Questioning the Accuracy of Personal Weather Stations

Weather is very important to you. Collecting the climate instrument data from around you is important to you.

You are not a novice with the elements nor are you a geek for climate information.

You are seriously interested in the daily climate changes that are in and around your world.

You keep detailed records, you really enjoy forecasting, and you plan your life around the readings from a climate station’s remote sensors. You depend on, you count on this information being accurate.

When it isn’t that accurate, it has a way of tilting your world. You would like to avoid this from happening.

Can You Depend on Readings

Your dependency on your climate instrument station is solely based on you trusting the readings you are getting fed. Just like your relationship with your best friend, is solely dependent on you trusting each other.

You trust your friend with your friends and it’s the same for you trusting the readings you are getting. This isn’t easy to have. You must find a unit, whose readings you are able to put your total trust.

How Accurate is your Weather Station

All of our reviews will show you the range of each and every sensor that the station has. These are not our accuracy ratings these are the manufacturer’s evaluated testing results.

We do however try to figure in customers’ reported findings of the complete correctness of the readings. We do think this is very important to all future station owners. You would want very accurate readings you can trust in.

How does an accuracy rating work and how do I trust what I am getting sent to me? How do I interpret the manufacture provided instrument accuracy ratings?

Here is what a typical reading sheet will look like.

Error Ranges Explained

As you can see it has the three main sensors that are involved in this model from AcuRite, and it has the accuracy range listed for each of the sensors.

The sensors involved in the AcuRite Environment System model #01075 Bundle are the temperature, the relative humidity, and the anemometer.

Temperature
The accuracy rating for the temperature is that it shouldn’t be off more than 2 degrees F-either 2 degrees warmer than it really is or it shouldn’t be 2 degrees colder than the thermometer reads.

Humidity Readings
For the relative humidity readings, they give them (the readings) a larger rate of error at the lower temperature and higher temperatures. The humidity in those ranges is seldom in those temperature ranges.

So anyway the 20%-80% humidity range is where most people live every day. The percentage of error there is much smaller. So that is where the sensor is calibrated to be most accurate.

The error range is +/- 3% and goes up +/- 5% for error. So a 3% error at the most common humidity range. Than 5% error for the ranges that are most unlikely to show up for a person’s location.

How About Wind Accuracy

The wind speed accuracy is determined by the anemometer, its error rate is calibrated to work best at lower speeds of wind, and then as the wind speed goes up, as the anemometer works much harder, the error rate goes up to 5 mph plus or minus that it could off.

As an example, your wind could be actually blowing at 85 mph but the anemometer could actually show you that it is blowing at 90 mph so it’s registering at plus 5 mph than it actually is.

Some things you can gather from these readings are that the anemometer is geared towards more accurate ratings at slower wind speeds. You probably do not have a strong need for one that can handle very high-speed winds because you seldom get any wind over 35-45 mph.

When you look at this product from AcuRite you will see the wind cups are made of plastic, compared to the top-quality wind cups being made from lightweight alloys. The plastic will hold up better inaccuracy with the lower winds.

The Rain Gauge

The last correctness ratings are the station’s rain gauge collection. The rain gauge is calibrated to be accurate within a plus or minus 5 one-hundredths of an inch over calculated or 5 one-hundredths of an inch under-reported.

This is very accurate. A very small error percentage. So the rain gauge, as long as it is in a good location for proper rainfall collection should work very well for you.

Some Views On Accuracy Ratings

The main thing that we have found to be very true with climate stations, is that you do get what you pay for. This is true not only with the number of element tools (sensors) that you will get with a station but also to the life expectancy of a climate instrument station.

The more you pay for your equipment the longer they will last, the more accurate they will be, and the more bells and whistles you are the owner of. All of this is great for you.

In fact, it’s a very big thing for you, if you are looking to purchase a climate instrument station. You need to absolutely take the time to study and know that with 100% surety, why you want a station and what it is you wish to get from one.

We are very sure you need to match up as well as possible, your wants, your needs, and your budget.

If you do not do this, you will be dissatisfied and most likely be a very frustrated station owner. You will be one of those customers who write up those negative reviews of the products we have seen.

But if you have done your homework then you can be a satisfied and happy owner of a climate elements station.

In Summation

We know these things to be true. You can budget a personal weather station in at the range of $40.00 up to $4000 very easily. There are some very excellent stations which you can spend $4000 on.

