Author Topic: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)  (Read 5179 times)

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Offline Mandrake

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I thought I would share a pic of my Ecowitt HP2550 (866Mhz) station console showing the integration of the PM2.5 air quality sensor and the Soil moisture sensor.
Its quite subtle and you have to look hard to spot them but they are now there.
The little square next to the PM2.5 changes colour with the air quality.
« Last Edit: March 10, 2019, 01:10:54 PM by Mandrake »
G1ZFO

Ecowitt HP2551A + WH65 Tri-Wing (Wunderground: IGUILDFO67)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Wunderground: IGUILDFO68)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Mk2) test environment driving CumulusMX on a RPi 3b
Ecowitt GW2000 (Test)
Ecowitt WS90 Wittboy - Test
Ecowitt WH51 (x6) Soil Moisture Sensor
Ecowitt WH41 PM2.5 AQM Sensor
Ecowitt WH31 (x8) Thermo/Hygro Sensor
Ecowitt WS80 Ultrasonic Anemometer (pre-prod test)
Ecowitt WH57 Lightning Sensor -test
Ecowitt WH32-EP (SHT35) + Davis 7714 Screen
Ecowitt WH45 CO2/PM2.5/PM10 -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Soil Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Water Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN35 Leaf Moisture

Offline Mandrake

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration
« Reply #1 on: March 10, 2019, 12:00:52 PM »
For those that have not seen the additional sensor being sold for our Fine Offset weather stations I attach a few Photos.
These are currently available from Ecowitt and integrate with the HP2550 or Ambient Weather WS-2000 (choose the correct frequency)
Or if you prefer you can purchase the GW-1000 gateway and this also picks up the additional sensors as well as all the sensors from the Console (ie Osprey array, WH31A and WH32 Sensors)
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The PM2.5 sensor uses a PV cell to operate and backed up by some re-chargeable AA batteries (supplied). The estimate is that the sensor should last approx. 20 days on a full charge and then requires that you retrieve the sensor and plug in via a MicroUSB socket to fully charge the batteries again.
The optional PM2.5 Monitor operates from a single AA battery and picks up the sensor data for local display. It also has a built in indoor temperature and humidity sensor. The monitor shows live PM2.5 data and 1 hour/24 hour Max readings as well as a AQM rating.
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The soil moisture sensor takes a AA battery (not supplied) and makes a calculation on moisture levels in the soil through conductance. There is an optional monitor for this as well although I did not have one to show. Apparently you can have up to 16 soil moisture sensors and these can be calibrated to soil type if you require. The soil moisture sensor is slightly larger than it looks so be warned if you plan to place in flower pots.

If you have a Ecowitt GW-1000, which is a matchbox sized receiver powered by USB the this will also receive all the new sensors and transit the data to Ecowitt.net for graphing and remote monitoring or the other optional weather sites such Weather Underground. The small wire you can see in the photo is the indoor temperature/humidity and barometer sensor. So in some aspects it is a mini weather station in its own right and becomes very powerful when combined with your existing sensor array and these additional sensors.
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 First impressions have been good with the sensors. Particularly the PM2.5 AQM sensor which picked up my neighbours doing some renovation on their drive and the brick dust could clearly been seen to impact the air quality in my back yard some 200+ feet away and not even in the prevailing wind!

I will provide additional information as my assessment continues.
« Last Edit: March 10, 2019, 12:19:09 PM by Mandrake »
G1ZFO

Ecowitt HP2551A + WH65 Tri-Wing (Wunderground: IGUILDFO67)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Wunderground: IGUILDFO68)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Mk2) test environment driving CumulusMX on a RPi 3b
Ecowitt GW2000 (Test)
Ecowitt WS90 Wittboy - Test
Ecowitt WH51 (x6) Soil Moisture Sensor
Ecowitt WH41 PM2.5 AQM Sensor
Ecowitt WH31 (x8) Thermo/Hygro Sensor
Ecowitt WS80 Ultrasonic Anemometer (pre-prod test)
Ecowitt WH57 Lightning Sensor -test
Ecowitt WH32-EP (SHT35) + Davis 7714 Screen
Ecowitt WH45 CO2/PM2.5/PM10 -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Soil Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Water Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN35 Leaf Moisture

