2nd Anemometer Failing

[Mapantz]

@Mapantz, I’ve been watching your wind direction for over 2 minutes and it never moved to North once. Unlike a couple of months ago when it was seen on several occasions.

Maybe the problem is resolved.

It only does it when the wind is in the western quadrant.

[Mapantz]

Initial outlay of the Pro2 system. £600
Bought the anemometer transmitter. £200

That doesn't sound right. Where do you get that from? The boards and components I thought would be 200 pounds max for both the TX and RX units. Maybe you're counting expensive enclosures or something?

https://www.weathershop.co.uk/davis-633 ... ransmitter

[RayProudfoot]

It only does it when the wind is in the western quadrant.

That's bizarre. Why would wind from that direction cause the problem? Have you asked ProData assuming you bought from them?

[Mapantz]

It only does it when the wind is in the western quadrant.

That's bizarre. Why would wind from that direction cause the problem? Have you asked ProData assuming you bought from them?

It was the same with the previous anemometer that went bad. Quite common.

Everything has been explained in previous posts.

[uncle_bob]

Gotcha. Thought you were talking about the WeatherDuino Pro 2 system (as in my sig below).

Initial outlay of the Pro2 system. £600
Bought the anemometer transmitter. £200

That doesn't sound right. Where do you get that from? The boards and components I thought would be 200 pounds max for both the TX and RX units. Maybe you're counting expensive enclosures or something?

https://www.weathershop.co.uk/davis-633 ... ransmitter

[Mapantz]

First strong winds in months, and the anemometer is now cutting out completely. Intermittent losses of wind speed and direction.

[RayProudfoot]

First strong winds in months, and the anemometer is now cutting out completely. Intermittent losses of wind speed and direction.

With respect you must spent a small fortune on all your kit. Just buy a new anemometer and have done. We’ll all have to do it at some point.

[Mapantz]

First strong winds in months, and the anemometer is now cutting out completely. Intermittent losses of wind speed and direction.

With respect you must spent a small fortune on all your kit. Just buy a new anemometer and have done. We’ll all have to do it at some point.

No way. Not anymore. The number of Davis equipment failures in a short space of time is unacceptable. Davis also don't give a crap about customers outside of the US. They are a bunch of crooks with their overpriced tat.

[RayProudfoot]

So you’re going to run a weather station that doesn’t report wind?

And when the temperature sensor fails will that be replaced? I’m struggling to understand your logic. The anemometer isn’t exorbitantly expensive and if you chat to your supplier they may knock something off.

[Mapantz]

So you’re going to run a weather station that doesn’t report wind?

And when the temperature sensor fails will that be replaced? I’m struggling to understand your logic. The anemometer isn’t exorbitantly expensive and if you chat to your supplier they may knock something off.

I did say in this thread that I would continue until parts start to give up.

It's perfectly logical, I don't want to pay for another one.

£225 is a rip off. No one is going to knock anything off of the price either.

[RayProudfoot]

A failing wind vane is rare. The mechanism for the cups is more likely to fail but a replacement cartridge is just £40.

https://shop.weatherstations.co.uk/7345 ... 1745-p.asp

[Mapantz]

A failing wind vane is rare. The mechanism for the cups is more likely to fail but a replacement cartridge is just £40.

https://shop.weatherstations.co.uk/7345 ... 1745-p.asp

I don't think it's that rare, a search on weather forums brings up a lot of complaints of the anemometer wind vane failing. And the fact that it has happened to me twice now is a testament to that.

[GlynH]

My anemometer is attached to a pole on the chimney breast but the transmitter is much lower. Below the bathroom window above a flat porch roof. Easy access with a short stepladder.

Why not use the full length of the cable to place the transmitter at a more convenient location?

I've got no place it'll reach to be to get any sunshine. I also don't like cables running down the roof as they're prone to getting damaged by rubbing on the tiles.

Probably a moot point now after all the issues you have had but I plan to relocate my anemometer on the chimney but intend to site the transmitter inside the loft running the 12m/40ft cable from the anemometer into the loft.

What I have done before is strap some cable ties to the cable at regular intervals, lay the cable up against the end of a tile so it offers some protection and just tuck the tail of the cable tie underneath that roof tile to hold it in position so it doesn't rub against anything.

Obviously no solar in the loft at all but I'm going to power the transmitter with a PSU which means I will have a spare solar panel should the one on the ISS outside ever fail.

I'm hoping that the backup battery in the transmitter will offer some redundancy and keep things powered up in the event of a power cut.

-=Glyn=-

[Jim_AFCB]

Been having wind issues here in recent weeks.

Bit of a long story, but here goes.
VP2, bought in 2009, the current anemometer predates that (WM II) - but ran it into the ISS, all fine.
Runs into the ISS via a 15m extension cable which I partly hard-wired in.

Back in May, I started randomly recording winds of 120mph. In 27 years of owning Davis stations, I'd never seen this issue before! I'd had a couple of anemometers fail over the 27 years of having one up.

I disconnected the anemometer and left it for a few days as i was ill with Covid. Unplugged the roof anemometer and plugged into the (unused) spare which had arrived with the VP2. All ok.
Plugged the old WM II into the roof anemometer, all fine. Connected the WM II to the extension cable and roof anemometer instead of into the ISS. All fine.

Nevertheless, I decided to replace the extension cable with a new screened cable. Connected it all up with the old roof anemometer into the ISS, all fine..... problem solved...
....For a few days, then the excessive wind reedings started again. OK... so I got my aerial man in, he put the spare anemometer up for me (we left the original up in case I wanted to run any tests at a later date.. all was well.. for about a week. then excessive wind readings returned.

The only thing I'd not changed at this point was the ISS, and it's 14 years old, so I decided to replace the ISS, which meant getting a replacement ISS, TH sensor and anemometer (not cheap, but decided to bite the bullet). Arrived last Friday, I duly did the changeover.
Wind speed fine, so I assume it was a failing ISS being the root cause of the "hurricane force" winds.

What I did find was I was now getting the frequent 360° readings that Mapantz was getting. Unused anemometer, and brand new ISS. also happened with the "old" anemometer still on the roof (glad I left it up..) Scratching my head now...
Tested with the anemometer that arrived with the new ISS last week, on the ground and I was still getting occasional dart-around to north. Not enough to affect the reported wind direction though.

It is now much better, still running into the "new roof" anemometer - the only change I've made was I had some excess cable on the new extension cable I'd bought and installed.. I'd coiled it up in the junction box where I'd put the join. I uncoiled the excess and fixed it down in a dog-leg and the issue is MUCH better. Some kind of induction cused by the coil, perhaps.

I can't help thinking that the issue here is possibly being caused by some interference of some sort getting into the cable.

[Mapantz]

Took the anemometer down to have a look. Cable is fine, dry as a bone in the transmitter.

Took the wind vane off, the nut/spacers are all green and corroded. The wind speed cartridge/shaft is full of metal dust, where metal has rubbed on metal for a long period of time. Spinning both shafts make a crunching/grinding noise. It's what's known as knackered, just as I first thought.