Weather station for extreme conditions?

April 17, 2008 7:37 PM

Wireless weather station for extreme conditions?

Last fall I purchased a Weather Channel branded Weather Station made by LaCrosse. It worked fine for a while and we really liked having it, but the winter up here (top of a hill in Ontario) destroyed it. The anemometer blew off in the first storm, the thermometer stopped working and the rain gauge froze and cracked. The barometer still works fine though...

So I guess we need something more robust. The weather up here is really f'n extreme. It needs to be wireless and handle gusts up to about 100 mph, heavy snowfall, temperatures down to -35C or so, freezing rain, and all the rest of it. Any suggestions?

posted by unSane to home & garden (6 comments total)

They appear expensive. Rugged weather stations Google result.
posted by disillusioned at 8:15 PM on April 17, 2008

Hey, it's not that windy in Meaford, unSane. I monitored a weather station there for some years, and it managed fine.

The right kit is essential, and sadly expensive. I'd recommend getting equipment from Campbell Scientific. They're pretty much standard kit for wind energy work. I believe there are a few working at Alert. Now, that's extreme weather.
posted by scruss at 8:42 PM on April 17, 2008

I'm not in Meaford, but up on the top of the escarpment, highest point for miles around. In the summer it's okay because the trees and the grass take the edge off the ground level winds, but in the winter once the leaves are off the trees and the snow cover is down it gets really in(un)sane up here, to the extent that you are blown off your feet while trying to get to the truck. We certainly had 80 mph gusts this winter so I want a bit of leeway...

Thanks for the Campbell link... I was hoping there was something between the consumer units and the full-blown metereological solution.
posted by unSane at 9:49 PM on April 17, 2008

Campbell products, while pretty bombproof, are also vastly overpriced. Take a look at the HOBO line of weather stations, available from Onset Computer. I use both Campbell and HOBO dataloggers for work, and although the Campbell stuff is certainly very rugged it is also about 3x the price of the Onset equivalent. (No affiliation, I just buy stuff from them.) Generally Onset support is pretty good -- if you're worried that your weather might be too "extreme" for their stuff, give them a call and ask, I've found them to be pretty realistic about the limitations of their equipment.
posted by harkin banks at 10:51 PM on April 17, 2008

unSane, that's still not extreme. The fact that there are trees at all is a giveaway. I've worked places where trees eke out their existence flagged out completely across the ground. But yeah, the escarpment's pretty windy for Ontario.

Unfortunately, decent winds and high temperature ranges are harsh on weather sensors. You might get a year out of a cheap anemometer, while an R M Young, with appropriate annual maintenance, will last decades.

Campbell do have a consumer line, Weatherhawk.
posted by scruss at 4:21 AM on April 18, 2008

I can't recommend a particular instrument, but I bet the folks at the weather station on top of Mount Washington, NH ("home of the world's worst weather", they say, cheerfully) would tell you what they use.
posted by rtha at 8:57 AM on April 18, 2008