

Offline jjh92

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #3 on: February 06, 2021, 11:40:42 AM »
Thanks for the guidance.  Will give it a try but right now I am in the dead of winter so will have to live with it for a few months.

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Offline jjh92

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #4 on: March 07, 2021, 08:07:58 AM »
Enough snow melt that I was able to take down the Atlas today.  Removed the vane and windcups to get to the bearings.  Turning the windcup section it squeak's and feels a little grungy (doesn't turn smooth).  How to clean and lub?  Blast it with brake cleaner and then with wd-40?
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Offline DoctorKnow

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #5 on: March 07, 2021, 09:15:10 AM »
Definitely dirt in the balls. I need to do mine also, as my 5n1 anemometer will turn slowly, but my Atlas model does not. It acts stuck at times. You can break down that part with the sleeve even more to get to the bearings. You have to take out that screw.
If you wait, I will try to look at mine later today.

Offline DoctorKnow

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #6 on: March 07, 2021, 11:16:36 AM »
I checked mine. I thought that plastic piece between the two bearings came off, but if it does, I can't figure it out. It's not easy to clean with that on there though, since you can't wipe off anything with dirt on it. Maybe blast it with air before you apply any wet stuff.

Offline Great.Gonzos

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #7 on: March 07, 2021, 06:37:04 PM »
Gotta ask... is this also an issue with AW’s 2902’s? I don’t see anything in the manual, but should I plan on this maintenance in time as well?
Hardware: Ambient Weather 2902C (2)
                Ecowitt GW1000 Console
                Ecowitt WH57 Lightning Detector
                Acurite bits
Station ID: GWX1935/KMIHOLLA153, GBX1959/KMIHOPKI19

Offline DoctorKnow

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #8 on: March 08, 2021, 09:10:46 AM »
Gotta ask... is this also an issue with AW’s 2902’s? I don’t see anything in the manual, but should I plan on this maintenance in time as well?

Depends on if dirt can get to the bearing, and whether or not it is sealed... You might ask in the proper section.

Offline jjh92

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #9 on: March 23, 2021, 11:53:02 AM »
I got a 2nd 'open box' Atlas off Ebay, installed and running good so the original dirty anemometer (and entire Atlas) can be experimented with.

I thoroughly sprayed brake cleaner into all bearings and then sprayed wd40 into the bearings.  Turns smooth and easy now under very low wind speeds.
However, after installing onto the Atlas, there is a problem.  I get wind direction readings on MyAcurite dashboard but no wind speed readings.  The wind direction reading is identical to the new Atlas so this part appears to be working correctly.  I conclude that since I get wind direction readings the anemometer connection inside the Atlas is good and its not a connector issue.  I did take apart and reconnect a 2nd time but same result.

Any ideas if or how my cleaning and lubricating may have caused this failure? Any other ideas on cause of failure?

Offline worachj

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #10 on: March 23, 2021, 02:18:19 PM »
I had a problem with my Atlas having correct wind speed but the wind direction was stuck at 26 degrees. It turned out I had a kink in the anemometer wire causing a short. AcuRite replaced it because it was within the one-year warranty period.

So, my guess is a short or one of the wires got disconnected from the plug socket and you don’t have a complete or solid connection.


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Offline DoctorKnow

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #11 on: March 23, 2021, 07:18:32 PM »
You gotta push the anemometer down hard to make contact with the magnets. If you can't hear a faint ticking when the cups spin, it isn't making contact. Push it down in the center, not with the ends of the cups or they will break.

Offline jjh92

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #12 on: March 28, 2021, 06:28:49 PM »
 :grin: :grin: :grin: \:D/ \:D/ \:D/

Thanks to DrKnow, a little push on the wind cups center and they seated on the magnets.  I have wind readings now.