They have the very best instruments, made of the very best material. The rates of accuracy are rated in the same neighborhood that the inexpensive models don’t even discuss. You can run a farm with this type of unit.

But maybe you don’t own a farm. You would just like to have just some small amounts of information around for you to plan out your day with. A $40.00 unit may satisfy you beyond your imagination.

The accuracy of instruments that we use to collect data is a very polarizing thing with avid outside element fans. Long and strong arguments can be had, overall the recommended uses of the instruments, and the location of the instruments as well.

You can read government reports online, where the study was how the location of stations is one of the most critical findings in how accurate weather field information is.

The major complaint is over where the climate station is placed, the inaccuracies of the thermometer readings, causing weather studies from being accurate.

So take this complaint and bring it down to your level. Down to the level of how well do you place your sensors in your backyard? The location placement of weather instruments does make a huge difference inaccuracy of the information you use to make decisions.

But it is not the only determining factor inaccuracy of information. As discussed, materials used to manufacture sensors/gauges, etc. can make a difference as well.

Like I said earlier you get what you pay for. The wind cups on a $200.00 station are made of plastic. The wind cups on a $3000.00 station are made of lightweight metal alloys. Obviously, the alloys will be able to withstand extreme climate conditions much easier than the cups of the plastic anemometer.

Please keep all of these thoughts in mind as you search for your match of the station for you. Please take the time to study, and examine what other customers are saying about the accuracy of the instruments on each station.

Some manufacturers are very good about supplying accuracy ratings for their equipment, and yet others don’t supply that information. The buyer is aware.

Accuracy seems to depend on price, quality of the product, and location placement of the instruments. Good luck with your purchase.

What Does a Weather Anemometer Look Like?

Most people who are unfamiliar with weather instruments will ask what does an anemometer look like? They do not know that many meteorological stations today are equipped with an anemometer.

You know, a device that measures information about currents of air-so on your station’s display you have access to the current wind speed.

You will find that your day will simply work out better if you leave your home, with the knowledge of whether or not it will be a breezy or calm day.

As an owner of your own personal weather station, you can get this information readily and easily from your very own personal weather station.

A Simple Anemometer For a Kids Weather Station

Anemometers are so basic as a piece of weather equipment you would have, that they are considered to be a basic required weather piece for setting up any kid’s weather station.

In fact, we have a great read on setting up a weather station for kids on the post, Instruments to Build a Weather Station For Kids.

 An Anemometer Looks Like This

Well, let’s look at an anemometer. Here are a few anemometer pictures for you.

In looking at the modern wind speed instruments of today, they look like this. Many of the personal weather stations for sale today have in-home display systems that show all types of readings that are provided by the wind sensors on your weather station.

This personal station displays today, will also provide you with such other interesting tidbits as wind gusts speed, the maximum current airspeed in the last half an hour, and also the speed of the breezes recorded at your location in the last 12-24 hours. You can access also the current forecast, which will tell you if there may be winds involved in your forecast.

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RISEPRO Digital Mini Anemometer LCD Wind Speed Gauge Air FlowHOLDPEAK 866B Digital Anemometer HandheldPyle PMA90 Digital Anemometer- Air Velocity & Flow Temperature

How Does the Wind Affect You

In taking a daily look at the elements that you are living with, you always will be dealing with the currents of air. It is either a breezy day or maybe not a breezy day.

We all know that if it is very windy, our days, defined by our moving about from place to place can become an adventure. In very strong winds you are dealing with many different situations than you would be if it was perfectly calm outside.

If you are walking from location A to location B, then you will be facing several things. The first thing is the breezes will blow your hair out of place. Second-your body temperature and your comfort zone will most likely be affected by the wind on you. If it’s a cooler day, the air currents will dry you out and take away the protection of warmth you had near your skin.

Or it (the wind) could be simply causing condensation (on a hot day), which tends to lower your skin surface temperature. So when it is very cold outside the wind can be a bad thing (wind chill index) or in the summer it could be looked on favorably.

History of an Anemometer

Anemometers were developed as far back in history as the mid Nineteenth century. In fact, in 1845, Dr. John Thomas Romney Robinson, the director of the Armagh Observatory, Northern Ireland, developed the first anemometer, a 4 cup anemometer. He was the director there for 59 years.

He invented the first cup anemometer, which consisted of four hemispherical-shaped cups, each mounted on one end of four horizontal arms. These horizontal arms are then connected to a vertical shaft.

As they spin around because of the air blowing, they are measured by how many revolutions per a given time period.

