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write your own review of the LaCrosse 2310 Weather Station.
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W5WAA
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Rating: 1/5
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Jul 13, 2009 19:06
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Not worth the money
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I reviewed this one earlier, I've had it about 2 years. It is very unreliable, goes out for no apparent reason. If you change the batteries and beat around on it it will start working again for a few weeks, then it quits again. The theory behind the unit is good, but the excution is poor. The wind measuring part is useless, uses an average reading over a minute or so, so you don't ever record gusts, and since it only upates about every two minutes, watching it for wind velocity changes is a waste of time. Save your money a look elsewhere, it's coming down tonight and going in the trash can.
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N1MIW
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Rating: 3/5
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Jan 3, 2009 19:58
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Accurate low-budget instrument BUT.......
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I've had pretty good accurate readings with my unit when compared with the local airport readings, but there have been plenty of times I've heard a wind gust outside, looked at the display, and ..... nothing! The update rate is too slow for those of you who want "instant" weather readings. Other than that, It's been pretty good.
HOWEVER, for use at an amateur radio station, mine is very sensitive to RF on 80, 40, and 6 meters. With 100 watts on 6, I'll have rainfall rates like 20 inches an hour, and the sensor is 50' away - wouldn't think that this would be too close. On HF, anything over ~30 watts causes the thermo/hygro sensor to lock up & stop sending data, requiring me to reset the display and/or the sensor to start sending data again. I was running QRO one night on 40, and the RF got into the unit so bad that it turned itself on - it beeped, the display lit up, and all icons came on! (It was off because I couldn't get it to synch the data any longer).
Other problems I've had with mine was the anemometer drain hole getting plugged, which caused water to build up & then freeze. My bad (I guess) for not performing some fall maintenance. I've had the rain sensor fail - I just replaced the reed switch which fixed that problem. I can also never seem to get rid of a temperature spike in the morning, even now in the winter. That piece of plastic over the main sensor works better as a home for critters than keeping out the solar heat.
I would recommend this unit to someone who has to answer the question "what's it like outside?", but not to another amateur operator due to the RF problems, or who is serious about WX monitoring. If you really want current conditions at your house, save some cash & get a more expensive one. When I buy my first SERIOUS weather station, this one will be given away (if I don't kill it with RF beforehand!).
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K9FON
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Rating: 2/5
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Nov 24, 2008 11:29
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Eh....................
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have owned my since 2003 and so far i have replaced the anemometer and the rain guage has failed. The txe'r eats batterys like no tomorrow (I fixed that with lithium cells) and the receiver has been the only piece that has not failed. It works ok for what it is but one can do better. The anemometer is slow to update wind speed and doesnt give a constant reading. Next time i will spend a little more $$$ and get a davis and stay away from the Wal Mart junk....
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N1EDU
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Rating: 1/5
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Jan 23, 2008 03:57
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Could do much better
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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If this is your first (or going to be considered as your first) then maybe you might look at the other brands - like Peet Brothers. Like the saying goes, pay me now, or pay me later (twice).
My unit was a 2317 unit discuounted through Sam's Club - I got it as a gift. I put everything up in hard wire mode, tower mounted, improvised but good solar radiation shielded, rain bucket add on 8 feet out on the tower side arm, etc. I wanted the most frequent wind updates, since I went to the trouble of putting everything up 70 feet on the tower, so wireless didn't intereste me- the intervals were too long.
Under warranty, there was a lightning strike probably .25 to .5 miles away, which caused the main board to go out, and the serial card on my computer, which took out the BIOS. Lacrosse changed out the unit no charge, but said it was fully functioning. pc mother board was toast.
I was more careful to disconnect the wire each approaching storm, but one came up when I was too far from home in June, and that was it. At least I went to usb to serial converter, and didn't loose my newer computer.
The unit performed well when I had it. Absolutely the only way to computerize this is with the wuhu software mentioned below. I found my cwop accuracy well within statistical standards, once I added the radiation shielding.
My unit was quite disrupted by my ham station antennas 50 - 75 feet away, when in the hard-wired mode. I was running barefoot into G5RV at the time.
If you decide this is the price point you need to be at, then watch out for lighting and RF. I may have been able to provide better shielded cable, perhaps even surge arrest, and choke beads, but
I didn't and paid the price. Somewhere there is someone that uses shielded CAT 5 instead of plain ole fone line wire.
