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Beyond providing a heads up against dangerous weather patterns, home weather stations can give you localized data on humidity and rainfall if you're an avid gardener. Because your weather monitor is intended to measure all sorts of conditions, you'll need an outdoor sensor that can stand up to even the snowiest storms. Look for one that has rugged features, like casing for protection from cyclic erosion or moisture. Also, check on the warranty, as some companies will reimburse you if the product doesn't live up to its promises. You'll get accurate data and even data you don't get from other weather stations, but you have to use a separate device to view the data, as there's no included screen.
While it doesn’t include a lightning detector in the base package, you can add one and a half-dozen other optional sensors. All the sensors I tested were accurate, although all the optional sensors require batteries, so that’s something to keep in mind. Selecting where to install your weather station’s sensor is one of the most important things you can do to ensure accurate data collection. Find an open area on your lawn and secure the sensor suite between four and six feet above the ground for the best results. This height is the sweet spot for temperature and rain gauge, though it’s well below the recommended 32.8 feet for an anemometer.
Best Budget Model: AcuRite 5-in-1 01512 Wireless Weather Station
We’ve also shared some advice on what to look for and how to set up your station correctly. Get the latest up-to-date weather information first, we review the top home weather stations. This weather station doesn’t have a display, but it does have a well-designed mobile app that serves the same purpose. The lack of a display is a bit of a letdown if you’re used to having an always-on display that you can check for weather information at a glance, but the app looks and works great. The Vantage Vue also lacks any internet or smart home connectivity out of the box, so you can't send data to the internet without an expensive add-on.
The WS-2000 addresses a lot of the issues we had with the WS-2902C and is definitely worth the higher price tag. The authors have decades of experience and are eager to share their knowledge with readers. To help narrow down the selection, we used personal experiences along with recommendations from landscapers, bloggers and contractors. After extensive research, we came up with our list to help you choose the right one for you. Adam Doud has been writing in the technology space for almost a decade.
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The Davis Vantage Vue is a long-time front-runner in the world of home weather stations. It doesn't have the lead it used to, especially in areas like ease of use and connectivity, but Davis still makes the most accurate sensors available on the consumer market. The Vantage Vue comes packed with all of those best-in-class instruments and a solar panel that keeps the unit running year after year without any batteries.
Many weather stations offer a series of probes which can be attached to the system, or they can receive readings from a range of transmitters such as the ThermoPro TP65 above. Thinking about your specific needs can help narrow down your choices to just a few models, making your search much easier. These sensors cost more than traditional instruments but don’t have any moving parts and are less likely to break down. The outdoor sensor unit has a range of about 300 feet from the indoor display, depending on the construction and layout of your home. The display is big, bright, colorful, and easy to read from most viewing angles, with all the most important information front and center.
Internet Connectivity and Smart Home Features
Figure out what you can spend before you start your search and work from there. The best WiFi weather stations allow you to connect to them via an app or website. Most of them also enable you to upload your weather data to places like Weather Underground where your data will be displayed alongside other personal weather stations around the world. Like the Vantage Pro2, if you want to share your weather data online, you’ll need WeatherLink Live, which costs another $200. Of course there are differences in the build quality and accuracy according to price, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that cheaper weather stations can’t provide useful measurements.
A typical home weather station includes a sensor suite (sometimes called an ISS - “Integrated Sensor Suite”) placed outside in an open area, about the size of a shoe box. This will require a sturdy mounting location, as it’s subject to all the weather of your area. Many stations also include a tablet-sized desktop console display that allows you to view the information collected by the ISS.
It's important to keep transmission distance in mind when shopping for a weather station. The Tempest uses a haptic rain sensor that measures rainfall by vibration rather than volume. The instruction manual suggests comparing rainfall totals with another nearby gauge, so we used our Davis Instruments Vantage Pro2 as the comparison model.
Depending on your priorities and goals, these could range from a killer, must-have feature to an unnecessary additional cost. That’s why it’s important to assess what your needs are in terms of features. For example, if you’re going to use it in an attempt to have a luscious green lawn, then you’ll want a station that’s capable of measuring and predicting rainfall. If you’re pushing things to the next level, maybe you’ll want your station to provide alerts which trigger sprinklers. Home weather stations consist of various sensors that send data to a base station.
DayOthers use machine learning and other advanced technologies to provide extremely accurate and localized weather forecasts. None of these features are absolutely necessary, but they can make your weather station much more useful. Our top pick for the best home weather station is the Ambient Weather WS-2000. It features an accurate and easy-to-install sensor suite, allows you to add additional sensors as the need arises, and comes with one of the best displays around. The Davis Wireless Vantage Pro2 straddles the line between hobbyist home weather stations and the sort of weather stations used in agricultural and commercial applications.
If you’re willing to accept readings which are slightly inaccurate, you’ll find that more affordable models are a good option. If, on the other hand, your readings must be extremely accurate, you’ll be looking at the top-tier range of weather stations. As you know, weather stations come packed with a wide range of features.
This is an atomic model, yet the display recognized time and date in just a few seconds, and once it did so, the moon phase popped up too. This is a simple but fun weather monitor for those who want accurate readings without the extra fuss of a wireless model. La Crosse Technology has several entry-level stations, and the C85845 is one of our favorite small weather stations. You’ll get the bare minimum in weather readings—indoor and outdoor temperature and humidity, along with barometric pressure trends and a weather forecast. The display is easy-to-read, and the brightness can be adjusted.
Solar-powered with the ability to store energy for use when natural light is minimal, this home weather station is durable, easy to install, and has remote access capabilities. Mounting hardware is included, but the mounting pole is sold separately. If you need to add additional sensors to your station, then we recommend the Ambient Weather WS-2000 Smart Weather Station.
AcuRite 01512 Home Station 5-in-1 Weather Sensor
At one point, this station was just $300, making it a bargain. Now at $450, it is pretty expensive, even with longer-range connectivity between the station and your sensors. But it's worth the money if you’d like to track more than the standard weather measurements. Those stations that score highest in both areas are then compared in feature set, ease of use, and value. I look for connectivity that allows your weather station to become a part of your smart home. The recommendations below are the stations that performed the best and offered the best value.
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