Davis Vantage Vue Weather Station

Posted on June 7, 2011 by jason

My previous backyard weather station was a LaCrosse Technology WS-2308 that I purchased about 3 years ago when we moved into our new house.  It was a good example of “getting what you pay for”.  It sort of worked, except for when it didn’t.  The rain collector was the biggest issue.  I replaced it once after it stopped working and when the replacement stopped working, I decided it was time to upgrade.

I purchased the Davis Instruments 6250 Vantage Vue Wireless Weather Station from AmbientWeather.com.  After entering my email address to obtain their lowest prices, they were by far the cheapest merchant selling this product.  The shipping was pretty slow.  I ordered the item on Friday, 5/27 and it didn’t arrive until yesterday (6/6).  I also ordered the 6510USB WeatherLink software and data logger to allow the weather data to be streamed to my computer.

I opened the box and was quickly and easily able to follow the included instructions to put the ISS (Integrated Sensor Suite) together.  The ISS includes the following weather sensors:  temperature, humidity, wind speed, wind direction and rainfall rate.  It also includes a solar panel that powers the unit.  A battery backup is included for operation at night.

The included console shows a number of weather parameters at once including indoor and outdoor temperature and humidity, wind speed, wind direction, wind gust, dew point, heat index, time, date, sunrise, sunset, moon phase, rainfall total, rainfall rate and a number of other items.  The ISS transmits data to the console every 2.5 seconds which is a huge improvement over my old weather station.  It really helps for accurate and reliable wind data.

After completing assembly of the ISS, I ran through the recommended set of tests to make sure each sensor is working properly.  I then attached a 1” diameter rigid PVC pipe to the unit and mounted it to the top of the kids playset in the backyard.

Next, I attached the data logger device to the console, installed the WeatherLink software and plugged the weather logger into a USB port on my computer.  When I started WeatherLink for the first time, it guided me through the initial setup.  When it came time to choose the type of connection, I chose USB and received an error.  After a little searching on the Internet, I found that you must choose Serial instead of USB and choose the proper COM port that was set up when the device was first plugged into the computer.  A USB to Serial bridge device driver was installed that creates a virtual serial port.  I’m still not sure why the software can’t support the USB connection directly.

After getting a successful connection from the console to the WeatherLink software, I was disappointed to find out that WeatherLink doesn’t support “rapid fire” updates to Weather Underground.  I did some further searching and found a fantastic free software tool called Cumulus from Sandaysoft.  Cumulus shows nice looking graphs and gages, supports Weather Underground Rapid Fire and also creates a really nice personal weather station website.

Overall, I’m very happy so far with my new Davis weather station!  Check out my Weather Underground PWS page (displaying the rapid fire weather updates) and my personal website weather page (created by the Cumulus software).

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Am I The Only One?

Posted on November 16, 2010 by jason

Am I the only one not upset about the new security procedures in place at airports?  Or is the media only focused on the people raising a big stink?  I have personally experienced the “full body scan” machine at O’Hare airport.  I walked into the machine, raised my hands into the air as shown in the picture and allowed the TSA to take a “nude” x-ray of myself.  It didn’t bother me one bit.  I didn’t worry about the sole TSA agent sitting in a room who got to see that “nude” x-ray image.  I didn’t even worry about the TSA agent who had to check the pockets of my cargo shorts I was wearing when something suspicious showed up on the x-ray image.

We live in a different world since 9/11.  Everything changed on that day.  I want the TSA to do everything they feel they need to do to keep the “bad people” and any type of substance or device that can cause harm off the planes.  The terrorists continue to try to use aircraft in their attempts to cause harm and destruction.  I’m glad our government is focused on this effort.  I’m grateful the recent “toner cartridge” bombs were discovered before they caused any harm and/or destruction.

The procedures that take place when going through security at an airport should not come as a surprise to anyone.  It is widely published information.  If you don’t like the procedures or don’t agree with them, then don’t fly in an airplane.  When I get into my car and drive to work, I may not like the law that states I have to wear my seatbelt, but I put it on anyway.  I understand that I’m safer in my car when I’m wearing it.  When I go to Six Flags, I may not like the delay that comes from every person having to go through a metal detector to get into the park, but I’m very glad this procedure is in place.  It keeps me and my family safe.

Yes, it’s annoying to take off my shoes, take off my belt, take out my laptop, put my liquids into little containers, put the little containers into a clear bag and wait in long security lines.  But I realize there are people in this world who want to kill as many Americans as they can.  I hope our government doesn’t back down during this so-called time of “public backlash” of airport security procedures.  I hope the government continues to ensure the safety of me and my family as much as possible when we fly.

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Taste of Wisconsin

Posted on August 1, 2010 by jason

I found out about the Taste of Wisconsin in Kenosha from a random person on FourSquare. We went on Friday night and Sunday for lunch and had a great time.  Good food, crowds weren’t too bad, the beach at the harbor was very clean and big–lots of fun!  This was the 2nd annual Taste of Wisconsin.  We already can’t wait to go back next year!

Pictures can be found here.

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Millburn Referendum

Posted on July 28, 2010 by jason

We moved into our current house in the Deerpath subdivision in 2007.  One of the major reasons we chose this area was the Millburn school district.  Known for its high test scores, low ratios and reputation for a quality education, we really felt like we were making the right decision.  It turns out that the Millburn school district is now in serious financial trouble, ranked last in the state financially.  The Board of Education has decided to run a referendum to try and get the schools back on the right track.  The State of Illinois is already 2 payments behind to all schools in Illinois, so the board decided to try for a tax rate increase amount equal to the shortfall from the state which equates to a 73 cent rate hike ($744 additional tax for every $300k in home value). Continue reading →

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Is this thing on?

Posted on July 28, 2010 by jason

Hi everybody!  I’m going to use this forum to post stuff about my life–stuff I find interesting, stuff about my family, stuff I’m working on, stuff about TV shows & movies, all kinds of STUFF.  I hope you enjoy it!

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