I think that Lacrosse should have done more also. It did what I expected and more, until proximity lightning did it in - nothing else has ever been a victim of lightning in my home or shack (knock on wood). I'm not the highest place around, and I provide alot of grounding & bonding.
When up on the tower for my new station last week, I could hear the wind turbine making a rhaspy whiney sound- I think the bearings are gone in it now ! Come on! My wife used to ask what is the point of a weather station you can't use to it's fullest when the weather is the worst???
I'm going to write a review on the Peet Brothers Ultimeter 2100 pro I just got to replace it. So far, excellent !! It is a much better use of weather station dollars in my opinion. Wind updates every .5 seconds - More frequent over 5 mph.
In closing, I got a lot of enjoyment out of this and a lot of frustration. When it worked, I was proud of it, when I had to change my habits because of poor construction, then I already knew - at that point I started looking at Davis & Peet Brothers.
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K5KEE
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Rating: 4/5
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Oct 27, 2007 20:55
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Very Little Problems
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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This is my 2nd 2310 ... the 1st one had to be replaced after landing across the street during a MAJOR severe storm (along with my privacy fence and part of my roof).
Granted, I've had the sensors placed in various parts of the yard but found that out in the open for all sensors is the best. I also have a thermo-cover for the temp sensor. Otherwise, everything functions well.
As for software, the absolute best around is the WUHU:
http://home.comcast.net/~wuhu_software/
It's not only free, but fully functional with lots of bells and whistles that help monitor your stations activity, including potential problems. And the software developer is ALWAYS accessible, open to suggestions and has incorporated a lot of usable features that have been asked for by users.
My 1st station had problems with the wind sensor, and La Crosse replaced it without hesitation.
Now, to be totally honest, I'd rather have a Davis but tend to spend any extra money on ham equipment instead of weather equipment. But since I haven't had any real problems, I can't say the 2310 isn't worth hanging on to.
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KC7ZRU
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Rating: 2/5
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Oct 10, 2007 09:46
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OK for a toy - 2317
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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You get what you pay for. This is a reasonable, entry level 'hobbiest' platform. No where near what should be used for serious or disciplined observations. At under $100 - it is what it is.
The 2317 was a "special purchase" item sold through Sam's club awhile back. It's no longer available. Same 'guts' as the 2310 in a cosmeticly different case.
Temp - In/Out OK
Humidity - In/Out OK
Baro - OK
Wind - no gust ability, unable to accurately read sustained speeds over about 5mph. Pointless in Wyoming. No 'smoothing' for speed or direction. Graphs wind up looking like scatter charts.
Rain gauge - weak construction, mechanically unsound. Material vulnerable to UV degradation.
Biggest complaint: VERY susceptible to RF interference! Mine is in the same yard as my trap dipole at 30 foot. The sensor unit is mounted about 20' from the antenna. Running even 5 watts SSB on 80m will shut the external sensors down until you go out, pull the batteries do a hard reset on it. This can take up to 20 minutes.
Reed switches in the rain gauge are known to be weak and fail with regularity. Insect intrusion to the rain gauge and temp/baro/humidity sensor easily cause poor or null readings.
Biggest plus: Open Source software available! The Open2300 project provides very nice logging, databasing and web software that makes the available software from Lacrosse look like the amateurish, kludge it is. Ironic the nicest feature is not supported by or even a product of the manufacture.
Open2300 project:
http://www.lavrsen.dk/twiki/bin/view/Open2300/WebHome
Hi Ken!
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KD6NIG
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Rating: 4/5
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Jul 13, 2007 14:00
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Not too bad, as long as you remember a few things
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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So far, knock on wood (raps head) the station has worked good for me.
I do get the odd wind readings on occasion. But the WUHU software I use to upload readings to APRS will block those kind of readings automatically (replacing them with average, if they are way off).
Siting of the outdoor sensor is something I'm still fighting. I went from under the eave (way too warm) to out in the open (way too warm) to now having it covered with a heat shield consisting of plastic flower pots, a stratigically placed fan, and a solar panel. Thus far this has been the best solution, bringing my outdoor temp readings within 2 degrees of the local airport. My readings on the ratings part of the APRS side are way off simply because a few of the stations used for comparison are on the other side of Altamont Pass, and the temps are usually a few degrees lower....because they are. Plus, a good amount of the local stations near me don't report too well.
I found reporting via DSL (internet) to be much better than reporting via RF (APRS) because of the amount of traffic in this area. I have an always on DSL connection and the weather station runs on a dedicated computer that I also use for network storage, without issues.
