The reason to change history start month. I'm in construction and this feature allows me to set the start date of my project, I can then track total rainfall on the project. It makes paperwork easier, hope this helps. All the best!
Excellent review of this WS-2000. Much better than Ambient Weather's videos. I'm deciding between the 2902C and this 2000. Leaning towards the 2000 because of the much better display. Thank you for taking the time to create this well organized video!
Great detailed review! I ended up going with this model thanks in part to your review. Looking forward to using this data to further refine my irrigation system's performance.
Greetings and thank you for the time and attention to detail regarding this video. I recently joined an amateur radio volunteer group and feel the need to upgrade my very measly station I have here at home. What I am finding in researching these units is details on mounting. I know that you used a metal pole and attached it to your home. I'm not fond of getting on ladders and climbing on roofs of houses, so I was planning to use a 10' section of 1" PVC pipe to mount this unit, and then bracket the pipe against my 6' fence, about 20' from the garage. I have an antenna that I mounted this way and my son put this on top of my house about 6 years ago and it's withstood 75mph wind gusts, hard rain and hail, so I figured this would last also, especially since it won't be mounted 20' feet up. Since these units typically require periodic maintenance, the easier the installation the better. I'm not sure I heard what diameter your pole was, so will a 1" diameter PVC bit big enough or should I go to a 1.5"?
Thanks for such a complete review of this unit! My old Davis weather station finally bit the dust after 20+ years of good service. I’m shopping for a newer system to replace it with. You answered most of my questions, from what I have read this also will interface with a home PC / laptop to show the same readings. Just wondering if you can download the reports so one can chart them in something like Excel? I have two small greenhouses that I grow Orchids in and this data would be very useful. I currently have a simple Ambient Weather WS-10-x4 to track greenhouse & other current conditions. Very good, useful unit but I just want more info about the wind, rain & current conditions. Thanks again.
Just purchased this station recently & set up this weekend. So far, I like it MUCH better than the Acurite stations I had previously. For one thing the support provided by the manufacturer is MUCH better. Good luck getting someone on the phone at Acurite - Won't happen. Plus their units burn through batteries after a while. Based on what I can glean, the Ambient Weather stations have none of these issues. The only negative I can see is that there are no batteries in console to keep recording info while power is out. I will be purchasing a UPS to solve this issue.
Glad you like it! As for no battery, getting the most basic UPS battery - they periodically go on sale - and adding your modem / router to the UPS would enable them to be online during power outage, assuming internet stays on (which is the case most of the time).
I returned an Accurite w/s it was inaccurate and had errors with firmware. I can see why they don't answer the phone. (too many complaints they can't handle)
Comprehensive video on Ambient Weather station. It describes all the features and setup. I feel confident after watching that I can get my weather station functioning.
Thank you for a very comprehensive video. There is a little more information that would like to pass on. If I was aware of this when I first purchased a weather station I would have done it differently. These weather station are made in China by Shenzhen Fine offset and badge by Ambient, Ecowitt , PanTech, misol etc. There are two different ways of viewing the data from these sensors, through a receiver like WS-2000/ hp2550 series, or using a gateway like gw1100 which has its own in built web-server and also loads data up to the cloud. The gw1100 is a lot more flexible with the disadvantage of not having a GUI. I fell into the trap of purchasing WH45 which read fine particles and CO2 level (check the effect of the open fire place) and doesn’t interface nicely to the HP2553. It does not allow readings to be placed onto any of the clouds although it does through the gw1100. I believe that both the gate and the receiver can be run in parallel to over come this problem but I haven’t done this a yet.
I watched the video last week , as i believe this is a clone HP2550 & locally they have a watson W8686 which is the same unit, anyway based on this info, and showing video to my wife, she loved the display simplicity, so i went for the unit ordered locally in UK. Arrived on Friday and been playing & installed - Brilliant unit - Thanks for the review
Thank you for the review on the WS-2000! It is very helpful. One question: can you schedule when the display console changes brightness (i.e. full brightness during the day, and low brightness or off at night)?