Offline Mandrake

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration
« Reply #2 on: March 10, 2019, 12:53:31 PM »
So as mentioned above the data from the new additional sensors can be displayed on your Weather console (Ecowitt HP2550A or Ambient WS-2000) or uploaded to Ecowitt.net which is similar to Ambient.net with the IP logger GW-1000 device. Ecowitt.net will allow you to monitor all your sensors data and graph as required.
I am afraid not having a Ambient station I cannot say whether the WS-2000 uploads this additional data yet to the ambient server. As for the HP-2550 I understand an update is coming which will allow it to upload directly to ecowitt.net on its own should you choose not to have or use a GW-1000.
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As it stands the additional sensor data is not able to be used by Weather Underground and I have yet to try the other online services. {Edit} to my surprise I have now noticed that Weather Underground is taking the Soil Moisture data from the GW-1000 IP logger and is showing/recording that data but not from the HP2550A console.
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For those who follow these forums you will be well aware that Ecowitt has launched some standalone sensor components for those who do not want to purchase the all-in one arrays (Osprey style etc). These individual sensors such as Anemometer and rainfall gauge all can be used with the GW-1000 IP logger though I cannot verify if they will work with the HP2550A or the WS-2000 although it has been suggested by Ecowitt that they will do if they do not already. So something to look out for.
« Last Edit: March 10, 2019, 01:10:11 PM by Mandrake »
G1ZFO

Ecowitt HP2551A + WH65 Tri-Wing (Wunderground: IGUILDFO67)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Wunderground: IGUILDFO68)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Mk2) test environment driving CumulusMX on a RPi 3b
Ecowitt GW2000 (Test)
Ecowitt WS90 Wittboy - Test
Ecowitt WH51 (x6) Soil Moisture Sensor
Ecowitt WH41 PM2.5 AQM Sensor
Ecowitt WH31 (x8) Thermo/Hygro Sensor
Ecowitt WS80 Ultrasonic Anemometer (pre-prod test)
Ecowitt WH57 Lightning Sensor -test
Ecowitt WH32-EP (SHT35) + Davis 7714 Screen
Ecowitt WH45 CO2/PM2.5/PM10 -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Soil Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Water Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN35 Leaf Moisture

Offline havtrail

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Thanks for posting the hardware photos.

Rich K.
Onset HOBO RX2102 Cellular
https://www.havtrail.com/weather/
NEWA https://newa.cornell.edu Haverford, PA

Offline Adrian23

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That’s my next weather station the WS-2000... I can’t wait!!

Offline kbellis

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Thanks for sharing these photos with bylines; much appreciated.

Offline galfert

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My Ecowitt PM2.5 sensor is only visible by the GW1000. My WS-2000 will not see it. Also when I run Ambient's awnet app I can see the GW1000 but although everything shows on it the PM2.5 does not show with this app. The only way I can see the PM2.5 is by using the Ecowitt WS View app (or as it shows up on Ecowitt.net via the GW1000 posting it there). All you see with the awnet app for PM2.5 is dashes. So in awnet app PM2.5 is on the screen but no data.

I have tinkered all I can and I can't get the WS-2000 to show the PM2.5 either. I have the latest firmware on the WS-2000 which is 1.3.8 and the notes from that firmware from Ambient say that they added support for the PM2.5. So either the firmware isn't working yet although claiming to do so, or the PM2.5 that Ambient will sell soon will somehow be different (like maybe it is configured differently).

All of my devices are 915 MHz, WS-2000, GW1000 and PM2.5. So it is something else that is the matter.
Ecowitt GW1000 | Meteobridge on Raspberry Pi
WU: KFLWINTE111  |  PWSweather: KFLWINTE111
CWOP: FW3708  |  AWEKAS: 14814
Windy: pws-f075acbe
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Offline Sir_MAK

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Crap, I just order a Ecowitt PM2.5 and a Soil moisture sensor to see if either would work on my WS2000.  Well if I can't get them to work I'll send it back to Amazon and wait for the Ambient sensors,
Ambient WS-2000, Central Ohio - WU WC
Ambient
WS-2902, Lake Erie   -    WU WC

Offline Mandrake

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Curious! Not what I would have expected.
Given that you can see the Osprey arrays data in the GW-1000 demonstrates they are all talking on the same frequency, so why the console cannot see the PM2.5 is odd.

