Author Topic: Data upload after power outage  (Read 1329 times)

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Offline jcookjr82

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Data upload after power outage
« on: January 05, 2022, 06:57:17 PM »
I know Davis consoles have the ability to backup data for a certain amount of time depending on user settings. For example, mine backs up data every 15 minutes, which is the default, but can range from every minute to every 2 hours. The more frequent the backup, the less amount of days before old data drops off for new data. At the current setting of 15 minutes, I think I read that would be good for about 28 days of data. Last week, our cabin suffered a power outage for 5 days, starting at 6 AM on December 27. When power/internet was restored around Noon on January 2, I expected the logger to upload all the "missing" data from the time of the outage to the time power was restored onto the Weatherlink site. Once the power was restored, data restoration appeared from the time the power went out on December 27 through December 30, but there is no data listed for December 31 through time time power came back on January 2. Is this a glitch with the logger or with the Weatherlink site? When I access the app, it lists a bunch of N/As for temperature, wind, and rain data for those days. Also, the rain during that time does not show for that period and the "monthly" total still shows December's totals. Isn't it supposed to reset to 0.00" at the turn of the month?

Anyway, hope this is clear. Thank you for your time!
« Last Edit: January 05, 2022, 06:59:19 PM by jcookjr82 »
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Offline CW2274

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #1 on: January 05, 2022, 07:06:05 PM »
The logger is a power hog. On fresh batteries IIRC, the console will only power itself a few days which is what I imagine happened here. Without the logger, about 8-9 months.

Offline jcookjr82

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #2 on: January 05, 2022, 07:30:03 PM »
The logger is a power hog. On fresh batteries IIRC, the console will only power itself a few days which is what I imagine happened here. Without the logger, about 8-9 months.

Yikes, seriously? A few days? That means batteries lasted only 3 days, since they were as fresh as they can get (installed less than 10 hours before the outage).
Davis Vantage Vue (Brentwood, CA KCABRENT8 and Arnold, CA KCAARNOL99)
Davis Vantage Pro2 (Lakehead, CA KCALAKEH52)
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Offline CW2274

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #3 on: January 05, 2022, 07:42:07 PM »
Yep. I know your outage was very extended, but that's why many use a UPS.

Offline jcookjr82

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #4 on: January 05, 2022, 07:43:37 PM »
I found the link where Wojtek explained this. 2-3 days is unacceptable. Can there be something written into the code of the Logger of a future firmware update that kills aspects of the unit that would cause a drain on the console batteries? Nothing is ever perfect, but losing a couple of days of data really sucks.
Davis Vantage Vue (Brentwood, CA KCABRENT8 and Arnold, CA KCAARNOL99)
Davis Vantage Pro2 (Lakehead, CA KCALAKEH52)
LaCrosse 2813 (retired 1/17/2018)

Offline jcookjr82

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #5 on: January 05, 2022, 07:44:56 PM »
Yep. I know your outage was very extended, but that's why many use a UPS.

Have any suggestions of one that might last a week that doesn't break the bank? I use a week as a timeframe because our cabin suffered 2 separate, nearly week-long outages due to heavy snowstorms in the past year.
Davis Vantage Vue (Brentwood, CA KCABRENT8 and Arnold, CA KCAARNOL99)
Davis Vantage Pro2 (Lakehead, CA KCALAKEH52)
LaCrosse 2813 (retired 1/17/2018)

Offline CW2274

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #6 on: January 05, 2022, 07:47:38 PM »
The console itself will store data for three weeks. Perhaps next time remove the logger and then retrieve the data at a later time. If you have an outage for eight months, then there's other things to worry about.

Offline jcookjr82

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #7 on: January 05, 2022, 08:36:31 PM »
I'll have to look into a UPS, then. I'm wondering what capacity UPS I'd need to support the console during an extended outage. These are rare, but I'd love to capture the data while the power is off. Since this is the family cabin and it's not occupied most of the time, it's not really possible to take out the Logger until power is restored. Logger transmission is actually one of the ways we know the power and internet has been restored.

Do we know the power output for the logger?
Davis Vantage Vue (Brentwood, CA KCABRENT8 and Arnold, CA KCAARNOL99)
Davis Vantage Pro2 (Lakehead, CA KCALAKEH52)
LaCrosse 2813 (retired 1/17/2018)

Online johnd

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #8 on: January 06, 2022, 04:04:38 AM »
The problem isn't WFL specifically, it's any network-attached logger including eg Nano or WeatherlinkIP. Running the WiFi or Ethernet connection takes (relatively) a lot of power, hence the importance of running on mains power or a UPS for these loggers. Also, the console itself does not store data in any memory that's accessible to the logger - the archive memory chip is in the logger itself, so if the data doesn't reach the logger as it's generated then it can't be stored. (Yes, the console does have some memory of its own, but this is used for very specific summary purposes and not for storing data destined for the logger.)

