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Old 09-16-2012, 10:06 AM
 
Location: "Out there" in Alaska.
305 posts, read 683,094 times
Reputation: 484

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Does anyone with experience in weather observation care to recommend their preferred hardware? There's quite a list to choose from - Texas Weather, Oregon Scientific, AcuRite, Weatherwise, etc. - and I wonder if someone might have used one or more brands and come up with a favorite for accuracy and ease of use in extreme cold conditions?
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Old 09-16-2012, 10:46 AM
 
4,989 posts, read 10,021,418 times
Reputation: 3285
Weather stations are like anything else, the quality is largely determined by how much you are willing to spend. Many of the consumer grade stations available for $100 or less are mostly junk made in China - I wouldn't waste my money.

I use a Davis Vantage-Pro II which runs my website:

Alaska Weather Watch - Home

The VP2 seems to be one of the most popular and about the best quality for a "reasonable" price before going to professional grade hardware costing thousands.

A good discussion of which station to buy can be found here:

What Weather Station Should I Buy?
WXforum.net - Index
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Old 09-16-2012, 10:00 PM
 
Location: "Out there" in Alaska.
305 posts, read 683,094 times
Reputation: 484
Hmm. Thanks for that.
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Old 09-17-2012, 04:35 AM
 
Location: Bliss Township, Michigan
6,424 posts, read 13,246,280 times
Reputation: 6902
I currently have top of the line Oregon Scientific, but to be honest, I'm not every happy with it.
Soon I'll be picking up the Davis Instruments 6153 Wireless Vantage Pro2 with a fan-aspirated radiation shield.

As Moose said, I think the Vantage Pro2 is about the best for the money, unless you have unlimited funds.
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Old 09-17-2012, 09:11 AM
 
Location: Interior alaska
6,381 posts, read 14,567,607 times
Reputation: 3520
I have a weather rock outside the window.

If there is a shadow, it's sunny.
If it wet, it's raining.
If it's white, it's snowing.
If it's rolling, it's really windy.
If it's jumping up and down, it's an earthquake.
If there is no shadow, it's cloudy.
If I can't see it, it's dark.

Best part is that it was free and uses the cheap "Rockcad" batteries!

Oh, and in case of bears in the yard, it is much cheaper than bear spray. So it's a self defense weather station to boot!
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Old 09-17-2012, 09:58 AM
 
Location: NP AK/SF NM
681 posts, read 1,206,933 times
Reputation: 847
Quote:
Originally Posted by Moose Whisperer View Post
Weather stations are like anything else, the quality is largely determined by how much you are willing to spend. Many of the consumer grade stations available for $100 or less are mostly junk made in China - I wouldn't waste my money.

I use a Davis Vantage-Pro II which runs my website:

Alaska Weather Watch - Home

The VP2 seems to be one of the most popular and about the best quality for a "reasonable" price before going to professional grade hardware costing thousands.

A good discussion of which station to buy can be found here:

What Weather Station Should I Buy?
WXforum.net - Index
Very nice site! What is the lowest temperature the Pro II will handle?
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Old 09-17-2012, 09:01 PM
 
Location: Not far from Fairbanks, AK
20,293 posts, read 37,179,500 times
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Maybe the OP can ask the people at the NWS in Fairbanks, since they will know what works best in AK?

National Weather Service, Fairbanks Forecast Office, AK
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Old 09-18-2012, 10:06 AM
 
4,989 posts, read 10,021,418 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by akpls View Post
Very nice site! What is the lowest temperature the Pro II will handle?
Davis guarantees the VP2 to -40F, but there is actually a big controversy about what happens below that. The issue really got heated (so to speak) this last winter when a Davis station got to within one degree of the all-time record low in Alaska just as it stopped transmitting:

AccuWeather.com - WeatherMatrix | Was U.S. Record Low Temperature of Minus 80 Broken in Alaska?

Bitter cold records broken in Alaska – all time coldest record nearly broken, but Murphy’s Law intervenes | Watts Up With That?
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Old 09-18-2012, 10:28 AM
 
Location: Interior AK
4,731 posts, read 9,945,917 times
Reputation: 3393
I haven't been satisfied with my Oregon Scientific or AcuRite (mid-range consumer) models. I'll have to check out the VP2. Both the OS & AR started reporting suspect temps below -40 (i.e., they didn't always match the regular alcohol thermometers), neither seemed able to handle the low humidity up here, and their forecasting programs were ALWAYS wrong.

The main problem I have with all these so far... wireless connections require batteries and batteries of all types die in extreme cold, so they are pretty much useless here between Thanksgiving and Valentine's (when -20F is a WARM day); but hard-wired connections either need to be close to the house (micro-climate interference) or the long cords crack in the extreme cold (and then shorts out).
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Old 09-18-2012, 01:20 PM
 
Location: Wasilla, Alaska - USA
275 posts, read 579,702 times
Reputation: 352
Wow. I never knew that even AWOS network stations were only rated to -40F/C as well.
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