[Boots33]

Hi guys

Just wanted to check that I have got the right sensors, as I did not have anything to start with I ordered these stations when they were on special for $85. The price seemed to be about the same as buying the sensors separately , the box is marked as ws1080 so i'm hoping they will be ok.

the company also has an online store trading as crazysales.com.au and they still have them on special there too.

[uncle_bob]

Hi guys

Just wanted to check that I have got the right sensors, as I did not have anything to start with I ordered these stations when they were on special for $85.

Yep, they should be work fine.

[Boots33]

Thanks for that .... now i just have to be patient as the other bits arrive

[spudstrawb]

I'm just in the process now of ordering parts to build a WeatherDuino Pro2 station to replace my LaCrosse WS3600. I have a question about sensors. The general trend seems to be to use Fine Offset WS1080 sensors. Can anyone give me their opinion on the WH5301 sensors ( http://www.foshk.com/Weather_Professional/WH5301.htm ) and how they compare with the WS1080? I can get the WS5301 unit cheaper on ebay (AU$90 vs AU$120 or thereabouts for the WS1080). I can use my existing LaCrosse WS3600 rainfall sensor, so I really only need the wind sensors from a fine offset unit. The WH5301 unit looks tidier but I don't know if there are any accuracy, quality or longevity issues with the WH5031 wind sensor unit. Also there is no indication of how long the cables are (I suspect they might be shorter than those on the WS1080 sensors though).

Any help would be appreciated.

[AllyCat]

Hi,

there is no indication of how long the cables are ...

I think the question might be "What cables?". The sensor unit appears to be an integrated assembly and the console doesn't have a PC interface (USB). The problem with integrated sensor assemblies is that you can't put the wind (and solar if appropriate) sensors at a high level (on roof/pole), the rain "low" (to avoid wind effects) and the temperature/humidity "somewhere in the middle" (ideally a metre or two).

The wind vane also appears to have only 8 directions, not the "16" of the 1080. Admittedly the extra 8 directions (NNE, etc.) hardly ever work with the FO stations, but it probably indicates a further incompatibility.

In the UK, the FO anemometer costs only the equivalent of AU$ 5 as a "spare part" (Maplin) and the vane AU$ 20, but the pricing in Australia seems very different. In particular, the 3080 (Solar Data) stations (which use the same wind/rain sensors as the 1080) appear to sell at much the same price as the 1080, which is very strange? The solar pod is probably not "useful" long-term, because it's not compatible with the WeatherDuino, but the Console (LCD/buttons) is generally far superior to the 1080 "touchscreen" version. IMHO it's better to buy a complete station at a "best price" than spend nearly as much just on/for (the same) sensors alone.

Cheers, Alan.

[spudstrawb]

Thanks Alan. That's the sort of guidance that I'm after. I wish we could buy the sensors cheaply in Australia rather than having to buy the complete unit and then just using the sensors. I note that we can buy the sensors from AliBaba ( http://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Pr...21428.html ) but there is a minimum purchase of 50 units. I wonder what the price per unit would be though.

[spudstrawb]

Actually, given that I am currently looking at purchasing a complete Fine Offset station and just scavenging the wind sensors off it, would I be better off spending a bit more money and just purchasing a Davis 6410 anemometer? How much longer would the Davis unit be expected to last than the Fine Offset unit?

The Davis unit appears to have longer cables than the Fine Offset unit. If I was purchasing a Fine Offset station, I was looking at having 2 WeatherDuino transmitter units (1 for wind, one for rainfall and temp/humidity). The length of the leads on the Davis unit (12m) would allow me to do it all with one WeatherDuino transmitter unit, so this would offset at least some of the extra money for the Davis unit. Any thoughts?

[JT118]

See here, if you want Davis sensors look on ebay and try to find
a dead Davis system on ebay, then you can use both anemometer and rain gauge.

http://www.meteocercal.info/forum/Thread...Duino-Pro2

[spudstrawb]

Thanks. I'd already seen your thread. I do check on ebay each week or so but I'm not far off purchasing, so the chance of a dead Davis system becoming available in time is getting less and less. There is one available on ebay.com (US$19.90 at the moment) but the seller doesn't ship to Australia.

I can buy a Fine Offset station for about AU$120 delivered or I can buy a new Davis 6410 for about AU$190 delivered. The Davis is more expensive but it looks much neater, looks to be better quality, and has a 12m cable. Will it last much longer than the Fine Offset sensor? That's the big question. If I knew that it would last twice as long (or even 1.5 times as long) then it's an easy decision to make. At this stage I'm leaning towards the Davis 6410 unless someone convinces me otherwise.

[JT118]

Thanks. I'd already seen your thread. I do check on ebay each week or so but I'm not far off purchasing, so the chance of a dead Davis system becoming available in time is getting less and less. There is one available on ebay.com (US$19.90 at the moment) but the seller doesn't ship to Australia.

I can buy a Fine Offset station for about AU$120 delivered or I can buy a new Davis 6410 for about AU$190 delivered. The Davis is more expensive but it looks much neater, looks to be better quality, and has a 12m cable. Will it last much longer than the Fine Offset sensor? That's the big question. If I knew that it would last twice as long (or even 1.5 times as long) then it's an easy decision to make. At this stage I'm leaning towards the Davis 6410 unless someone convinces me otherwise.

That's very cheap for a Davis, for the most basic version in the UK you will need to pay £400.00. It will last longer, my Davis Groweather is 20 years old and still working. ( www.ayrshireweather.org ). The anemometer is infinitely( almost! ) repairable as is the rain gauge. Do you get the rain gauge in that price? You really only need the anemometer and rain gauge, Davis use a SHT11 in their stations now so that too should work with a bit of pinout changing.
The big advantage to my mind is you will get better data from Davis instuments than FO. This is particularly the case with the rain gauge, The FO one at best will give a representation of rainfall rather than an accurate measure. See my other post on rain gauge calibration.