You can schedule when display comes on and off but cannot schedule brightness levels. They have to be adjusted manually. However, since it is not a glossy display, I do not feel like the display needs brightness adjustment once it is set. Display is "matte-finish" and displays the set brightness without needing adjustment (at least for me). So I have it scheduled to turn on and off as a specific time.
@@theteenagegardener Yeah, Wifi and data still transmit all the time, just the Display turns off (save power / display at night when no one is looking at it) but data collection and upload to weather underground continues.
Excellent video, thanks. I’m replacing two decade old La Crosse C84612 stations & down to this unit and the Acurite Altlas. I’m curious what the battery life is on the main sensor? One station is going at my vacation home on the Washington coastline & will be unattended for months.
Only time will tell. Cannot comment on it yet - I suspect it will depends how much sun you get in your area. Colorado gets more than average Sun days so the solar panel will provide more power to the unit so that it will not need to use the battery reserve as often. Lithium batteries should help in regions that get very cold weather.
I couldn’t help but notice that you installed your rain funnel without it’s included coil filter. Hopefully that won’t cause you trouble down the road. Nice demonstration though!
Thanks for the thorough video! I couldn't figure out what the bottom left was trying to tell me because I never set my coordinates and the sun rise/set times were way off. The manual doesn't tell me what those icons are so thanks!
Had the same issue. I did see a place in the settings to enter the longitude and latitude, but pretty surprising that those coordinates were not automatically detected once the receiver/system was connected to Wi-Fi
Greetings COLORADORMN from Cape Town South Africa 🇿🇦😊. Firstly, Excellent video. 👍👌. Now that a year has passed, how is the outside ISS & console holding out? Any failures, wobbly buttons or breakages with any of devices excluding the aurora device experienced to date. Look forward to any videos of the condition of your outside ISS, like possible sweating under the solar panel or cups & vane not spinning properly? Just your yearly maintenance checkup 👍😊. Many thanks and well done again for your superb video. John. 🇿🇦
Hey John from Cape Town - Thank you for the positive feedback. The unit is still working well and is still on the original batteries (will see if they make it past this winter). No major issues. When we had snow / thawing /freeze weather cycle the wind anemometer did freeze on two occasions and I had to use a broom to 'help' it get 'unstuck' (being careful not to break it). The only other thing I noticed is that if your internet / wifi goes down down there are times it will not auto reconnect back to weather underground once WiFi is back online - I had to power cycle it and then it reconnects right away. If I do firmware updates on my router / wifi, I do make sure to keep an eye that the station reconnects. I have set up an alert to send me notification if the unit is offline for more than 20 minutes.
@@ColoradoRMN I toured the USA twice, 1981 & 1983, mostly by Greyhound. New York City down to Orlando, then New Orleans, Dallas, El Paso, Tucson, Phoenix, San Diego, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Vancouver, Kamloops. back across to the East coast, ending up at Montreal. There I bused back to New York City and flew out from JFK for Europe, Israel back to Europe and the UK, where I did odd temp jobs to stay afloat 😊. Was away for 2 years. Now that I am older, wiser, I stay clear from air flights, too many airlines have crashed over the years and nothing can be more terrify than watching the plane you're in rapidly descend to the ground or break into a spin. No thank you 🤣🤣🤣 I want my feet to really close to terra firma 😊👍😂. We're heading into warmer climate. I miss the USA snow, it so beautiful to see the landscape covered in white. Pity I never did get to see Colorado. I did however managed to see Salt Lake City on my 2nd visit in 1983. Thanks for your response, much appreciated, still deciding what unit to get this time, but I think it will have to be the Davis Pro 2 Plus. It just seems to be the one that will outlast all the Chinese models. Every meteorologist who works with them, everywhere in the world, speak highly of Pro 2 version. Enough jabbering, keep well good friend. Trust you have many more years usage on your station👍😊. Best regards John 🇿🇦
The rainfall season can probably be used to get totals that match water year measurements, which typically starts on October 1 in the US: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_year
Thanks for the video review. In one part you very quickly show opening the battery compartment, but it's done so fast that it's hard for me to figure out how the cap comes off the battery compartment. How is it done?
