Should I worry?

[coveredinoil]

Good evening all.
Pretty new to this forum and my Vantage pro2 weather station so looking for a little guidance if you will.
A quick update, I was given a Vantage pro2 weather station that was reporting an external temp/hum sensor failure, I replaced said sensor and all had been working for a couple of days, then today weather cat reports external temp/hum sensor failure again for just over an hour before working again (for at least the next 5 hours). The weather cat log was such:-
15:50:30 18-Apr-2020: Temperature: 13°C  Dewpoint: 10°C  Windchill: 13°C Pressure: 1019 mb  Av. Windspeed: 0 MPH from North. Current Conditions: Overcast
15:52:04 18-Apr-2020: Invalid wind direction! Check anemometer, wiring, ISS connections and batteries (if applicable).
15:52:15 18-Apr-2020: Fetching data from weather station...
15:52:15 18-Apr-2020: Temperature not ready...
15:52:15 18-Apr-2020: Dewpoint not ready...
15:52:15 18-Apr-2020: External rh not ready...
All LOOKS ok in the ISS and battery is also new, can anyone suggest what to check next?
Thanks in advance.

[elagache]

Dear coveredinoil and WeatherCat troubleshooters,

Pretty new to this forum and my Vantage pro2 weather station so looking for a little guidance if you will.
A quick update, I was given a Vantage pro2 weather station that was reporting an external temp/hum sensor failure, I replaced said sensor and all had been working for a couple of days, then today weather cat reports external temp/hum sensor failure again for just over an hour before working again (for at least the next 5 hours). The weather cat log was such:-
15:50:30 18-Apr-2020: Temperature: 13°C  Dewpoint: 10°C  Windchill: 13°C Pressure: 1019 mb  Av. Windspeed: 0 MPH from North. Current Conditions: Overcast
15:52:04 18-Apr-2020: Invalid wind direction! Check anemometer, wiring, ISS connections and batteries (if applicable).
15:52:15 18-Apr-2020: Fetching data from weather station...
15:52:15 18-Apr-2020: Temperature not ready...
15:52:15 18-Apr-2020: Dewpoint not ready...
15:52:15 18-Apr-2020: External rh not ready...
All LOOKS ok in the ISS and battery is also new, can anyone suggest what to check next?
Thanks in advance.

Unfortunately, you have a novel problem at least to me.  I've never seen the Invalid wind direction! error message reported by WeatherCat.  I assume you have the USB data logger in the standard Vantage Pro-2 console?  If so, what is displayed when these episodes occur?  If you have sensor errors, you shouldn't see data for the effected instruments.

What model of Davis temperature/humidity sensor did you buy?  Davis has upgraded this sensor over the years, so a new sensor might need at the very least some adjustments to work with an older station.

That's all I can think of at the moment.  Please do provide us with any additional details that you can uncover.

Edouard

[Blicj11]

Also, when you reported this in your introduction thread, before you replaced the sensors, you did not have any comms errors. Is that still the case? This is a real puzzler because it worked for  a few days. Do you have the wireless VP2 or is it cabled?

[xairbusdriver]

I was given a Vantage pro2 weather station

Suggestions from a novice:

• Can you still contact the giver and find out the age of the battery?
• Might be a good idea to check the battery and the contacts in the station to be sure there is no corrosion.
• While looking in there, check the 'super capacitor' for any signs of swelling/corrosion.

Perhaps the solar panel is all that is powering the station, and most of that power is not being stored.

[coveredinoil]

Many thanks elagache,Blicj11 & xairbusdriver.
Sorry should try and include more detail, so filling the gaps and answering those questions here goes.
Yes it is a standard VP2 wireless console I believe (6152UK) with USB data logger.
At the time there is no display for wind speed or direction, external temp or humidity.
I replaced the defective temp/hum sensor (still assuming it is defective as it never displayed any values in weather cat or on console) with a model SHT31(7346.070) and was told it was a direct replacement. 
Still no comms errors.
The giver said it was working, but it was at least a year ago I saw it in operation. So I replaced the battery (cleaned contacts) as weather cat initially reported iss battery as an issue. Will take a look at the super cap tomorrow.

A little extra info that may or may not help, In the live data feed the external temp, wind direction and wind speed all show errors, but external humidity doesn’t. Before the temp/hum replacement both showed errors but wind dir/speed didn’t 

[xairbusdriver]

Thanks for the prompt reply and extra details!

