Aercus Instruments Troubleshooting
Below is a list of the most common issues and fixes for Aercus Instruments weather stations. If you require an ELECTRONIC COPY OF A MANUAL you will find it by clicking here.
1. Not Receiving Some or All Outdoor Readings
2. Rainfall Measurement Issues
4. Outdoor Temperature Reading Too High
7. Temperature Differences Between Indoor and Outdoor Sensors
8. Transmitter Jammed in Solar Shield
10. Issues with Cumulus Software
11. How Do I Connect the Aercus Instruments WeatherRanger to PC/Mac to Download the Data?
12. Console Keeps Freezing or Disconecting When Connected to a PC With the USB Cable
13. Changing the Logging Interval on my WS3083/WS2083/WS1093 Console
14. The SET Button on my WS1173 Appears to be Faulty
15. The Server Light on my WeatherSleuth Is Not Going On and Data Is Not Sending to Weather Underground
16. Unable To Set WeatherSleuth To NZ Daylight Savings Time
1. Not Receiving Some or All Outdoor Readings
Wireless communication is susceptible to interference, distance, walls and metal barriers. Your weather station is rated at 100m line of sight (no interference, barriers or walls) but typically you will get 20-40m maximum under most real-world installations, which includes passing through barriers or walls. To troubleshoot double check the following:
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The batteries in both units are fresh and fully charged. Alkaline batteries slow down and freeze in colder temperatures which leads to signal dropouts so we recommend Lithium batteries in colder climates. Also avoid rechargeable batteries as many are 1.2V (need standard 1.5V) and they also leak their peak charge quickly even if they are 1.5V. |
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Reset the transmitter and then the receiver by removing the batteries/AC adaptor from both. If you have a solar assisted transmitter press and hold the Reset button on the underside of the unit with the solar panel in for 4 seconds then release. Wait for 1 minute and then reinsert the batteries/AC adaptor making sure to put the batteries in the receiver last to force a proper resync. After this the receiver will make an initial measurement and start to register the transmitter (the radio reception icon will be turned on). Do not touch the receiver before the outdoor data is received (this may take several minutes) or the outdoor sensor learning mode will be terminated. When the outdoor transmitter has been registered the receiver will automatically switch to the normal display mode from which all further settings can be adjusted by the user. |
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The transmitter is not out of range. Going through walls can significantly reduce the range. Test this by taking the receiver closer to the transmitter, remove and reinsert the batteries and wait for a few minutes to see whether the signal is picked up. |
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Check for sources of interference (cordless phones, baby monitors etc |
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Check all connections are secure and plugged in correctly. |
Note: If 3. or 4. is an issue you may need to relocate the sensor array, receiver, or both.
If this does not resolve your problem your station has most likely developed a faulty transmitter. If you are still within the 12 month warranty period then contact us by clicking here and our support team will help you out. Remember to let us know you have already tried the troubleshooting steps.
If you are outside the 12 month warranty period you can purchase a replacement transmitter by clicking on the link below (note: spare parts are not able to be broken down into smaller parts and only come as shown on our website):
Aercus Instruments Accessories
2. Rainfall Measurement Issues
There are some common errors to watch out for when checking your rain gauge performance. When comparing your rain gauge’s readings to another device be aware of the following:
Comparing the readings to a manual rain gauge that reads in mls. Our stations, like all modern weather stations, measure in mms which will produce a different reading to a gauge reading in mls. To convert between the two you divide the mls by the surface area of the weather station rain gauge and multiply by 10. If you have a rectangle rain gauge the surface area is 55cm2 so 12mls for example is equivalent to 12/55cm2 x 10 = 2.2mms. If you have a round 10cm diameter rain gauge the surface area is 78.5cm2 so 12mls for example is equivalent to 12/78.5cm2 x 10 = 1.5mms. If you have a round 12cm diameter rain gauge the surface area is 113cm2 so 12mls for example is equivalent to 12/113cm2 x 10 = 1.1mms.
Tipping water from one rain gauge into the weather station rain gauge. Even if both gauges read in mms, unless both rain gauges have exactly the same size mouth opening the reading will be different. To explain, “mm” as used in rain measurement means “mm per square meter” so the wider the area capturing the rain the more volume of water each mm equates to (and vice versa), e.g. to cover a football field in 1mm of water takes considerably more water than to cover the bottom of an ice cream container in 1mm. Weather stations of course make a calculation to convert the volume of water they measure to a standard ”mm per square meter” but the actual volume of water captured before this calculation is made depends on the surface area of the gauge in question.
Comparing to local weather data or a rain gauge not located exactly next to the weather station rain gauge. Rainfall varies significantly in different locations. Not only that but even small differences in location can cause significant variations due to the impact of wind and/or obstructions from buildings etc. Even two rain gauges placed side by side at the same height will read slightly differently as each will react differently to wind and splash out (although you would expect them to be close).
Comparing over different time periods. When comparing two rain readings they must be measured over exactly the same time period. It is easy to confuse the start and end times.