You are welcome. The cover should just slide off. If you have the manual there is a diagram on it or if not, you can download it from Ambient Weather website.
Thank you for the very informative and well-done video! It appears the internal rain gauge bucket is weighted or spring loaded, so it isn't prone to sending false rain data in heavy winds? Heavy winds would rock my old Accurite 5-in-1 unit, causing it to send false rainfall data no matter how much I tried to stabilize it on the 12' pole - very frustrating issue!! In addition, the temperature sensor would always read too high in the intense sunlight of Las Vegas. How would you rate the accuracy of the temperature data on hot, sunny days??
That is correct. I had the same issue with the old station when heavy hail would trigger the rain sensor to function. Have not had this issue with this unit and I tried shaking it, as you have seen in the video, and it did not false trigger the rain guide yet.
Hi, this video was very helpful. Thank you so much for creating it. If possible, could you do a supplement video to describe the calibration sequence in detail, which starts at 16:16 on your video. It is somewhat confusing via the manual, especially how to the use for the main station and the additional sensors. I received one as a gift and am in the process of getting it tuned in. Glad that I found this video, the manual just does not explain the set ups and calibrations in the detail as you did. Thanks again. Super helpful.
Thanks for taking the time to put this together. I am concerned with the variance between the internal and external sensors when you first fired it up. Did the temperature and RH from those two get closer after a bit or stay that far apart?
Thanks for the video! I just purchased this unit, installed yesterday. I installed it very similarly to yours using a repurposed satellite dish mount and a 1.75" metal pole. After installing it the first thing i thought of was that I just installed a lightning rod! My previous station installed differently using a 2"x4" piece of wood instead of the metal pole. I'm wondering if I should ground it just to be safe.
Good question. I think it would depend on individual setup, how close it is to other objects, any other higher items close to this? Grounding it would not be a bad idea specially if there is nothing else higher. In my case, there is a street light outside of my fence and also - in my case- it is on my garage side of the house and the living areas has a higher roof elevation than garage. If lightning must strike, I'd rather have it strike the poll / garage side than the living room section of the house section.
You didn't mention that the WS- 2000 display does not have battery backup. That's a major negative if power loss or interruptions are an issue, as is often the case during severe weather.
That is true but I never expected a weather station to come with battery back-up for power outages. I have a UPS battery that runs my modem, wireless router, and indoor weather station display/console in the event of a power outage. During most power outages, broadband internet signal is still available so having UPS for modem, WiFi router, and this display keeps the weather station going.
@@ColoradoRMN My understanding was that in the event of a power interruption, even if momentary, the data for the day up to that point is lost. Is that incorrect? I have a full house generator so power interruptions are not an issue for me either, unless the data is lost. As an additional point, the previous generation and less expensive display unit from Ambient - WS 2902 - runs on AC power but also has backup batteries. Seems illogical for a later, upgraded, and more expensive unit from Ambient to take a step back on this issue.
Thanks for the comprehensive review and setup! I am new to the PWS and in my recent research I came across the AW-5000 Beta which just came available for purchase. It looks to have all the features as the 2000 without any moving parts? In the short time you have had your 2000 and your 5 years of experience with the 1000, can you please share what kind of issues you had and the parts you had to replace if any? Thanks again for this review! With your insight I will probably by the 2000. The 5000 is expected to be released in late 2020. The beta 5k is out of stock.
Nice find on the WS-5000. It was not available when I got the 2000 or else I would not mind trying it out. No issues with the WS-2000 so far - I am getting more accurate rain readings with it than I had with the 1000-WiFi rain sensor. The 1000 WiFi seemed to be extra sensitive and would get triggered hail. On the 1000 one, I did strip the screw on the wind vane when I was cleaning it around year ~4 and replaced it with another screw. The console died on the 1000 at year 5 and that is why I decided to try this WS-2000. The 100 WiFi has the ability to recharge the batteries via solar. The 2000, does not, it will power the station via solar and use the batteries at night but will not charge them. So I do expect to be doing more "maintenance" on it than the 1000. Not sure hwy the decided against having 2000 form having rechargeable batteries.