Have you reached out to Ed to see if that's still disabled in the Ambient version of the Firmware?
I would think it extremely unlikely that the console is not capable of showing the data only that Ambient has disabled it somehow. I imagine that the sensors all must have a data tag that identifies them to the receiver, so perhaps Ambient have chosen to provide a custom value to stop people mix and matching. Again though I would be surprised as that would require a degree of customisation by Fine Offset when they are manufacturing the devices for Ambient versus the general market which would add costs.

As you have seen from my Ecowitt console the display certainly can show both the PM2.5 and Soil Moisture sensor.
I should mention that the PM2.5 does not show up directly in any app, only the data is provided to the console and Gw-1000 as an external sensor.
« Last Edit: March 12, 2019, 02:15:19 PM by Mandrake »
G1ZFO

Ecowitt HP2551A + WH65 Tri-Wing (Wunderground: IGUILDFO67)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Wunderground: IGUILDFO68)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Mk2) test environment driving CumulusMX on a RPi 3b
Ecowitt GW2000 (Test)
Ecowitt WS90 Wittboy - Test
Ecowitt WH51 (x6) Soil Moisture Sensor
Ecowitt WH41 PM2.5 AQM Sensor
Ecowitt WH31 (x8) Thermo/Hygro Sensor
Ecowitt WS80 Ultrasonic Anemometer (pre-prod test)
Ecowitt WH57 Lightning Sensor -test
Ecowitt WH32-EP (SHT35) + Davis 7714 Screen
Ecowitt WH45 CO2/PM2.5/PM10 -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Soil Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Water Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN35 Leaf Moisture

Offline galfert

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When Ecowitt first came on the scene I asked Ed about compatibility with the Ecowitt white display (HP 3501) and the Osprey sensor and he said no not compatible. I specifically asked even if the frequency matches, and he said no. Then I reached out to Ecowitt and I asked them the same question, and they said yes it would work and they offered to sell it to me. This was before when I still only had the WS-2902A display and the WS-2000 was not available yet. I came close to buying it, but then the WS-2000 display became available. So I don't know who is right. Also some months before this I had reached out to Ed and asked if the new WH32B would work with the ObserverIP instead of the WS-1000-BTH and he said, "No." But we all know now that the WH32B does work with the ObserverIP. I even went back to old firmware and tested and it works...so it isn't that a firmware made it compatible. Bottom line is that Ed is not always the best informed as he hasn't tested all the possibilities and sometimes he just says what he thinks and it stems from what he is willing to support. I understand his point, that he doesn't have time to be supporting all the great ideas that we come up with, so he just says no when what it really means is it isn't supported by Ambient customer service. So I think it would be pointless to reach out and ask about compatibility with Ecowitt's hardware.

Keep in mind that we all are running a big risk. Just because some of this stuff seems interchangeable now, a future firmware could cause things to stop working between brands.
« Last Edit: March 12, 2019, 03:02:57 PM by galfert »
Ecowitt GW1000 | Meteobridge on Raspberry Pi
WU: KFLWINTE111  |  PWSweather: KFLWINTE111
CWOP: FW3708  |  AWEKAS: 14814
Windy: pws-f075acbe
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Offline Mandrake

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #10 on: March 12, 2019, 02:52:27 PM »
Agreed...I suspect the only real way to tell is to use an SDR radio and compare the data coming from an Ambient PM2.5 and that of an Ecowitt PM2.5
I do think though that it is unlikely to be incompatible since we all know that Fine Offset makes it for all. If it does not work on the WS-2000 display then it can almost certainly only be because the firmware is not allowing it.

