Maplin N96GY base station now faulty - Suggestions Please

[malc-c]

I think it was around 2009 when I first purchased a weather station form Maplins. It lasted around three / four years before the first transmitter packed up and I was advised that I would need to replace both the base station and transmitter as they were paired devices and replacement transmitter units won't always communicate with base stations due to the frequencies used (I later discovered this wasn't the case !). It was cheaper to replace the complete kit, which also gave me some spare sensors, and Mapling had them on offer for £69 so it was no brainer really.

Around three years ago, the second transmitter started playing up - sending extremely high temperatures for december (38C) and humidity in single figures. On advice form the forum I searched and obtained a replacement transmitter for £22 delivered, and all was good, up until today. I last used Cumulus 1.9.4 to access data two days ago without any issue, and having been woken up by high winds and rain due to storm Alex I wanted to see how strong the gusts were... Strangely, at the end of the download the data was nothing out of the norm, in fact the wind was less than the day before which was fairly still. The red error then flashed and reported connection failure to the station.

I removed the battery and replaced it with fresh set out of the pack. On powering up all the alarm icons began flashing and everything was in mixed settings, indoor temp in C, outside in F etc. I then spent almost an hour working out how to cancel all the hi/low alarms for each option... connected it to Cumulus, it read data, and then reported a communications error again. OK, let's test it on another PC - but no same issue... pulling one battery completely reset the thing again, including the alarms ! - I then remembered that the easyweather software had the option to uncheck all alarms so I spent half an hour searching for the original disk (the latest copy off the web gave the same result, so I opted for the one supplied with the device). Launched Easyweather, it read the data, displayed the current data, including external data, and so I unticked all the boxes and clicked update - it complained that the values in the boxes were out of ranges, it was correct, they were garbage. I changed them to limits within the specified ranges, and clicked update again.... "Try again !" was the message.

I then cleared all the data from its memory, this made no difference. Different USB cables and ports, different computers, three versions of software and still the same result. Then while I was contemplating any other things to try and the thing started randomly beeping as if something was randomly touching the screen, even though nothing was. At this point the five hours of frustration got to me and the station took flight across the room !

So I'm looking at my options. Do I contact FineOffset to see if a replacement base station is available (easiest option and they still seem to be available as a full kit on their website). This would be the easiest option seeing the sensors are attached to the sky dish mount on the roof



Do I use an Arduino that can use wind and rainfall sensors, and add DS18B20's or DHT22's etc - all hard wired to the arduino, or use an ESP device so data can be displayed on a web page - not the easiest of alternatives...

Or do I look at a replacement system, something a little more up market, but not top of the range....and ask my neighbour to swap over the sensors. This also has the award for being the most costly option, and money is tight, and I would really need to justify spending money on something that is not really that "important" in the scheme of things.

Malcolm

[kroma]

A very similar thing happened to my weather station earlier this month (although I'd had some early signs of impending doom almost a year ago which I managed to keep at bay by regularly clearing the base unit's memory). This month's problems started with some very odd readings being read by Cumulus whilst downloading data including hurricane winds, several metres of rainfall and pressures only experienced on high mountain tops.

I managed to use backup data to get rid of the errant records and, after some testing, came to the conclusion that it was definitely the base station to blame.

Within a few days, upon removing and reinstalling the batteries I would often see the alarms all set as well as some strange alphanumerical readouts on the display.

At other times all would appear to be normal but Cumulus would repeatedly download some strange (historical?) data including outside temps of around 23 degrees (when it has been around 15 degrees) and always settling on 18.9 degrees. However, the display of the base station would show the correct data if not in the 'all alarms on' mode after a reset.

After some umming and aahing (completely new model kit (current model no longer available) or replacement part), I bit the bullet and ordered a replacement base station which arrived this week. I was expecting to have to take down the transmitter and replace the batteries to pair the two (as I had done several times in my testing over the past weeks) but no - I inserted the batteries only yesterday and the two paired almost instantly.

Correct downloads to Cumulus have resumed and my old base unit is now being used as a standalone unit - sat in my summerhouse where it should be at least display the correct details (although, as I type it has lost connection). I have to assume that the internal memory within the old unit had gone bad somehow.

Thankfully, I was able to source a replacement unit easily - you may have more difficulty getting a compatible unit for a Maplins device but it, if you can, I'd say it's the way to go for now.

I expect my sensors will start to fail at some point in the near future (I'd already replaced a couple of parts with very reasonably priced Maplin spares just a couple of years after purchase of the station in 2015). Since those replacements I've been very lucky sensor-wise. Next time is going to be far more costly but at least, for now, I'm up and running again.

Good luck.

K

[malc-c]

Thanks for the reply, and it does indeed sound like the same symptoms I experienced with the unit that is now residing at the local recycling centre.

I've sourced a replacement base unit, for £69 inc postage (which was what I paid for the complete kit from Maplins), but I currently have more pressing things on which to spend my cash. Hopefully when things improve they will still be available and I can restart keeping weather data.