With 16 second updates, does the anemometer (wind) feature miss gusts that occur between update intervals, or does it record the highest, lowest, average or absolute current speed with the data send?
Great review just set my WS 200 up today your video helped allot thanks. tell me about your pole setupcould not figure out why two poles used is that necessary i just used one ?
Glad you found the video helpful. The u-bolts will hold a pole that is 1" to 2" in diameter. The current step I have is there is an existing smaller ~1/2" or 3/4" attached to the property. So Using the existing pole I use hose clamps to attach and hold the larger poll (seen in the video) from the other weather station and use the u-bolts to attach the weather station to that larger poll. So in total: smaller poll is attached to the larger poll via two hose clamps. The larger poll is attached to the weather station via the provided u-bolts. Hope this helps.
Hi there. Thanks a lot for the review and comprehensive video of the functionality and setup of the weather station. I just bought the 2902A model before seeing this review. Can you please, if you know, tell me the difference of this model 2000 vs the one that I bought 2902A? Again, thanks a lot for the review.
Both are great stations and models. The External outdoor unit is the same for both. The difference is the indoor consoles/display is different. The 2902A has temperature, humidity and pressure sensor built into the console while 2000 has a separate indoor wireless unit for this. Also the 2000 can have up to 8 additional sensors (I use them. place and monitor temperature in different areas) while 2902A does not have that capability. There are some additional/optional sensors like PM2.5 that WS-2000 can support (I do not have one but may add it if price goes down) that I do not think 2902A can support.
Hi, thank you for the great review. I have a question before buying this device, can't find it anywhere ¿Does the history data gets lost if there is a power failure?
I may ask you, what distance should it be between the outdoor and indoor console to stay connected ? And it’s not related to the internal house WiFi yes ?? Appreciate your effort.
Should be within 100 feet in the real world. The manual states in an open area with no interference or obstructions (walls) it can reach up to 330 feet but once you factor in windows, doors, etc should be within ~100 feet.
@@marks2254 I was thinking the same thing. I installed mine a few days ago and couldn’t help but think that this is a pretty pricey station to be trusting that small piece of plastic that’s holding it to the pole.
This is an awesome weather station! Question though i am worried about pole options for the station preferable pbc i do not want issues with lighting. Will it slip?
Have you had the alarm system beep? Do you know why this system beeps, did we set something up incorrectly? If so, how do you deactivate the alarm? Or, why is there an alarm going off at all hours of the day? Ours randomly goes off, day or night and we don’t know how to deactivate it.
Hi, I have a questions about this weather station. Could you show the graph of the wind speed? How accurate is it and how often the data are collected from the station to the server? Are data on the graph second by second? Does the station have any API where I can get the data and collect into my own system?
Kind of like doing maintenance on any other item; when you take it down for cleaning every 2 - 3 change the batteries. Interestingly, mine are still running all these years but I am in Colorado and we have a lot of sun in the day time. I will likely replace batteries before this winter to ensure I do not have to do it during the winter.
I've found the transmission interval of 16 seconds to be way too long, in particular for wind direction and wind speed. You get very choppy wind-readings
Can this device be used as a mobile station, for example, mounted on a two-wheels cart to measure temperature, wind speed and direction along a transect? Does it provide coordinate system for saved data?
Question, are you familiar with the alarm system and why the alarms starts to ring? We are so confused on why our units alarm periodically goes off…our system wakes us up during the night and we have no idea how to turn it off.
I do not use the alarm system but I think you may have setup some parameter that trips it. Go into the alarms section (in settings) and confirm that all of them are off.
lighting detection is a nice feature to have. WS-2000 can do it as an add-on but that sensor is $66 at the moment. I may get it if it goes on sale in the future. I do not really need it at my location (for now).