Its a shame we don't have some tech wizzes available to compare the Ecowitt HP2550 firmware with the Ambient WS-2000 version
G1ZFO

Ecowitt HP2551A + WH65 Tri-Wing (Wunderground: IGUILDFO67)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Wunderground: IGUILDFO68)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Mk2) test environment driving CumulusMX on a RPi 3b
Ecowitt GW2000 (Test)
Ecowitt WS90 Wittboy - Test
Ecowitt WH51 (x6) Soil Moisture Sensor
Ecowitt WH41 PM2.5 AQM Sensor
Ecowitt WH31 (x8) Thermo/Hygro Sensor
Ecowitt WS80 Ultrasonic Anemometer (pre-prod test)
Ecowitt WH57 Lightning Sensor -test
Ecowitt WH32-EP (SHT35) + Davis 7714 Screen
Ecowitt WH45 CO2/PM2.5/PM10 -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Soil Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Water Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN35 Leaf Moisture

Offline Sir_MAK

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #11 on: March 14, 2019, 07:22:43 AM »
Crap, I just order a Ecowitt PM2.5 and a Soil moisture sensor to see if either would work on my WS2000.  Well if I can't get them to work I'll send it back to Amazon and wait for the Ambient sensors,

No luck getting either to connect/show up on my WS-2000 display.  I went ahead and ordered a GW-1000.
Ambient WS-2000, Central Ohio - WU WC
Ambient
WS-2902, Lake Erie   -    WU WC

Offline Mandrake

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #12 on: March 14, 2019, 07:52:45 AM »
Sorry to hear that.

One advantage of the GW-1000 over the console is that if you configure this to upload to WU is that it includes the soil moisture data.
A minor thing I know!
Neither devices seem to upload the air quality (PM2.5) data just yet to WU.

Only Ecowitt.net has the full data online.
« Last Edit: March 14, 2019, 09:07:42 AM by Mandrake »
G1ZFO

Ecowitt HP2551A + WH65 Tri-Wing (Wunderground: IGUILDFO67)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Wunderground: IGUILDFO68)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Mk2) test environment driving CumulusMX on a RPi 3b
Ecowitt GW2000 (Test)
Ecowitt WS90 Wittboy - Test
Ecowitt WH51 (x6) Soil Moisture Sensor
Ecowitt WH41 PM2.5 AQM Sensor
Ecowitt WH31 (x8) Thermo/Hygro Sensor
Ecowitt WS80 Ultrasonic Anemometer (pre-prod test)
Ecowitt WH57 Lightning Sensor -test
Ecowitt WH32-EP (SHT35) + Davis 7714 Screen
Ecowitt WH45 CO2/PM2.5/PM10 -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Soil Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Water Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN35 Leaf Moisture

Offline Sir_MAK

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #13 on: March 14, 2019, 08:26:09 AM »
Good to know about the GW-1000 working with the Osprey and sending to WU.  Thanks

I have a WS-2902A in another location and I will more than likely put the PM2.5 and soil sensor there.  I could setup the GW-1000 to send and then turn off the sending from the WS-2902A.
Ambient WS-2000, Central Ohio - WU WC
Ambient
WS-2902, Lake Erie   -    WU WC

Offline Mandrake

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #14 on: March 14, 2019, 09:35:06 AM »
Just noticed that Ecowitt are now selling the HP2551 console (aka WS-2000) on its own if anyone is interested.
http://www.ecowitt.com/Others/101.html

G1ZFO

Ecowitt HP2551A + WH65 Tri-Wing (Wunderground: IGUILDFO67)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Wunderground: IGUILDFO68)
Ecowitt GW1000 (Mk2) test environment driving CumulusMX on a RPi 3b
Ecowitt GW2000 (Test)
Ecowitt WS90 Wittboy - Test
Ecowitt WH51 (x6) Soil Moisture Sensor
Ecowitt WH41 PM2.5 AQM Sensor
Ecowitt WH31 (x8) Thermo/Hygro Sensor
Ecowitt WS80 Ultrasonic Anemometer (pre-prod test)
Ecowitt WH57 Lightning Sensor -test
Ecowitt WH32-EP (SHT35) + Davis 7714 Screen
Ecowitt WH45 CO2/PM2.5/PM10 -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Soil Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN34 Water Temp Sensor -Test
Ecowitt WN35 Leaf Moisture

Offline galfert

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #15 on: March 14, 2019, 02:03:50 PM »
One disadvantage of using the GW1000 for WU is that it does 30 second rapidfire. UPDATE GW1000 now does 16  second Rapidfire. Whereas the WS-2000 and WS-2902A do 16 second rapidfire to WU. This is why my WS-2902A is still my preferred choice for WU (after new firmware for all devices they are all equal for WU reporting). along with the fact that I prefer its rain rate method over the WS-2000 rain rate method UPDATE WS-2000 now does instant rain rate. Was told by Ed that WS-2000 will gain instant rain rate in future upgrade (this has been now done). Until then I find my WS-2902A display console necessary (not any more).

