Setting up a new Weather Station

Setting up a new Weather Station is exciting and shortly you will have access to powerful information about the climatic conditions right at your location. 

Siting Your Station

Finding the perfect location for your weather station takes some consideration. You may find that deciding which readings are most important to you will determine where you locate the station.

Radiation Shield - Ideally, place the radiation shield of the ISS 1.5m above ground, in the open, away from radiation sources. For ET (evapotranspiration) it's best over well irrigated, regularly mowed grass.

Rain Collector - the Bureau of Meteorology recommends 30cm above ground - there's a compromise for integrated sensor suite installation.

Anemometer - For best results, place the anemometer at least 2m above surrounding obstructions. The meteorological and aviation application standard is 10m above ground, an agricultural applications is 2m above ground - this is important for ET calculations. The Vantage Pro2 anemometer comes with 12m of cable to facilitate best placement.

You decide which sensor data is most important to you.

As we are in the Southern Hemisphere, ideally the ISS Solar Panel will be facing North. As a result the wind direction will need to be adjusted by 180 degrees. Please refer to videos below on Calibrating Wind Direction.

Don't forget to purchase a Mounting Tripod (#7716) if your site doesn't already have good mounting infrastructure.

Always consider ease of access for maintenance purposes.

Maintenance

Performing regular maintenance on your weather station will help keep it running smoothly. It is advisable to ensure that sensors or communication channels are disconnected before any install work or maintenance work is done. Power down your receiver by removing AC power and any batteries to avoid logging false readings.

Inspect the ISS regularly and maintain the sensor suite following steps under ‘Maintenance’ in your User Manual.

It's best to get them down every few months and check that no ants or insects have made the unit their new home. Clean the unit with a clean cloth. After a year or so you can use a UV protectant like you have for your car - just spray it on any plastic that is exposed to the sun. You can also put a bit of spray lubricant in the cup of the rain spoon so the water slides off quickly and grit doesn’t build up. Use the included allen key to can take the cups and vane off the anemometer and use an old toothbrush to clean around the shafts and remove any grit. Do not lubricate the shaft or bearings in any way.

We are here to help if you get stuck.

VP2 & Vue Station ‘Low battery’ Warnings

The most obvious cause of a low battery warning is that the transmitter battery needs replacing. However, if you are receiving all data in the mornings, then losing connection with the ISS at night (i.e. only seeing inside data and barometric pressure) then this can point to a failed supercapacitor.

Under normal operation, the Solar Panel runs the unit during the day, a supercapacitor runs the ISS into the evening and then the backup battery will power the unit for the last few hours of the night until sunrise. Because of this, the backup battery should last many months. Not having a battery in the ISS during the day should not affect performance as it is just a backup, but you do need it for those last few hours of darkness overnight.

If the supercapacitor has blown, you will need to replace the board. Please contact us and let us know the type of ISS you have (Vantage Vue or Vantage Pro2) and the age of the unit and we will get back to you.

The battery required is a 3 volt Lithium CR-123A - readily available at supermarkets and electronics stores. Rechargeable batteries should not be used.