We have had our unit for 1 1/2 yrs and are not connected to wifi. It continues to be a learning curve for us. At this point in time, we get an outdoor temp reading every morning and again late evening. During the daytime hours, we get two dashes (- -) . The RF icon is always present but late evening, the wifi icon is next to the RF. The manual clearly states that the dashes will appear if temp go over or under Max/Min settings but no where is this explained. We know that you can change Max/Min settings but to what number/setting and why is not explained. Any thoughts???? please????
Hi :) Just got some internet research and i'm still conviced to go with this product. Please.... if you imagine you are sending this via post, what would be the weight of the box of it? (i did not find any seller to send it to my country)
So far it is still working well without issues. If I change the indoor sensor battery I seem to be needing to re-register it (perhaps it is a firmware issue). Station still works well. Highest recorded winds here have been 49 MPH on 4/14/2022.
Guten Tag,ich habe die Baugleiche Weatherstation. Meine ist WeatherScreen PRO. Ein Problem habe ich. Den Wetterserver kann ich nicht aktivieren. Können Sie mir einen Rat geben? Danke für die Hilfe. Wolfram Mueller, Germany
Of course :) . Each area would need to adapt for their own application. Tornado ally or hurricane areas would need better and stronger mounting for sure!
Can you please tell me something about this? I cannot find an answer. I have had another brand for some time before it broke on me. And this brand required (all of us) to upgrade this hub they had that received data and from that hub then transmitted to the WeatherUnderground and internet laptop/phone app. If you did not purchase their "hub" then you could not connect to the internet. Does this Ambient Weather model require such an additional purchase of a device? Or is it all included and internal? For I was unable to determine from your video if perhaps you already had such a "hub" device already installed/available in your home from your previous/old weather station. Thanks in advance.
Hi Kyle, the console in this model has WiFi capability and you can transmit weather data to wunderground.com and to ambientweather.net . No need to hub with this model.
I have a 4 year old WS 1001 with console issues. I was wondering why you chose the WS 2000 over the WS 1001 or 1002? I like the 2000 display except for the tiny outdoor humidity and NO graph.
So my 5 year old weather station that I was replacing was the WS-1000 WiFi (early version of 1001 and 1002). The 2000 was newer and seemed to have a better display so wanted to give that a try. Nothing wrong with WS-1001 or WS-1002. Having multiple temp/humidity sensors is also nice ability with WS-2000 in case you want to monitor several areas. You can have up to 8.
You shouldn't really be showing pulling the sticker off the solar panel in sunlight before installing the batteries. It can damage the unit. That is why there is a black sticker on it telling you in steps. Other than that great information
I asked the Alexa version of Ambient Weather skill for last Monday's Weather (Jan 13th 2020) and she said "Your Personal Weather Station was not reporting on Monday Jan 6th 2020" because I did not have my weather station yet but when I said what was the weather for Monday it says Your Personal Weather Station was not reporting on Monday Jan 20th 2019. If I ask Google the same thing it knows I meant Jan 13th. If I ask Alexa for January 13 th's weather she tells me what the high and low were for last Monday the 13t. Why does the same skill not work properly on Alexa? Firefox on Apple, Windows and Linux operate exactly the same, so the OS has nothing to do with the way Application functions so why does the same skill respond differently on Alexa than on Google Assistant?
No - not on this model. I am, however, still using the original batteries still. They only kick-in when solar power is unavailable (too cloudy or at night).
You do not need the WiFi unless you want to transmit that info to WU and he Ambient Weather Network. Without WiFi it will just transmit the data to the console and that is it. No hard wire option, if you want to connect it to the computer, as far as I know.
why is identical at froggit WH3000 SE and other station, I wonder why there are the same weather stations on the market but of different brands, can you tell me why?
Seems like the manufacturer makes them for different companies. It does appear, however, that the firmware is different and devices are not cross compatible (i.e. you cannot but another display and have it work with the outdoor unit from another vendor even if they do look the same).