To test whether your gauge is reading correctly please follow these steps:
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Clean the funnel and inside of your rain gauge as per the troubleshooting section of your manual and remove spider webs or anything that might be restricting the internal tipper mechanism or the free flow of rain. If you no longer have your hardcopy manual you will find downloadable manuals by following the link below: |
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Place the receiver and transmitter near each other to rule out interference or distance issues. |
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Tip the rain gauge tipper back and forth a few times and note what gets registered on the console. There will be a short delay before the console updates due to its update frequency the details of which are in the Specification section of your manual. If it is working properly each tip of the tipper should register 0.3mm (with the exception of round 10cm diameter rain gauges which register 0.45mm per tip). |
If you’ve followed the steps above and your rain gauge appears to be working ok but you experience rain readings higher than you believe you should then double check the following:
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An unstable mounting solution (sway in the mounting pole) may result in the tipping bucket inside the rain gauge incorrectly incrementing rainfall. In this case make sure you have a stable, level mounting solution. |
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On rare occasions the wind can get in underneath the rain gauge and move the lightweight tipper inside the rain gauge. In these instances we recommend mounting the rain gauge on a flat surface or placing a flat piece of plastic on the underside of the rain gauge to prevent the wind getting in. |
If this does not resolve your problem your station has most likely developed a faulty transmitter. If you are still within the 12 month warranty period then contact us by clicking here and our support team will help you out. Remember to let us know you have already tried the troubleshooting steps.
If you are outside the 12 month warranty period you can purchase a replacement transmitter by clicking on the link below (note: spare parts are not able to be broken down into smaller parts and only come as shown on our website):
Aercus Instruments Accessories
Is the wind sensor spinning freely? To test, manually spin the sensor(s) in both directions. If it is spinning freely double check that the connection of the wind speed sensor into the underside of the wind direction sensor is firmly pushed in and also that the connection from the wind direction sensor into the transmitter is firmly pushed in.
If the wind sensor is not spinning freely the likely cause is a seized bearing and you will need a new wind sensor. If you are still within the 12 month warranty period then contact us by clicking here and our support team will help you out. Remember to let us know you have already tried the troubleshooting steps.
If you are outside the 12 month warranty period you can purchase a replacement transmitter by clicking on the link below (note: spare parts are not able to be broken down into smaller parts and only come as shown on our website):
Aercus Instruments Accessories
4. Outdoor Temperature Reading Too High
Temperature comparison (and in fact comparison of any of your station’s readings) is only useful if you have a known calibrated source you can compare it against. Comparing your readings to those obtained from sources such as the internet, radio, television or newspapers may well produce differences as readings can differ significantly from location to location.
To compare temperature we recommend a mercury or red spirit (fluid) thermometer. Bi-metal (dial) and digital thermometers (from other weather stations) are not a good source and have their own margin of error. Using a local weather station in your area is also a poor source due to changes in location, timing (airport weather stations are only updated once per hour) and possible calibration errors.
Once you have a mercury or red spirit (fluid) thermometer place the sensor in a shaded, controlled environment next to the fluid thermometer, and allow the sensor to stabilise for 48 hours. Compare this temperature to the fluid thermometer.
If you believe your station is reading outdoor temperature too high there are a number of things you can do. Firstly, make certain that the sensor array is not too close to heat generating sources or structures, such as buildings, pavement, walls or air conditioning units (at least 1.5m apart). Secondly, you can make a simple Stevenson screen to provide your temperature sensor additional solar protection. You will find a guides on how to do this here:
http://www.vwlowen.co.uk/picaxe/stevenson-screen/stevenson-screen.htm
http://www.weatherforschools.me.uk/html/weatherboxes.html
Makes sure you have set your station to Relative Pressure as per your manual and change the pressure reading to match with a local benchmark such as the local air pressure provided for your area on the Met Service website:
If your barometer is fixed on one number then your console has developed a fault. If you are still within the 12 month warranty period then contact us by clicking here and our support team will help you out. Remember to let us know you have already tried the troubleshooting steps.
If you are outside the 12 month warranty period you can purchase a replacement transmitter by clicking on the link below (note: spare parts are not able to be broken down into smaller parts and only come as shown on our website):
Aercus Instruments Accessories
The prediction is for the upcoming 12 - 24 hours and doesn't necessarily reflect the current weather situation. It calculates on the basis of the pressure changes that have occurred during the past 24 hours the most likely weather forecast for the upcoming 12 - 24 hours. The weather forecast predicted has a probability of 70%. This means that observed over a period of several weeks, 7 from 10 forecasts for the upcoming 12 - 24 hours will be correct. Observing the forecast for only a few days isn't sufficient to draw any conclusions re accuracy.
Also makes sure you have set your station to Relative Pressure as per your manual and changed the pressure reading to match with a local benchmark such as the local air pressure provided for your area on the Met Service website:
7. Temperature Differences Between Indoor and Outdoor Sensors
You've happened upon a common issue with temperature/humidity measurement. You can assemble any number of thermometers and more than likely they will all read a little differently (as will hygrometers). There are a number of reasons for this. Each thermometer is calibrated to a specific temperature, meaning they become less accurate as they move away from their calibrated temperature (your indoor and outdoor temperature sensors are calibrated differently as the temperature ranges they are design to measure are quite different).
