Topic: Potential new purchase

[mi77915]

I am looking to upgrade my old La Crosse weather station. I have had it for at least 10 years now with little issue until recently. I think it's time for a new station! I have been doing lots of research both here and other sources and I am pretty sure that the Ambient WS-2000 (on sale for $254.99) will fit my needs. Should I be considering other stations within my price limit (max around $250)?
Any info/help will be a great help.
Thank you,
Tom

[R.Sidetrack]

Something to consider is the separation of the various sensors into 'standalone' devices.  The advantage of this is that if part of the system fails, its fairly simple to troubleshoot / fix by just replacing the sensor involved.

For example, the Ecowitt system is one possibility. A fairly inexpensive gateway: https://shop.ecowitt.com/products/gw1200-iot-wi-fi-gateway-with-built-in-temp-humidity-barometric
... that talks to a wide variety of sensors. If you have a backup/second gateway it is straightforward to identify almost any problem.  And since the gateway makes data available to the net, you don't actually need a dedicated display (although one can be used).

This is an example of a "kit" of separate sensors comparable to a typical  "all in one" unit:
https://shop.ecowitt.com/collections/weather-station/products/gw1102

That kit does not have a display included, but one can use a browser on a PC (free) or a 'phone app' (free).


Note the links I provided are to the manufacturer's 'shop', but Ecowitt devices are available at a variety of vendors (and prices, and shipping fees).

[VaJim]

My vote would be for the Davis Vantage Vue.  I believe it fits your budget.

[hofpwx]

My vote would be for the Davis Vantage Vue.  I believe it fits your budget.

I concur. Given the limitations of where I can mount sensors, the Davis Vantage Vue does what I want at an affordable price, and it's been working very well for almost 3 years now.

[johnd]

Davis is a good option, but even discounted the Vue price is currently around $480. (Because the 6242 Vue now has the modern 6313 console, the price is eg $100 more these days.)

[VaJim]

Good catch John.  I was thinking of the older display.

Thanks

[jpochmara]

I would look at the Ecowitt WS3802 station, cost is $180 on Amazon and on sale from Ecowitt for $150.
Comes with the WS85, WS3800 console, and WN32.

And if the rain feature of the WS85 is not to your liking, you can pick up a WH40 at some point.

[mi77915]

Thanks to everyone for your advice and help. I have read each reply and researched ALL the units you recommended. Now it is time for me to decide which unit best fits my needs within my budget limits.
Thank you again for ALL your input, it is greatly appreciated!!

Tom

[vinceskahan]

I would look at the Ecowitt WS3802 station, cost is $180 on Amazon and on sale from Ecowitt for $150.

Mine just cleared customs in LA last night so it should be here soon. I used Amazon due to their return policy. Price was a few bucks less than from Ecowitt.

Just a note, but ecowitt connects home to china if you worry those things. There are some technical caveats I noticed after ordering mine that concern me but I’ll give it a try anyway. I’m mainly worried about whether it’ll stay online in gloomy Seattle in the winter without eating AA batteries...

[jpochmara]

I have a WS90 in Portland and I ran it on just solar and batteries for a year and never had to replace the batteries.  I used lithium AA batteries.  I now have the WS90 hocked up to a power supply, but still have the same set of lithium AA in the WS90.  Batteries voltage is still at 3.3V.

[R.Sidetrack]

I too use lithium batteries in my Ecowitt devices and have been very pleased with battery life/performance.

Regarding purchasing from "shop.ecowitt.com", at least for me, the "shipping cost" bundles State of Tennessee Sales Tax into the "shipping cost" that the site charges.  While at first glance the shipping seems high, once I realized it included Sales Tax, the actual shipping cost was quite reasonable.

At Amazon, Sales Tax is always added on top of the sale price, and if you are unfortunate enough to be paying shipping at Amazon, you also pay sales tax on the shipping itself.