Highest wind reading at my location so far has been 47.4 mph and 41.2mph. It did ok so far but cannot speak what would happen at 70 MPH. Manual for this station shows specifications of "0 to 100 mph (operational)"
@@ColoradoRMN I live in tornado alley and if we are not getting a tornado we get severe storms with gusting winds. So I just don't want it to be broke after one season
We set one of these up today. We can’t get it to connect to WiFi. Our network does not pop up on the drop down choices. So, we enter our info, it just reads ‘connecting’. Then, it switches to a different network. It’s only different by a few characters, but still not our network. Any ideas? (We are old and not tech minded!🙄) thank you
You may have to check that your WiFi deice is broadcasting on the 2.4 Ghz signal / band (check wireless configuration). If you have a newer WiFi network, maybe you only enabled 5Ghz? If you do enable 2.4, make sure you have a password setup for it.
No, it does not. I did get a small UPS battery to power the console and modem / router to keep it online if there is a power outage. The small ones are good for low drain devices as long as you do not plugin a desktop computer / monitor to them.
I have this same unit and installed it a few days ago. Im having issues with the INDOOR temp being correct. Ive adjusted it to read close to the other thermometers in my house, and i have one mounted next to my WS on wall where they are about 3 inches apart. After a few hours the WS indoor temp always ends up 10-20 degrees higher or lower. It wont maintain the correct temp.
That is strange. Sounds like the indoor sensor is bad or maybe has some sort of an issue where internal electronics creating extra heat? Contact Ambient Weather and have them diagnose or replace it under warranty.
@@ColoradoRMN I resolved the issue by installing a 2nd sensor and renaming it for indoor and set the program to read it all time. It reads the correct temp and humidity now.
I have been unable to calibrate the indoor temperature. I used a reliable source to set the indoor temp in calibration but it is wildly inaccurate. Currently showing 30 degrees cooler than actual temp., Any suggestions?
30 degree is more than a calibration issue - it is a problem! First, re-register your transmitters just in case your station is picking up another probe / sensor? If it is still the same, contact them for a replacement as 30F off is a defect.
this is another question I have, getting ready to go into our first winter with the WH2000, but we won’t get anywhere near as much snow as Colorado. So I would like to know how it handles snow and ice buildup or if it has any solar power issues if there is low sunlight or snow buildup
The reason to change history start month. I'm in construction and this feature allows me to set the start date of my project, I can then track total rainfall on the project. It makes paperwork easier, hope this helps. All the best!
I usually say "Ask Ambient Weather for outdoor conditions." Works all the time for me.
Thanks for the tip. This trigger seems to be working much better with Alexa and I get good results with it so far.
@@ColoradoRMN No problem, anytime.
Absolutely the best video out there for this product. Detailed and comprehensive.
U should be the official Ambient spokesperson/reviewer/content provider. 👏👏👏
Excellent review of this WS-2000. Much better than Ambient Weather's videos. I'm deciding between the 2902C and this 2000. Leaning towards the 2000 because of the much better display. Thank you for taking the time to create this well organized video!
Could not have been any better, absolutely perfect. Thanks so much.
Thanks for the positive feedback.
Great detailed review! I ended up going with this model thanks in part to your review. Looking forward to using this data to further refine my irrigation system's performance.
Glad it was helpful. Hope you enjoy this unit!
Yup. Another good one. Sorry im so far behind. Didn't realize these 2 vids were so old. I'll catch up one day.
Very good review. Really good job of making sure you covered everything.
Nice video. I just ordered on on Amazon and now I'll understand it a lot better once it arrives and I'm ready to set up
Thanks. Enjoy your station once you get it.
Thank you for taking the time to make an excellent detailed review!
Glad it was helpful!