The weather station itself so far seems to work well. I did try to waterproof what I could on the sensors. The humidity/outdoor sensor is weatherproofed thanks to the hood it has over it (5 plastic flower pots, evenly spaced, over it with ventilation between them all) and the fan inside them to circulate the air around. They are a really light color, but I'm considering painting them white to maybe help another degree or 2. I'm kind of in the mode right now that, being within 2 degrees of the airport station about 4 miles west, that if it isn't broke I might not want to fix it. We'll see.
The sensors could probably have been built a little better. I found the wireless to not report often enough for my liking, so I hardwired it. The only goofy rain readings I've had are if I hit the pole the rain/outdoor sensor are mounted to. (you can get a quarter inch of rain with a really good self-propelled lawnmower bump!)
So far I'm happy with it, except for the sensor stuff. Some of it is bad design, some of it is me, some of it is the good old sun and "you have a solar heating problem!"
9 months, its been through one winter. Course, we only got about 11" of rain in California this year.
Knocking on wood, its doing everything I've expected, and hopefully will do everything once I get those covering pots painted white (and I know I can say I won't, but knowing me, I'll be doing it, I can never leave well enough alone!)
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WA0DTH
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Rating: 1/5
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Mar 24, 2007 16:08
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Very Disappointed
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Just got this unit Friday. Bought it new from a guy on ebay.
Installed it and found it makes a good clock and indoor weather indicator.
But I never could get the outdoor sensor and transmitter to work.
I pulled the batteries out of the base and the trasmitter to do a reset. Still no outdoor readings.
I guess at this point Im tired of fussing with it.
I emailed the place I bought it from indicating how unhappy I was.
I have a WS 9035U that has given great service so I figured this unit would do the same. :-(
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W3AB
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Rating: 0/5
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Dec 17, 2006 15:19
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WS-2317 - Thought it might be OK
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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If you want an inexpensive "stand alone on the wall" or on your computer monitor weather read-out, this system would rate a 5/5. The hardware and Heavy Weather software was "plug and play".
If you want to play in APRS, weatherunderground or CWOP, go somewhere else for a weather station. This unit will not interface to a TNC. That said, yes, you might be able to get it interfaced, with a lot of time.
Per La Crosse, "the serial code is proprietary and will not be released".
It requires a fetch command to make the CPU spit out any data.
If you are interested, these sites may provide you with answers.
http://www.lavrsen.dk/twiki/bin/view/Open2300/WebHome
http://home.comcast.net/~wuhu_software/
Have fun.
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W4WNP
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Rating: 4/5
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Aug 2, 2006 09:31
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Very good for the price
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have owned the WS-2310 now for over 2 years, and have had no problems with it. After reading some of the other reviews on here, I am wondering if we are talking about the same unit.
Some of the problems that I have seen reported here are probably due to poor siting of the sensors. I have seen at least two reports where the temp/hygro. sensor was mounted under the eave of the house, a very poor location for accurate readings. Fact is, this station, like some of the other higher priced stations, tends to limit one when choosing a mounting site because the wind instrument has to be wired to the temp/hygro sensor. The spacing of these sensors can be extended by lengthening the wire between these sensors, in order to obtain a better siting for each of them. If you must put the sensor under your eave, realize that this is a compromise that sometimes ruins the accuracy of your measurements, as will placing the wind sensor on your roof. No weather station, regardless of price, can be expected to produce accurate readings if it is not installed with care and given proper siting.
A good commentary and instructions for proper siting, produced by CWOP can be found at this website.
http://www.wxqa.com/resources.html
Somebody mentioned that they wished the LCD had a backlight that would stay on. It does, you only need to run the console off of the AC adapter.
As far as the wind sensor "locking up", this unit, like most things, does require some maintenance. Spraying the wind turbine's axle with a silicone fabric spray about once a year will keep it turning freely.
The software for this unit does leave a lot to be desired, and I recommend, if you wish to post your readings professionally, that you use a 3rd party program such as Weather Display or Virtual Weather Station. Even LaCrosse lists the software from Weather Display on their website. I have used this software and can vouch for its excellence, and for the tech support from the person that produces it.
I know people that own different models of the Davis weather station and, while it does have better features (it should for the price) it has some of the same siting limitations encountered by the LaCrosse. The faster updating rate of the Davis stations is one of the features, along with others, that makes it better than the LaCrosse, but for the money, the LaCrosse isn't that bad.
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