Also temperature and humidity are inter-related and a thermometer will read a little differently at a constant temperature as humidity changes. Each thermometer will respond differently to various temperature/humidity combinations. Lastly, electronic thermometers use linear approximations which can also introduce differences. Here’s a link to an article on this that you might find interesting:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermometer
Your station has the same level of accuracy as other mid-market brands on the market (eg La Crosse, Technoline, Oregon Scientific, iRox etc). For temperature it is +/- 1C which means even ignoring the issues above your indoor and outdoor readings could differ by up to 2C.
To judge the accuracy of one or more of your temperature sensors we recommend a mercury or red spirit (fluid) thermometer. Bi-metal (dial) and digital thermometers (from other weather stations) are not a good source and have their own margin of error. Using a local weather station in your area is also a poor source due to changes in location, timing (airport weather stations are only updated once per hour) and possible calibration errors.
Once you have a mercury or red spirit (fluid) thermometer place the sensor in a shaded, controlled environment next to the fluid thermometer, and allow the sensor to stabilise for 48 hours. Compare this temperature to the fluid thermometer. If you believe you have one or more faulty temperature sensors and you are still within the 12 month warranty period then contact us by clicking here and our support team will help you out. Remember to let us know you have already tried the troubleshooting steps.
If you are outside the 12 month warranty period you can purchase a replacement transmitter or console by clicking on the link below (note: spare parts are not able to be broken down into smaller parts and only come as shown on our website):
Aercus Instruments Accessories
8. Transmitter Jammed in Solar Shield
If you are having trouble getting the transmitter out of the solar shield it does come out. If it is a little stuck use a bit of twisting and pulling and it should slide out. Don’t be afraid to pull quite hard it is pretty rugged. Often leaving it in the sun for 5 minutes helps loosen it up too. In the unlikely event anything breaks we will replace it free of charge.
The first thing to double check is that you don't have any alarms set that keep getting set off, do this by using the manual to run though and check the alarm settings for the different weather variables. If you no longer have your hardcopy manual you will find downloadable manuals by following the link below:
http://www.aercusinstruments.com/manuals/
If you are using batteries, a different set is also worth a go just to rule out a bad batch. Bad batteries can cause issues and whilst it is unlikely we have seen brand new batteries fail early on some occasions. Make sure they are 1.5V non-rechargeables.
10. Issues with Cumulus Software
Make sure you have downloaded the latest software and Basic Installation Guide by clicking on the link below and following the steps in the Basic Installation Guide. Cumulus works on Windows XP through to Windows 10.
http://www.aercusinstruments.com/downloads/
If you are still having problems the software author supports Cumulus directly and has an excellent wiki and support forum. For technical queries please follow the links below:
http://wiki.sandaysoft.com/a/Main_Page
11. How Do I Connect the Aercus Instruments WeatherRanger to PC/Mac to Download the Data?
To connect the WeatherRanger to PC or Mac download the appropriate version of EasyWeather IP here:
http://www.aercusinstruments.com/downloads/
12. Console Keeps Freezing or Disconecting When Connected to a PC With the USB Cable
This can sometimes be caused by a PC's USB power management settings if they are set to switch off plugged in devices. Below is a video on windows USB hub power management and how to switch it off:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IaQb0OAfbQ
This problem can also be caused by interference being picked up by the USB cable. In this case the solution is to attach a foldable ferrite ring as shown below. These can usually be picked up off Trade Me for a few dollars:
13. Changing the Logging Interval on my WS3083/WS2083/WS1093 Console
To change the logging interval of your console you will need to run EasyWeather which you can download here:
http://www.aercusinstruments.com/downloads/
Do NOT run EasyWeather at the same time as Cumulus.
14. The SET Button on my WS1173 Appears to be Faulty
Double check that this is not due to the unit seeking the radio controlled time that’s making it look like the Set key is not working. Follow these steps:
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Put batteries in the console (don’t worry about having batteries in the transmitter for this test). It will beep once, the screen will briefly show all readings and then will seek out the outdoor sensor. You will see the word “Sensor” underneath the indoor humidity. |
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Press Set once, this cancels the search for the outdoor sensor and triggers the unit to seek the radio controlled time. You will see a radio icon to the left of the time. If there were batteries in the outdoor sensor the console would automatically start seeking the radio controlled time after it picked up the signal from the external sensor. |
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Press Set 3 times and the unit should return to normal mode. |
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Press and hold Set for 3 seconds and the time should change to Time Zone and the time zone and time etc can be set from there. If the radio controlled time seeking jumps in while you’re doing this go back to step 3. |
15. The Server Light on my WeatherSleuth Is Not Going On and Data Is Not Sending to Wunderground
Download and install the most recent firmware by following section 4 in your manual. To download an electronic copy of the manual click here.
16. Unable To Set WeatherSleuth To NZ Daylight Savings Time
Please download and install the latest WeatherSleuth firmware below which will allow you to select Daylight Savings Time manually rather than have it auto detect:
http://www.aercusinstruments.com/downloads/