Greetings and thank you for the time and attention to detail regarding this video. I recently joined an amateur radio volunteer group and feel the need to upgrade my very measly station I have here at home. What I am finding in researching these units is details on mounting. I know that you used a metal pole and attached it to your home. I'm not fond of getting on ladders and climbing on roofs of houses, so I was planning to use a 10' section of 1" PVC pipe to mount this unit, and then bracket the pipe against my 6' fence, about 20' from the garage. I have an antenna that I mounted this way and my son put this on top of my house about 6 years ago and it's withstood 75mph wind gusts, hard rain and hail, so I figured this would last also, especially since it won't be mounted 20' feet up. Since these units typically require periodic maintenance, the easier the installation the better. I'm not sure I heard what diameter your pole was, so will a 1" diameter PVC bit big enough or should I go to a 1.5"?
Thanks for such a complete review of this unit! My old Davis weather station finally bit the dust after 20+ years of good service. I’m shopping for a newer system to replace it with. You answered most of my questions, from what I have read this also will interface with a home PC / laptop to show the same readings. Just wondering if you can download the reports so one can chart them in something like Excel? I have two small greenhouses that I grow Orchids in and this data would be very useful. I currently have a simple Ambient Weather WS-10-x4 to track greenhouse & other current conditions. Very good, useful unit but I just want more info about the wind, rain & current conditions. Thanks again.
Glad you found this helpful! Good luck with your new unit and the two small greenhouses for the Orchids - sounds like a fun and exciting project .
Just purchased this station recently & set up this weekend. So far, I like it MUCH better than the Acurite stations I had previously. For one thing the support provided by the manufacturer is MUCH better. Good luck getting someone on the phone at Acurite - Won't happen. Plus their units burn through batteries after a while. Based on what I can glean, the Ambient Weather stations have none of these issues.
The only negative I can see is that there are no batteries in console to keep recording info while power is out. I will be purchasing a UPS to solve this issue.
Glad you like it! As for no battery, getting the most basic UPS battery - they periodically go on sale - and adding your modem / router to the UPS would enable them to be online during power outage, assuming internet stays on (which is the case most of the time).
I returned an Accurite w/s it was inaccurate and had errors with firmware. I can see why they don't answer the phone. (too many complaints they can't handle)
Very helpful. So clear and well-explained! Thank you.
Glad it was helpful!
Comprehensive video on Ambient Weather station. It describes all the features and setup. I feel confident after watching that I can get my weather station functioning.
Thank you for your feedback!
Thank you so much for the detailed review!
Thank you for a very comprehensive video. There is a little more information that would like to pass on. If I was aware of this when I first purchased a weather station I would have done it differently. These weather station are made in China by Shenzhen Fine offset and badge by Ambient, Ecowitt , PanTech, misol etc.
There are two different ways of viewing the data from these sensors, through a receiver like WS-2000/ hp2550 series, or using a gateway like gw1100 which has its own in built web-server and also loads data up to the cloud. The gw1100 is a lot more flexible with the disadvantage of not having a GUI. I fell into the trap of purchasing WH45 which read fine particles and CO2 level (check the effect of the open fire place) and doesn’t interface nicely to the HP2553. It does not allow readings to be placed onto any of the clouds although it does through the gw1100. I believe that both the gate and the receiver can be run in parallel to over come this problem but I haven’t done this a yet.
Super , you made my day, now can I order one, have looking around for days, nice display, non many that shows wind guest
Glad this helped!
Thanks for the detailed review. Ill be buying one myself now.
can get this for $212 right now directly from ambient
I watched the video last week , as i believe this is a clone HP2550 & locally they have a watson W8686 which is the same unit, anyway based on this info, and showing video to my wife, she loved the display simplicity, so i went for the unit ordered locally in UK. Arrived on Friday and been playing & installed - Brilliant unit - Thanks for the review
You are welcome! Hope it works and you get to enjoy it for many years to come.
Just hooked mine up,thanks for your efforts !
Thank you for the review on the WS-2000! It is very helpful. One question: can you schedule when the display console changes brightness (i.e. full brightness during the day, and low brightness or off at night)?
You can schedule when display comes on and off but cannot schedule brightness levels. They have to be adjusted manually. However, since it is not a glossy display, I do not feel like the display needs brightness adjustment once it is set. Display is "matte-finish" and displays the set brightness without needing adjustment (at least for me). So I have it scheduled to turn on and off as a specific time.