From this then you are able to calculate the breeze’s speed by counting the number of turns of the shaft in a manner that was proportional to the currents of airspeed.

This is measured over a set period of time and various ranges of current airspeed are calculated in this manner.

The original wind cup anemometer had four cups in place, whereas most anemometers today are the improved three-cup model, developed by a Canadian, John Patterson, in 1926. This is the design, that has been improved further by various scientists over the years.

This is a simple form of air current measurement and by far the most common wind measurement instrument on today’s weather stations.

Other forms of anemometers are the Vane, Hot-wire, Laser Doppler, Sonic, and even something called the Ping Pong anemometer. These have been some of the more recent developments in air current speed instruments that are available today.

In fact, the Ping Pong Anemometer was used by NASA on a recent(2008) Phoenix Mars Lander flight, as an airspeed measuring tool.

Wind Speed Shown On a Display

There are many different daily climate stations that may be purchased today

As we mentioned earlier almost all of them use a three-cup anemometer, to gather and record the wind speeds from your remote sensor unit.

In keeping with station directions, and good common sense practices, it is best to set up your sensors in a remote place, but not a location too low to the ground. You should also make sure it is out in the open where there are as few distractions or obstacles as possible that would prevent a reasonable air current speed calculation.

If you have done this, then the wind speed your display is showing will be very accurate. These readings should be accurate enough, for you to use for your studies of your local elements.

Please also remember that the wind is a very vital element measurement in calculating the upcoming forecasts that we plan our daily lives around. The direction of the air currents, the speed of the breezes, and very often also the altitude of various upper air current patterns above the earth have a large impact on our daily forecasts.

The time of arrival when fronts intersect or collide will impact thousands of people daily around the world. How many times have we started a picnic or a baseball game only to have a storm pop upright in the middle of our planned event? This happens all of the time.

This timing of when the weather will do what is forecast is everything to us- but yet it is probably the one thing that messes up peoples’ days all the time.

Many displays are great for the user because they provide, up to date air current speed readings, the last half hours peak breeze speed, the last 12 hours recorded wind speeds. They also will show you the direction the breeze is blowing from.

The collected data from the stations that have computer software is invaluable in the study of your weather.

How Accurate Are Station Anemometers

When talking about anemometers the accuracy of this instrument is often questioned. It seems that with this instrument you often get what you paid for.

Here is a list of the most important factors when buying a station with an anemometer or when buying one by itself.

• Some facts-they can be manufactured-as either a propeller-type or a cup type of air current speed instrument. Both types are accurate but realize both types are susceptible to icing up in the winter.
• Look for black-colored wind meters which have a tendency to thaw out quicker than white or silver ones. Obviously the black will draw heat from the sunshine’s rays, thus they will thaw out quicker. White and silver colors will reflect the sun’s rays more than absorb them.
• Look for accuracy ranges of ±5% o
• Most are rated for wind speeds from 0-100 mph
• Accuracy will depend on the wind cup sizes. Smaller cups will be spun easier by the breezes, the larger heavier metal cups will spin slower. It will take more air current/energy to get the cups moving when the cup is larger.
• Be aware of metal versus plastic for materials used to manufacture. We found that there is a difference in how the material reacts to the wind. The metal being heavier is much slower to react to lower wind speeds, but it is better and more accurate in high wind velocities. Whereas the plastic is quicker to react to lower wind speeds, but many times it is not as accurate at the high wind velocities due to its lack of weight.
  • This is to weigh up when thinking about your decisions on which one to purchase. Consider if you are expecting more time with light winds or more time with windier days.
  • Smaller wind cups are more responsive because they are lightweight and easier to react to.
  • Plastic is more responsive than metal, again as aforementioned this is due to the weight of the material more than anything.
  • The smaller cup spokes are smaller so the cups are closer and more sensitive, especially to lower winds.
  • Check out the size and the material that the shafts are made of. It will make a difference in how free and easy the cups will move and generate accurate wind speed.

  In Summation

  If you decide to purchase a station with an anemometer, we have laid out for you the reasons why you would need one. We have also talked about the things to be aware of when picking out the right equipment for what you would like to accomplish with this equipment.

  Knowing the wind speed can add to your day’s planning You must decide whether or not you can/or are willing to go to the next step. Moving up to purchase a weather station could be a great decision for you.

  Stations that cover the air currents surely do cost more. There is more for you to care for as well. Does the cost outweigh the benefits for you? You will have to ask yourself that and come up with your own answer to that question.