[elagache]

Dear coveredinoil and WeatherCat troubleshooters,

. . . .
I replaced the defective temp/hum sensor (still assuming it is defective as it never displayed any values in weather cat or on console) with a model SHT31(7346.070) and was told it was a direct replacement. 

You can make it work, but there is an issue of the temperature reading too high on older stations.  You can read up on the issue on this description of the production on the Scaled Instruments website:

https://www.scaledinstruments.com/shop/davis-instruments/parts/vantage-pro2-parts/temperature-and-humidity-sensor-parts/davis-7346-070-pro2-digital-temperature-humidity-sensor-sensiron-sht31/

Yes it is a standard VP2 wireless console I believe (6152UK) with USB data logger.
At the time there is no display for wind speed or direction, external temp or humidity.

So is this now a "permanent" condition or do you see data showing intermittently?  If the problem is intermittent, do you have any other Davis stations nearby?  If so there could a problem with that nearby station interfering with the signal from your ISS.  There is a way to change your station's transmitter ID to avoid conflicts with nearby stations, but obviously, only if that's the problem.

If all the data from the ISS is no longer being shown on the console at any time, that strongly suggests that something is wrong with the ISS.  Yes, it could be a power issue.

Davis does provide some troubleshooting information in the ISS manual.  It is available online:

https://www.davisinstruments.com/product_documents/weather/manuals/07395-249_IM_06152.pdf

The troubleshooting information starts on page 26.

. . . . . Still no comms errors.

That is correct.  The communications being referred to in this case is in between the console and your Mac.  There is no reason this problem would effect the console or the data logger.

Let us know whatever else you come up with and we'll be glad to provide further assistance.

Cheers, Edouard

[coveredinoil]

Thank you elagache.
I will need to work out the age of my system with regard to making the temp work as my manufacturing code doesn’t seem to fit with the info in the link you provided, never mind I can live with a 0.5 C error for now if I have the older set.

I was now receiving data intermittently and transmitter ID was something I read about elsewhere. I live about 1km from the next property so unlikely to pick up another station, but thought it worth a try.
Having moved station ID the data appears to be flowing nicely again, I guess only time will tell if this continues.

As an aside I looked in the ISS today at the super capacitor and happy to report it “looks” ok at least.

Thanks again, hoping not to have to post again on this thread, but look forward to further interactions on other stuff 

[elagache]

Dear coveredinoil and WeatherCat troubleshooters,

. . . .
I was now receiving data intermittently and transmitter ID was something I read about elsewhere. I live about 1km from the next property so unlikely to pick up another station, but thought it worth a try.
Having moved station ID the data appears to be flowing nicely again, I guess only time will tell if this continues.
. . . .

I had a problem similar to what you were experiencing and that is why I suggested changing the transmitter ID.  Davis equipment transmit on the 900 Mhz bands which are commonly used for a number of wireless devices.  It could be that some other wireless device around the house was causing the interference.  Hopefully indeed switching to another ID solved the problem.  If it doesn't you might simply try yet another Davis ID.  I believe the IDs use sequential frequencies so you might need to use a higher ID number to avoid the conflict. 

Thanks again, hoping not to have to post again on this thread, but look forward to further interactions on other stuff 

Whatever the need by all means feel free to ask.  We'll be here!

Cheers, Edouard 

[Felix]

Rather than just taking a WAG at an alternate transmitter ID to solve a possible interference problem internally or externally, suggest using:

Apple’s integral Wireless Diagnostics.app

Ensure Wi-Fi is “On;” Do a Spotlight search for the Wireless Diagnostics.app; Ignore the widget pop-up and pull down the Wireless Diagnostics “Window” menu at the top left and select the appropriate tabs to see which channels are being used and strength.

Alternatively (and easier), the free “WiFi Explorer Lite” in Apple’s App Store

OR


The test version of NetSpot 2.12 from their website:

https://www.netspotapp.com/download-mac.html

[Blicj11]

Felix: Thanks for the tips on the WiFi alternatives to the built-in, and more complicated to use, Apple app.

coveredinoil: Now that Edouard reminded us, I too had a somewhat similar issue resolved by changing by transmitter ID from the Davis default.

Edouard: Thanks for reminding us about the IDs.