So with my hardware I have the following preferred services publishing:

WS-2902A
WU - 16 sec rapidfire, better rain rate and faster barometer than WS-2000.
WeatherCloud

WS-2000
Ambientweather.net  - sends extra sensors that WS-2902A can't. Used by Amazon Alexa as default device. Better than ObserverIP for this.

Meteobridge
CWOP
PWSweather - only one that can send every 10 min for better readable graphs
AWEKAS - I enjoy this one, wish more people joined.
local SQL sent to NAS for data backup and future software historical import use
MetOffice WOW
WindGuru
Meteoagro
WU cam - no text
Meteobridge.com cam which adds text overlay that then feeds WeatherCloud, AWEKAS and WOW cams
Eventually will feed Weather-Display software when I get around to it.

ObserverIP
Just feeds Meteobridge

GW1000
Ecowitt.net - extra sensors plus PM2.5

The challenge was keeping 3 barometers calibrated evenly. The trick was to calibrate using hPa and then switch to inHg (more precision this way). Each barometer tracks slightly different in speed of change. The important thing is that when you are in a steady state they match. WS-2902A barometer tracks faster. This is another reason I use WS-2902A for WU and WeatherCloud.

That is 10 online weather services my data goes to, or 11 places if you include my local SQL. And even more if you include all the places CWOP data ends up on.
« Last Edit: April 20, 2019, 06:11:27 AM by galfert »
Ecowitt GW1000 | Meteobridge on Raspberry Pi
WU: KFLWINTE111  |  PWSweather: KFLWINTE111
CWOP: FW3708  |  AWEKAS: 14814
Windy: pws-f075acbe
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Offline shdwkeeper

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #16 on: April 19, 2019, 06:57:17 PM »
Can the ObserverIp pickup the info from the Ecowitt sensors and use them to send to Meteobridge, or can Ecowitt send data to Meteobridge yet?

Offline galfert

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #17 on: April 19, 2019, 08:00:27 PM »
Not all Ecowitt sensors show up on ObserverIP and vis versa. Temperature sensors do but not soil and PM2.5. I don't have all the possible combinations to give you all the details. This may change in the future as firmware updates come out.

As to GW1000 to Meteobridge....well I wasn't going to let the cat out of the bag yet. I've sent the API (unfinished as it is) and been working on this with Boris and there is still work to be done and testing. He felt good about the documentation and device capabilities. So not yet. He offered to remote into my Meteobridge (to get to my GW1000) but I didn't want the down time of my CWOP and other stations. So I arranged to send him a GW1000. I don't know how long it will take for this project. He's a busy guy. But I would say for now it looks promising unless there is an unforseen problem. I'm also in touch with Ecowitt for support regarding this as they are just as excited about it. If there are problems it may require Ecowitt to either finish and add polish to the API and issue firmware updates. It's a work in progress from all ends. Eventually it will work as all sides are interested in achieving this. Ecowitt is not yet ready to release the API. They said it won't be ready for some time....they said a long time... Probably means months. But Boris is confident in what we do have so far. I'll update you all on progress, good or bad, like even if roadblocks happen.

There is more to this story but that is what I can share so far.
« Last Edit: April 19, 2019, 08:05:17 PM by galfert »
Ecowitt GW1000 | Meteobridge on Raspberry Pi
WU: KFLWINTE111  |  PWSweather: KFLWINTE111
CWOP: FW3708  |  AWEKAS: 14814
Windy: pws-f075acbe
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Offline shdwkeeper

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #18 on: April 20, 2019, 12:26:14 AM »
Here is where I am at. I've had the AcuRite 5n1 running with the internet Bridge posting to Meteobridge for a while. On April 5th, I guess they turned off the servers for acurite and now I'm dead in the water, so I'm looking to replace all my equipment. Looking at ws-2000, and 2902A, but I ran across the Ecowitt equipment and thought that would be great if it all worked. I want to get 2 consoles and post to Meteobridge with my TP-link.
« Last Edit: April 20, 2019, 12:30:00 AM by shdwkeeper »

Offline galfert

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #19 on: April 20, 2019, 05:40:08 AM »
Well I'd say get going with an ObserverIP for now to use your Meteobridge. The ObserverIP is not an expensive device. Throw it up on eBay when you are done and that way the end result is an even less of an extra expense. Think of it as a very little investment to be up running now.

