Wireless VP1 Fails to Transmit to Weathercat ONLY during Heavy Rainfalls

[schwab]

We have a LEGACY Davis weather station running in South Florida.

It is a solar/battery powered wireless Vantage Pro ISS. It was upgraded with the Davis 6920 ISS retrofit kit.

It operates on the single frequency of 916.5 mHz (unlike the new Vantage Pro 2 ISS with best frequency spectrum-hopping capability.)

It broadcasts about 50 feet down three stories to a VP1 compatible Davis Envoy and Weatherlink Serial interface that is hardwired to an iMac running Snow Leopard OSX  10.6.8 and connected to the internet via a reliable wireless 802.11g home network.

I am aware that it needs a new temp/humidity sensor of which none are available.

The latest version of Weathercat that can be run on this system is 1.2.4

The issue is that ONLY when we experience heavy rain the ISS is losing its connection with the Envoy and therefore the data is not being transmitted to the internet.

This happened during a 3 am thunderstorm on January 13, 2015.   

http://weather.gladstonefamily.net/site/E4311

www.leisure-gardens.com


The Envoy and Datalogger record and later transmit saved data during the storms EXCEPT for the rainfall data.

   I cannot figure out why this is happening ONLY during rainstorms and any advice will be appreciated. 

In the meantime I have a spare AC powered Davis repeater that is now functioning and hopefully will boost the signal from the ISS to the Envoy if the signal strength drops.

[elagache]

Dear schwab and WeatherCat troubleshooters,

We have a LEGACY Davis weather station running in South Florida.

It is stating the obvious, but if you want to keep your station on the air, the time has come to start saving up for a new station.

I cannot figure out why this is happening ONLY during rainstorms and any advice will be appreciated. 

I can't prove it, but raindrops do generate static electricity and it is possible that the cause for the radio outages is sufficient static discharges to disrupt what is already a weak signal strength.

The Envoy and Datalogger record and later transmit saved data during the storms EXCEPT for the rainfall data.

Okay, I'm confused by this.  So the rainfall data is lost?  Are you getting any indication that the rain gauge is having sensor errors?  So during a rainstorm all data from the station transmitter doesn't transmitted through your chain of devices for a period of time, but only the rainfall data is permanently lost?

Sorry.  Most of us have newer equipment, so there isn't much expertise we can offer you.

Good luck,

Edouard

[schwab]

This set up is at our vacation residence and we will invest in a new unit someday soon.

Light rain = No problem.  Heavy downpours = CRASHES.

No rain sensor errors.   The tipper is new and the reed switch is new. The rain bucket is even new.

That is correct only the rainfall data is lost...

Edouard, this is not an easy issue as we also own 2 VP2's in Minnesota and Illinois and are very accustomed to all the technicalities.

[elagache]

Dear schwab and WeatherCat troubleshooters,

Edouard, this is not an easy issue as we also own 2 VP2's in Minnesota and Illinois and are very accustomed to all the technicalities.

Sounds to me like you have done your best to keep this Vantage Pro 1 limping along but the time has come to retire this unit as it is about to give up the ghost.

This set up is at our vacation residence and we will invest in a new unit someday soon.

  . . . . Well, . . . . . someday has come sooner than you expected! . . . . 

Seriously, you probably have spent too much money trying to keep the VP-1 up and running.  If you haven't heard of them, you might check out the prices at Scaled Instruments:

http://www.scaledinstruments.com/

You might get enough savings that you can purchase a new VP-2 and still not break the bank.  Scaled Instruments is based in Florida, so shipping won't take very long either.  There are some other discount Davis dealers out there.  If you do some careful shopping, you can definitely ease da' pain . . .

Cheers, Edouard 

[LesCimes]

Consider giving Davis Instruments a tech call. They have always been helpful to me when I call to troubleshoot problems on my station.

[elagache]

Dear LesCimes and WeatherCat troubleshooters,

Consider giving Davis Instruments a tech call. They have always been helpful to me when I call to troubleshoot problems on my station.

Yes that's a good idea.  The only problem is that you'll have to wait a bit to get through.  Also, there may not be many tech support guys still familiar with the VP-1 anymore.  Still, if you have the time, perhaps they can help you.

Cheers, Edouard