Author Topic: Ecowitt GW2001 or Weatherflow Tempest?  (Read 1525 times)

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Offline Hulakai

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Ecowitt GW2001 or Weatherflow Tempest?
« on: January 29, 2023, 06:41:21 PM »
I'm new here and buying my first pws.  I'm trying to decide between the GW2001 and Tempest. I like the simple design and lack of moving parts in both. The difference in cost between the two is about $150 for me (Canada) but that isn't necessarily the deciding factor.  If they're more or less equal in performance then yes I like the price of the GW2001 and the fact that I can add more sensors...but if the Tempest performs much better and the Alexa integration is useful then I'd spring for the Tempest.

Thoughts ?

Kevin

Online Arkadiusz_w

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Re: Ecowitt GW2001 or Weatherflow Tempest?
« Reply #1 on: January 30, 2023, 01:34:51 AM »
Overall, the plus side of Ecowitt is that you can separate the sensors. The Ecowitt WS90 Wittboy is heated, while the Tempest is not. If you live in a cold climate, you may need heating to keep your anemometer running smoothly during cold and snowy weather. Both the Tempest and also the Ecowitt have average tactile rain gauges. Ecowitt, on the other hand, has a good WH40 trough rain gauge that can be purchased with a longer funnel. In rainy and snowy weather the sonic ws90 measures the wind accurately, the sonic wind gauges LCJ, Davis have problems with this and give erroneous values.

You also need to remember that using a heater in the WS90 causes temperature drifts, so you should equip yourself with a separate sensor, such as WH32EP, and place it in a good radiation shield, such as at the recommended measuring height of 2 meters above ground level.

If you want reliable temperature readings, you need to buy a good radiation shield for the WH32EP sensor, such as: Metspec, Barani Meteoshield Pro, A-Ster. Ecowitt does not have a good radiation shield in its product range that protects properly from solar radiation. Their $20 shield overstates the temperature by up to 4-6 degrees on solar days, so you have to buy it separately.

Take a peek at this kit he recommends for you:

https://shop.ecowitt.com/products/wittboy
https://shop.ecowitt.com/products/wh32_ep
https://shop.ecowitt.com/products/extension-cord
https://shop.ecowitt.com/products/wh40
https://shop.ecowitt.com/products/wh40-heightening-block
https://shop.ecowitt.com/products/bird-spikes
https://shop.ecowitt.com/products/wh57

Optionally, you can opt for a Wittboy with a console and connect the rest of the sensors to it

https://shop.ecowitt.com/products/wittboy-pro

You can purchase proven radiation shields from the following sites

https://www.baranidesign.com/radiation-shields
https://metspec.net/radiation-shields/

Ecowitt WS90 1.3.8, WS80 1.2.5, Ecowitt WS68, Ecowitt WH31EP/WH32EP, WH40, WH57, WN34L, WH51, WN34D, HP2560_C, HP2550_C, GW1100, GW2000. Davis Vantage Pro 2, Davis Vue, Davis 6313, Hongyuv WDS2E

Barani Meteoshield Pro II, III, Davis FARS 24H

Offline vinceskahan

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Re: Ecowitt GW2001 or Weatherflow Tempest?
« Reply #2 on: January 31, 2023, 05:10:11 PM »
(recovered WF user and field tester here) - I could never recommend the Tempest at this point.  The rain is horribly inaccurate for most people, the lightning is basically totally made up, even temperature is questionable in summer sun, and they still seem to have obvious quality control issues with lots of failed/returned hardware.

They're very nice people and have a very good set of APIs and support forums, but to me I would definitely shop elsewhere regardless of price....but I'm kinda an old-school 'stuff should just work right out of the box' engineer type.

Your choice likely comes down to your budget and what's most important to you.

My ecowitt stuff is basically for play and to get a bunch of $12 room t+h sensors working, but the T+H sensors seem accurate to me.  The 'ol VP2 is the primary gear here.  If it ever died I'd just buy another Davis.
WeeWX sites:
  Davis VP2+DFARS to a pi4
  EcoWitt GW1000, WH32 outdoor T+H, multiple WH31 indoor T+H, WH51 soilMoisture (docker)
  Davis AirLink (inside)
  PurpleAir (outside)
Home site:        https://www.skahan.net/
Wunderground: KWAFEDER15
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CWOP:              CW6881

Offline Hulakai

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Re: Ecowitt GW2001 or Weatherflow Tempest?
« Reply #3 on: February 03, 2023, 12:57:48 PM »
Excellent feedback, thank you very much

K