It's either that or get the Access and Acuparse to give you some extra functionality. But that doesn't get the Meteobridge going.

Or get a Davis to use the Meteobridge.

Ecowitt GW1000 | Meteobridge on Raspberry Pi
WU: KFLWINTE111  |  PWSweather: KFLWINTE111
CWOP: FW3708  |  AWEKAS: 14814
Windy: pws-f075acbe
Weather Underground Issue Tracking
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Offline shdwkeeper

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #20 on: April 20, 2019, 12:08:45 PM »
Will the ObserverIp pickup the AcuRite 5n1 sensors signals? For my weather sensors I was either looking at getting the 2902 array, not sure if that makes sense or go with the Ecowitt seperate temp and wind sensors. Davis is a little pricey. Just want to go with something that's a little future proof. If you were buying all new equipment what would you buy? Just curious on opinions. Plus if I go with Ecowitt seperate sensors would the Observerip pick it up and will my display consoles display it.
« Last Edit: April 20, 2019, 12:12:16 PM by shdwkeeper »

Offline galfert

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #21 on: April 20, 2019, 04:09:58 PM »
The ObserverIP will not pick up the Acurite 5-in-1. The only reason the Ambient picks up some Ecowitt sensors is because they are all Fine Offset clones.

If you get the WS-2902-ARRAY it will obviously work with any Ambient console that is; WS-2000, WS-2902A and ObserverIP. The combination of WS-2902-ARRAY + ObserverIP is actually called a WS-1550-IP.

If you have any of the previous stations I mentioned with the WS-2902-ARRAY then you can also pick up that outdoor sensor array with the Ecowitt GW1000.

If you go with the Ecowitt outdoor array (the all in one) like the HP2551 or HP3500B then the GW1000 will also pick them up. I'm not sure if the ObserverIP will pick them up. But you can get an ObserverIP that is branded by Ecowitt and then it should work.

If you get the separate components like the Ecowitt HP3501 then again I don't know if the ObserverIP will pick them up. Again you may need the Ecowitt version of the ObserverIP. But the GW1000 will pick up these separate components.

Notice that when I say ObserverIP I'm referring to the Ambient branded version, unless I specify otherwise.

Like I said I don't have all of these configurations and my knowledge regarding all possible combinations is limited...But this much I've said I'm confident in.

You asked which one I would get. Well I started with a WS-2902A before the WS-2000 was available. Then I upgraded the console to get a WS-2000. Then I added a GW1000 and it picks up the WS-2902-ARRAY just fine. My GW1000 picks up my Ecowitt PM2.5 but the WS-2000 does not see the PM2.5. Now I do know that Ambient will soon release their version of the PM2.5 and then the WS-2000 will pick it up. I don't have a soil sensor but I believe the same applies.

My requirements before I got anything was to get something that would work with the Meteobridge. That is why I then added an ObserverIP. I basically now have 4 consoles running at the same time; WS-2902A, WS-2000, ObserverIP, and GW1000. They all at the same time are picking up the single WS-2902-ARRAY that I have. The ObserverIP feeds the Meteobridge. I actually have 5 consoles because I have a second ObserverIP to mess with as I test WeeWx with ObserverIP driver and with Interceptor driver. I also have extra Ambient indoor temp/humidity sensor WH31 and that is picked up by the following: WS-2000, ObserverIP and the GW1000.

Continuing on to which I would get today. Definitely the WS-2000. That display is just awesome. If you want the Meteobridge to work then you just add the ObserverIP to the mix. Or you can probably get a better deal to get the WS-1550-IP and then add just the WS-2000 display console. If you want to have more fun then also add the Ecowitt GW1000...or wait on that till further work is done to integrate it as a replacement for the ObserverIP.