Offline Great.Gonzos

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #13 on: April 12, 2021, 07:08:09 PM »
Another note, WD-40 is good at freeing stuff up, but bad at actual lubrication. It will be gone in a matter of days. Once cleaned with WD-40, spray it with some good dry silicone spray. It will remain dry (once it dries), not collect dirt because it is dry, water resistant and slicker ‘n snot.
Hardware: Ambient Weather 2902C (2)
                Ecowitt GW1000 Console
                Ecowitt WH57 Lightning Detector
                Acurite bits
Station ID: GWX1935/KMIHOLLA153, GBX1959/KMIHOPKI19

Offline Glenn

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #14 on: May 22, 2021, 07:59:26 AM »
Sorry for bumping an older thread...

Has anyone replaced the bearings in their Acurite unit with sealed bearings? I've been kicking the idea around for awhile now. The stock setup is OK because it allows for the occasional lubrication without much effort (at least on the 5 in 1). But with the bearings being non sealed, and as illustrated in this thread, are probably more prone to gunking up or just dragging after the lubrication is washed away. In theory, a set of sealed bearings should move freely for quite awhile.

On a side note, I've had decent luck with removing bearing seals and giving them a proper greasing. They're not that generous with grease at the factory and what they use is pretty baseline. I usually use a good waterproof synthetic grease then reseal. Granted, this is for snowmobile bogie bearings, but same principle.
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Offline rct

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #15 on: January 24, 2023, 04:33:05 PM »
[There is a lot of good related info in this thread, so it seemed better to add to this thread rather than start a new one.]

I'm getting very low wind speed readings from my Atlas. I took it down to try some of the things that were already mentioned. The wind cups seem to spin freely and not have any grit or resistance, so it surprisingly didn't seem like cleaning and lubrication would make much difference.

However, I noticed that the magnets are rusting away. See attached picture. Has anyone else had this happen?

What I'm assuming are the magnets are two cylinders mounted inside the skirt of the wind cups. While they are protected from rain from above they are exposed at the bottom to moisture. Mine are crumbling, but are still magnetic enough to attract a small screw driver, but don’t seem that strong. I wish I had taken a closer look when the station was new.

On new wind cups are the magnets completely sealed or are they open at the bottom?

So right now I'm guessing I need to replace the wind cups (Acurite SKU 06078M) rather than the wind assembly.

Does anyone know if the wind assembly has reed switches that might wear out or if it has something like hall effect sensors? Shipping from Acurite to NY costs as much as the wind cups, so I’m wondering what else I should order.  I wish they sold new aspiration fans.






« Last Edit: January 26, 2023, 09:20:49 AM by rct »

Offline rct

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Re: Atlas anemomiter going bad?
« Reply #16 on: February 03, 2023, 06:22:07 PM »
The cause of my Atlas wind speed problems was that the magnets in the wind cups rusted and crumbled. I replaced only the wind cups (not the wind assembly with the sensors) and I'm currently showing 30+ mph winds correctly.

So if you are suddenly not getting good wind readings check the magnets from the underside of the wind cups. The magnets in the wind cups are somewhat exposed, there might be some minimal coating. I'm not sure what would be best to coat the exposed metal with (grease? clear lacquer?)

See attached photos.

Note: I tried Acurite Customer Service to try to get an answer about where the magnets are and what I should replace. It was very difficult to get information out of them. They are supposed to available by email and chat, but chat wasn't available from any of the support pages. There was clearly a communications issue. I kept asking about the wind cups and getting answers about the wind assembly that didn't answer my question.

As you would expect they recommended replacing both the wind assembly (the $30 piece with the electronics, the shaft, and the bearings) and the wind cups (the $12 piece that sits on the shaft that has two magnets in it 180 degrees apart.

I wound up giving up and ordering both, but only needed the cups.  I did finally get an answer from Acurite customer service that the magnets are indeed in the wind cups a few hours later.

Old wind cups with rusted/crumbling magnets
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New wind cups with exp
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« Last Edit: February 03, 2023, 06:24:11 PM by rct »