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By: Graham McClung
Have you ever started a conversation with a comment about
the weather?
Has an unexpected weather change created havoc in your garden,
pond or aviary, or even damaged your home?
Have you ever noticed that the weather you experienced during
your day was different to that reported by your nearest official
weather station?
Have you ever left home wearing clothing that was too warm
or cool for the day's weather?
Or would you just like to know a little more about your local
weather than you can find out from TV or the internet?
A "yes" answer to any of those questions suggests
that you could benefit from owning your own home weather station.
Now is a great time to get weather station of your own. Recent
improvements mean they have never before been so powerful,
so easy to use and install, or so well priced.
I'm sure you'd like to know more, so here are some answers
to the seven most commonly asked questions about home weather
stations:
1. What is a Home Weather Station?
A modern home weather station consists of one or more sensors
which collect data on temperature, humidity, air pressure,
rainfall, and wind direction and speed from around your home.
This information is transferred to a receiver/display console
located in the comfort of your home, and updated frequently.
The cost and usefulness rises with the number of sensors used.
2. A friend had a weather station and there were cables everywhere.
Why would I want that?
No problems there. Older home weather stations sent data along
thin cables, but you will have no difficulty in finding suitable
units which use radio to transmit the weather information,
over effective ranges of 330 feet or more. No wires, no holes
in the roof or wall.
3. How difficult are they to set up?
With a little preplanning, it takes little time or effort
to get a home weather station up and running. Once you have
chosen the positions for the sensors and receiver, and checked
that they are in contact with each other, all you need is
some very basic ability with a drill and screwdriver.
4. How reliable are home weather stations, and what do they
cost?
Home weather stations vary from a simple temperature recorder
to multi sensor arrays. Costs start from less than US$30 for
the simplest models with a single sensor, up to around $5-600
for a quality home weather center. More specialized units,
designed more for commercial and agricultural uses, run up
to $3,000. As in most things, you get what you pay for, and
you can expect a $500 model to be stronger and more reliable
than something from the lower end of the price range.
Nevertheless, with a little bit of preparation and maintenance,
you can expect the cheaper models to give good consistent
service.
Much more information can be found at http://www.home-weather-stations-guide.com
5. Will I just see raw weather data, or can I expect more?
You can expect a lot more. Most weather stations offer a range
of calculated functions such as relative humidity, dewpoint,
heat index and wind chill factor, depending on which sensors
are used. Many have a basic forecasting ability, correct about
three times out of four. Many include alarm functions which
can be preset at critical high or low temperatures, high wind
speeds etc. Almost all show the time, and many of the simpler
ones can double as an alarm clock - imagine being woken in
the morning with the console showing both the time and the
outside temperature.
6. Can I connect my weather station to my computer?
In most cases, yes. In fact many of the better weather stations
include software allowing easy connection. A wide range of
commercial weather software is compatible with most weather
station models.
Take it a step further and you can even link your weather
station with automatic heating and watering systems (and much
more). Imagine the savings in water use if your irrigation
system was controlled by something a little smarter than a
timer.
7. What other uses could a home weather station have?
I've mentioned a number of uses in the answers above, but
a home weather station can help out anywhere that wind, rainfall
or temperature data is useful. Most stations will handle several
temperature sensors - you could check soil temperature to
help guide you with spring or fall plantings, pool temperatures,
or even temperatures in a baby's nursery inside your home.
Or you could run a very simple system monitoring temperatures
in an outdoor aviary or greenhouse.
On a different track, you can upload your data to a web page
- many people do - or contribute to the overall USA weather
picture by sending your information to CWOP (Citizen Weather
Observer Program)
There are so many ways to benefit from a home weather station.
But to my mind, I've left the best to last.
By observing the weather around your home, you are opening
up a much wider field - the enjoyment of the natural world.
As you see patterns develop in the information you have collected,
you'll start to appreciate the weather maps, weather warnings,
satellite images, radar and forecasts more. You'll find yourself
watching the clouds, and how they change with variations in
air pressure or wind direction, and you may even improve on
the official forecasts.
And overall you'll find yourself paying more attention to
the world outside - not just the sky, wind and clouds but
all other aspects of the natural world.
So if you can see a need for a home weather station, go ahead
and get one that suits you - you'll find a link to a helpful
website just below the end of this article. But don't be surprised
if your horizons expand well beyond your own backyard.
About the author:
Copyright ©2005, Graham McClung. A retired geologist,
Graham McClung has had a lifelong interest in the outdoors.
And where there's outdoors there's weather. He is the editor
of http://www.home-weather-stations-guide.comwhere you can
find more information, reviews and independent advice to help
you choose and use your own home weather station. You can
contact him by email at information@home-weather-stations-guide.com
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