temperature sensor placement

[Gerard Jebaily]

I just got a Davis weather station that im going to be installing soon. Im not sure where I should place the thermometer/hydrometer sensor. I know it should be placed in the shade but where is there shade on top of a vehicle?? Any Ideas on where to put the thing to where it will be outside, but not exposed directly to the sun and or rain? Ive seen a few people put their temperature sensor inside some PVC pipe with two bends in it. Will that keep the sensor dry with foward movement?

 

[John Diel]

Gerard,

You will need to either buy, or make a "Radiation Shield". No, this isn't for Nuclear type Radioactive sources. It's a device that will shield your probes from solar radiation (hence the name) and active weather elements.

The PVC Pipe you see on many home built shields contains the sensor probes and a fan (or fans) to move air across the sensors. The pipe has a cap on one end that allows the air to travel through the pipe without allowing water (rain) to come in contact with the probes.

If you do a search on Mobile Mesonet in the archives, you will find several references about the placement of the probes, the radiation shields, and even some diagrams.

I built a PVC Shield and it works fairly well. I have screen on both end of the pipe to keep out the bugs and a fan to move air through the pipe when I'm sitting still.

For most chasers, this is overkill though. When I'm outside my reporting area, it's usefull in finding the actual dry line, or sensing the impending changes in pressure and such, but for finding a target to chase? Doesn't help a bit. I also use it frequently when I'm in my reporting area to relay wind speeds, temps, dew points, and other information back to the station.

 

[Andrea Griffa]

Thanks John for instructions but I've some more questions.
This spring I used a mobile mesonet and I had some issues in terms of losing signal for 1-2 days after big HP Storms; my sensor was inside a normal radiation shield and it got wet, so I had to wait till it got dry again.

Now I would like to build a PVC pipe where I can put my sensor.

Now, someone could help me about how to put inside the sensor, how to "defeat" bugs and how to not allow the entrance of water? I have one more question: which kind of fan can I use?

Thanks for replies.

Andrea

Gerard,

You will need to either buy, or make a "Radiation Shield". No, this isn't for Nuclear type Radioactive sources. It's a device that will shield your probes from solar radiation (hence the name) and active weather elements.

The PVC Pipe you see on many home built shields contains the sensor probes and a fan (or fans) to move air across the sensors. The pipe has a cap on one end that allows the air to travel through the pipe without allowing water (rain) to come in contact with the probes.

If you do a search on Mobile Mesonet in the archives, you will find several references about the placement of the probes, the radiation shields, and even some diagrams.

I built a PVC Shield and it works fairly well. I have screen on both end of the pipe to keep out the bugs and a fan to move air through the pipe when I'm sitting still.

For most chasers, this is overkill though. When I'm outside my reporting area, it's usefull in finding the actual dry line, or sensing the impending changes in pressure and such, but for finding a target to chase? Doesn't help a bit. I also use it frequently when I'm in my reporting area to relay wind speeds, temps, dew points, and other information back to the station.