Author Topic: ISS Transmitting Board  (Read 35165 times)

Bull Winkus

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Re: ISS Transmitting Board
« Reply #90 on: April 18, 2016, 05:27:22 AM »
8 Stations!

 [goofy]

Boy, you don't mess around!

"The average rainfall on our block today is 2.21538 inches with an 8 point measurement."

Or, is there more to the story?

 [lol2]
Herb

Weatheraardvark

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Re: ISS Transmitting Board
« Reply #91 on: April 18, 2016, 02:32:35 PM »
I am  a retired high school math and science teacher.   I have a lot of time on my hands.  I had planned on working until 70 (what was i thinking?)  but the school district promised me until I died at the wheel , I could teach.  We got a new principal who decided that all the experienced older teachers needed to go and started making life pure hell. Fortunately for me i had an ace in the hole and was allowed to retire the next year, the condition being the asswipe had to leave me completely alone and let me do my job.   Bingo. So I retired in 2013

My latest project is to modify the soil moisture station. Davis uses these pinch clamps that have a soft plastic lever that will break.  I am going to see if I can use screw bus terminal strips to by pass sort of having to fiddle with those clamps.  My concept is to run a copper wire from each of the 8 pairs of wires to the block and then attach the wires there.  Of course i have to wait for the blocks to arrive and to figure out how to house them.   I have griped to Davis about this for 16 years.   

8 stations isn't bad.
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Bull Winkus

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Re: ISS Transmitting Board
« Reply #92 on: April 18, 2016, 06:28:52 PM »
So you mean you've got 8 soil moisture stations? I was assuming you were using 8 Vantage Pro 2 stations. My bad.

I'm still unclear about the project. Are you going to house the screw type bus terminal strips in a project box, separate from the Davis soil moisture station housing?
Herb

Weatheraardvark

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Re: ISS Transmitting Board
« Reply #93 on: April 18, 2016, 07:16:22 PM »
no,  only if I had an Envoy 8x and right now they don't work with Mac, the evil beings.
I have the following
1.  iss
2. Soil/Moisture
3.temp/humid (attic)
4.temp/humid (basement)
5 temperature station (Soil surface temp)
6.wireless anemometer (I have two anemometers. One I installed about 15 years ago and one lower.  I'll never be able to replace the one on the pole.  I got older0
7.temp/humid ( crawl space under family room)
8 2nd soil moisture unit (right now not being used)

The screw terminals might not fit in the box so I might have to put something to the bottom . OR I might face reality and give up.  Depends on how I feel at the time.
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Blicj11

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Re: ISS Transmitting Board
« Reply #94 on: August 11, 2016, 07:58:27 PM »
Back to my original thread with an interim update. We are sanding and re-staining our log cabin this week. Because I have an aerial man lift on property, I decided to inspect my ISS. It was full of dirt so I'm glad I took a look. My ISS battery clocked in at 3.1 volts. It has been installed for 4 months now. I think the threshold for replacement is 2.8 volts, so I am well within range for good operation.

One idea, which I have not tried yet, for checking to see if the capacitor is working is to take the battery out of the ISS and see how long it will continue to transmit readings. On a new wireless transmitter board, on a sunny day, that capacitor should continue to operate for several hours. Davis says it can go for up to eight hours, but should go at least two to four. Of course, you have to ignore the low battery voltage warning, which removing the battery will generate, but that should give me an idea of the solar panel/capacitor generating and storing power.
Blick


xairbusdriver

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Re: ISS Transmitting Board
« Reply #95 on: August 11, 2016, 08:57:31 PM »
I hope you remember to replace the battery before turning in for the night... You could set an alarm/email from WC, but asking the wife to remind you will probably be more reliable. Just tell her it's something you did wrong! My wife has a memory like an elephant for those kinds of things!! [banghead] [lol]
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elagache

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Should work without battery (Re: ISS Transmitting Board)
« Reply #96 on: August 11, 2016, 11:34:16 PM »
Dear Blick, X-Air, and WeatherCat station caregivers,

One idea, which I have not tried yet, for checking to see if the capacitor is working is to take the battery out of the ISS and see how long it will continue to transmit readings. On a new wireless transmitter board, on a sunny day, that capacitor should continue to operate for several hours. Davis says it can go for up to eight hours, but should go at least two to four. Of course, you have to ignore the low battery voltage warning, which removing the battery will generate, but that should give me an idea of the solar panel/capacitor generating and storing power.

Since I've also had transmitter board woes I can confirm that the board will continue to transmit without a battery.  In fact Ryan from Scaled Instruments recommends that you turn on the LED on the board you are getting rid of to discharge the super-capacitor as rapidly as possible, otherwise the old board might interfere with the new one you are installing.  I've watched the old board flash the LED for hours.  You could certainly let it run for an hour or two with the LED on to make sure the super-capacitor is providing the rated power.

Cheers, Edouard

Blicj11

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Re: ISS Transmitting Board
« Reply #97 on: February 13, 2017, 06:22:16 PM »
An update here, just to say that this problem seems to have been solved, finally. It has been exactly 10 months today since I installed the third wireless transmitter module in the ISS. Since the battery is still good, that means I have gone twice as long as Davis says it will take to run the battery down if the super capacitor is not connected or otherwise not properly functioning.

Bottom line: Either the super cap went bad in the original transmitter module or something else on that circuit board went out, the second transmitter module was faulty from the factory and the super cap in the third module is working properly.

Thanks to each of you who helped me figure this thing out. This saga started in the summer of 2014 and I am happy to put it to rest. I am now able to return to replacing the battery annually and choose to do so during the spring on a sunny day.
Blick


Weatheraardvark

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Re: ISS Transmitting Board
« Reply #98 on: February 13, 2017, 10:15:23 PM »
An update here, just to say that this problem seems to have been solved, finally. It has been exactly 10 months today since I installed the third wireless transmitter module in the ISS. Since the battery is still good, that means I have gone twice as long as Davis says it will take to run the battery down if the super capacitor is not connected or otherwise not properly functioning.

Bottom line: Either the super cap went bad in the original transmitter module or something else on that circuit board went out, the second transmitter module was faulty from the factory and the super cap in the third module is working properly.

Thanks to each of you who helped me figure this thing out. This saga started in the summer of 2014 and I am happy to put it to rest. I am now able to return to replacing the battery annually and choose to do so during the spring on a sunny day.
    ]
and it took only 97 posts to figure it out.  wow
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elagache

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Glad to hear it! (Re: ISS Transmitting Board)
« Reply #99 on: February 13, 2017, 11:21:33 PM »
Dear Blick, Weatheraardvark, and WeatherCat station troubleshooters, . . .

An update here, just to say that this problem seems to have been solved.

. . . . .

This saga started in the summer of 2014 and I am happy to put it to rest.

Glad to hear that indeed this problem has finally disappeared!

and it took only 97 posts to figure it out.  wow

Be glad you weren't the person struggling with the station for that long.  Having also had a ISS episode that lasted many months I can assure you - nobody want to be in this predicament!  [banghead]

Cheers, Edouard