The Ecowitt separate components are very intriguing because you end up with separate components and a larger rain gauge that might be more accurate (not that the WS-2902-ARRAY rain gauge seem in appropriate that I can tell....but you know they say you lose some in heavier rains...I haven't looked into this yet). So the Ecowitt separates seem interesting for wind without compromising rain ...BUT...the outdoor temperature sensor then seem inappropriate with no radiation shield, because it isn't truly weather proof and requires to be located in a covered location or in a Stevenson Screen. I've given Ecowitt feedback on this that they should come up with an outdoor sensor with a radiation shield to improve the HP3501 and they said it sounded like a good idea to them...but no word if they will actually do this. I think if the did this it would be a decent system. So that part is holding me back from recommending this separate component setup. Also I don't know if those separate components are capable of being picked up by an Ambient branded console. If you don't have an Ambient console then you don't have access to AmbientWeather.net.....unless you have a Meteobridge with add-on AmbientWeather.net license ($150)...or you have a Meteobridge that is from Ambient and therefore it is called a WeatherBridge which already had this license. Why you would want to be sure you had AmbientWeather.net licensed device is so that you can take advantage of the great Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant integration....if that matters. Also to me I want to maximize the number of networks I can get onto because it is more fun. The Ecowitt.net network only works with the GW1000 and not currently with any of the other Ecowitt display consoles....but they are working on that in some future upgrade. Ecowitt.net also does not yet have any Amazon Alexa nor Google Assistant integration.

* UPDATE - March 2020 - Ambientweather.net license for Meteobridge has new lower price, now just $100

Okay so that is probably a lot to process. But if you want to know what I really want....that is a Davis VP3 which doesn't exist...yet. So all this for me is a holdout till that is available....unless Fine Offset and companies like Ambient and Ecowitt keep upping their game and keep improving theses stations. Currently they use SHT30 sensors instead of SHT31 like Davis and Acurite. But one of the things I don't like about the Davis VP2 is that it uses a legacy bus (LSS) and there are known issues with their temperature and humidity sensor after some 18 months or so of operation and sometimes less. That also limits the VP2 from being able to use the newer and better SHT35 or SHT85 which is only supported on the I2C bus. So the infamous VP3 when it does come out better have an I2C bus for me to be happy. The new Davis WeatherLink Live seems like it will have an API that will most undoubtedly be used to create custom software displays with cheap tablets as stand in displays while the WeatherLink Live becomes the one and only console.

Okay I'm getting carried away talking about Davis and you already said that wasn't in the budget. But I just wanted to say that I recognize the merits of the Davis. Like for example the top wind speed on the Fine Offset clone station is only 100 Mph. And the outdoor humidity will only measure a low of 10% RH (limitation of SHT30). Just wanted you to be aware of those things.

Bottom line....for me there is no perfect station today at any price. Makes it hard to recommend anything blindly without knowing what the person is interested in and what is important to them.

But I am very happy with my current setup because it is very capable at least in terms of expand-ability and all that I can do with my data.
« Last Edit: March 27, 2020, 09:39:10 AM by galfert »
Ecowitt GW1000 | Meteobridge on Raspberry Pi
WU: KFLWINTE111  |  PWSweather: KFLWINTE111
CWOP: FW3708  |  AWEKAS: 14814
Windy: pws-f075acbe
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Offline shdwkeeper

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #22 on: April 20, 2019, 10:58:03 PM »
Thanks for the info, I'm a techy so this is all great. I will probably just get the 1550-IP and add the WS-2000 console, that way I can use Meteobridge which is awesome.

The ObserverIP can't pull info from the Acurite 5n1 can it?

Offline Storm017

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #23 on: April 20, 2019, 11:34:48 PM »
If you want to keep your 5n1 and you have a SDR dongle just use rtl_433 to decode the data (minus the pressure). rtl_433 decoder does have a json output. Now you would need to figure away to get the data to Meteobridge. 

Offline shdwkeeper

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Re: Ecowitt HP2550/WS2000 extra sensor integration (AQM and Soil Moisture)
« Reply #24 on: April 21, 2019, 12:11:24 AM »
Yeah, not worth all the hassle, just going to order the WS-1550-IP, add the WS-2000 console, WS-1900 Console, WH32B, and call it a day. Total $254 plus shipping and tax. Not bad considering the Ws2000 console by itself is $152

 

anything