That said, the idea of turning off the network connection if a mains outage is detected is an interesting one (though I'm not sure how much power the microcontroller that's also an integral part of  network loggers would continue to take). But I suspect that it wouldn't be easy to code. For instance, you probably would want the network uploads to continue for as long as there is battery power available to support this function rather than turn off the second a mains outage is detected. And then there's the question of the priority of such a feature vs other potentially more important requested new features, especially when there's an easy remedy already available in the form of a UPS.
Prodata Weather Systems
Prodata's FAQ/support site for Davis stations
Includes many details on 6313 Weatherlink console.
UK Davis Premier Dealer - All Davis stations, accessories and spares
Cambridge UK

Sorry, but I don't usually have time to help with individual issues by email unless you are a Prodata customer. Please post your issue in the relevant forum section here & I will comment there if I have anything useful to add.

Offline CW2274

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #9 on: January 06, 2022, 04:32:09 AM »
Also, the console itself does not store data in any memory that's accessible to the logger - the archive memory chip is in the logger itself, so if the data doesn't reach the logger as it's generated then it can't be stored.
Makes sense. Thanks for the clarification.

Offline jcookjr82

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #10 on: January 06, 2022, 02:07:10 PM »
The problem isn't WFL specifically, it's any network-attached logger including eg Nano or WeatherlinkIP. Running the WiFi or Ethernet connection takes (relatively) a lot of power, hence the importance of running on mains power or a UPS for these loggers. Also, the console itself does not store data in any memory that's accessible to the logger - the archive memory chip is in the logger itself, so if the data doesn't reach the logger as it's generated then it can't be stored. (Yes, the console does have some memory of its own, but this is used for very specific summary purposes and not for storing data destined for the logger.)

That said, the idea of turning off the network connection if a mains outage is detected is an interesting one (though I'm not sure how much power the microcontroller that's also an integral part of  network loggers would continue to take). But I suspect that it wouldn't be easy to code. For instance, you probably would want the network uploads to continue for as long as there is battery power available to support this function rather than turn off the second a mains outage is detected. And then there's the question of the priority of such a feature vs other potentially more important requested new features, especially when there's an easy remedy already available in the form of a UPS.

Thanks for this detailed explanation. I agree that it is probably not possible to code the logger in a way that it stops transmitting during a power outage, unless there was a way for the console to communicate to the logger that it is running only on batteries and resume transmitting once power is restored. I am not a coder, so I would not know if such a thing is possible.

Any suggestions for a UPS that might power the unit for several says in the event of a lengthy outage?
Davis Vantage Vue (Brentwood, CA KCABRENT8 and Arnold, CA KCAARNOL99)
Davis Vantage Pro2 (Lakehead, CA KCALAKEH52)
LaCrosse 2813 (retired 1/17/2018)

Online johnd

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #11 on: January 06, 2022, 04:51:16 PM »
Sorry, I'm not really up on UPS best buys other than guessing that a modern 5v Li-ion one with a USB connection might be preferable to a traditional AC mains socket type (though the latter should still work fine).

But I forgot to mention another option, albeit a more costly one. This would be to use the Meteo-Pi Ethernet variant of the WFL logger. As its name suggests this uses cabled Ethernet rather than WiFi for network connectivity, but it has a somewhat different data architecture to WFL. Provided the console has good C cells installed this should continue to log data for up to 3 months in the event of a mains outage, though of course the Internet data uploads will stop until mains power is restored. In other words, the actual archive data logging continues more like a Davis USB logger and with similar low power draw, but with no remote uploads. More details on our main website at:

https://www.weatherstations.co.uk/meteo-pi-ethernet-logger.htm

In the US, Ryan at SI should have stock.
Prodata Weather Systems
Prodata's FAQ/support site for Davis stations
Includes many details on 6313 Weatherlink console.
UK Davis Premier Dealer - All Davis stations, accessories and spares
Cambridge UK

Sorry, but I don't usually have time to help with individual issues by email unless you are a Prodata customer. Please post your issue in the relevant forum section here & I will comment there if I have anything useful to add.

Offline WiFiLogger

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Re: Data upload after power outage
« Reply #12 on: January 12, 2022, 05:52:34 AM »
The logger is a power hog. On fresh batteries IIRC, the console will only power itself a few days which is what I imagine happened here. Without the logger, about 8-9 months.

only console can work on batteries up to 12 monts.
RS232 and USB logger can discharge the batteries in 3 months
WFL and original WLIP can work on batteries up to 3 days.

However WifiLogger is pre-prepared for external power source.
Soldering iron is needed and some skills.
Also second AC adapter 5v will be needed, to attach to WiFiLogger as separate AC source.

In external power mode. WiFi chip is disabled (when main AC power is missing), but logger memory is still working fine.
So we can assume the batteries last for 3 months.