Weather Stations, part 2

[kevinmoelk]

So after checking radio shack for the thermomoter/hygrometer, I decided to purchase a unit with just a little more umph.

I ended up purchasing a La Crosse 7014-CH

(broken link removed)

Since this unit is expandable I wanted to monitor the temperature in my well house, and also in the crawlspace in my home. The 3rd sensor will simply be outside around the house somewhere.

Now I'm wondering how effective these devices are in transmitting through walls? The well house is a shed structure that is built in with the garage in my home. It is a detatched garage. The walls are 10" clay brick. Will the sensor transmit through that wall, through a standard 2x4 wall, and to the main unit? Distance would be roughly 60 feet. Would I be better off buying a probe type sensor and drilling through the clay brick wall and mount the sensor on the outside?

Also, are there rules for mounting the sensors? Can I simply attach the sensors under the soffit? How critical is sensor placement?

EDIT: Forgot to ask about the placement of the main control unit. Do I place this in the same room as the stove or in an adjoining room to receive an accurate humidity reading?

-Kevin

 

[begreen]

Try it and see for distance, but it looks like it might not work. Low power and frequency transmitter + mitigating factors may be too much. FWIW, according to their specs, the Honeywell units have almost twice the range at 150 ft. . (broken link removed to http://www.ambientweather.com/hotewiinth.html)

You'll want to mount the outdoor sensor on the north side of the house, offset from the house, yet always shaded. If there's a porch on the northside that makes it pretty easy.

 

[DonCT]

I want this one!!

(broken link removed to http://www.ambientweather.com/hotewiwest.html)

Much better than my $12 WalMart special :cheese:

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Mine worked well on the back shed for a week or two. Then it lost the signal and stopped picking up the temp and humidity. I now use a probe thermometer to measure outside and keep the wireless ones inside.

 

[hearthtools]

I finally got my weather station back on line
(broken link removed)

The PC/server I had it connected to had a bug/virus and would not upload to the website
So I started over and put in on my personal PC at home.
I cant believe how hot I keep my house!
No to accurate the Indoor probe is in the same room as my pellet stove so it has a higher reading then the rest of the house.

 

[begreen]

I was going to put mine online and found that a neighbor a mile away got one for Christmas as well and already has his online. Makes for an interesting comparison though. He is on the water and I'm at about 260 feet up the hill. One can see the warming/cooling influence of having a large body of water close by and the wind sheltering influence of the hill behind the station.

It's been handy to be able to check home temps from work, especially with wet roads around the freezing mark.