@@ColoradoRMN Thank you for the info! When you schedule the display to turn on/off, I’m assuming it doesn’t disconnect the station or wifi, right?
@@theteenagegardener Yeah, Wifi and data still transmit all the time, just the Display turns off (save power / display at night when no one is looking at it) but data collection and upload to weather underground continues.
@@ColoradoRMN Gotcha. Thank you so much for your help! I really appreciate it.
Excellent video, thanks. I’m replacing two decade old La Crosse C84612 stations & down to this unit and the Acurite Altlas.
I’m curious what the battery life is on the main sensor? One station is going at my vacation home on the Washington coastline & will be unattended for months.
Only time will tell. Cannot comment on it yet - I suspect it will depends how much sun you get in your area. Colorado gets more than average Sun days so the solar panel will provide more power to the unit so that it will not need to use the battery reserve as often. Lithium batteries should help in regions that get very cold weather.
I couldn’t help but notice that you installed your rain funnel without it’s included coil filter. Hopefully that won’t cause you trouble down the road. Nice demonstration though!
Maybe they changed it but mine did not come with a coil filter ?
Thanks for the thorough video! I couldn't figure out what the bottom left was trying to tell me because I never set my coordinates and the sun rise/set times were way off. The manual doesn't tell me what those icons are so thanks!
Had the same issue. I did see a place in the settings to enter the longitude and latitude, but pretty surprising that those coordinates were not automatically detected once the receiver/system was connected to Wi-Fi
Greetings COLORADORMN from Cape Town South Africa 🇿🇦😊. Firstly, Excellent video. 👍👌.
Now that a year has passed, how is the outside ISS & console holding out?
Any failures, wobbly buttons or breakages with any of devices excluding the aurora device experienced to date.
Look forward to any videos of the condition of your outside ISS, like possible sweating under the solar panel or cups & vane not spinning properly? Just your yearly maintenance checkup 👍😊.
Many thanks and well done again for your superb video. John. 🇿🇦
Hey John from Cape Town - Thank you for the positive feedback. The unit is still working well and is still on the original batteries (will see if they make it past this winter). No major issues. When we had snow / thawing /freeze weather cycle the wind anemometer did freeze on two occasions and I had to use a broom to 'help' it get 'unstuck' (being careful not to break it). The only other thing I noticed is that if your internet / wifi goes down down there are times it will not auto reconnect back to weather underground once WiFi is back online - I had to power cycle it and then it reconnects right away. If I do firmware updates on my router / wifi, I do make sure to keep an eye that the station reconnects. I have set up an alert to send me notification if the unit is offline for more than 20 minutes.
@@ColoradoRMN I toured the USA twice, 1981 & 1983, mostly by Greyhound. New York City down to Orlando, then New Orleans, Dallas, El Paso, Tucson, Phoenix, San Diego, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Vancouver, Kamloops. back across to the East coast, ending up at Montreal. There I bused back to New York City and flew out from JFK for Europe, Israel back to Europe and the UK, where I did odd temp jobs to stay afloat 😊. Was away for 2 years.
Now that I am older, wiser, I stay clear from air flights, too many airlines have crashed over the years and nothing can be more terrify than watching the plane you're in rapidly descend to the ground or break into a spin. No thank you 🤣🤣🤣 I want my feet to really close to terra firma 😊👍😂.
We're heading into warmer climate. I miss the USA snow, it so beautiful to see the landscape covered in white.
Pity I never did get to see Colorado. I did however managed to see Salt Lake City on my 2nd visit in 1983.
Thanks for your response, much appreciated, still deciding what unit to get this time, but I think it will have to be the Davis Pro 2 Plus.
It just seems to be the one that will outlast all the Chinese models. Every meteorologist who works with them, everywhere in the world, speak highly of Pro 2 version.
Enough jabbering, keep well good friend. Trust you have many more years usage on your station👍😊.
Best regards John 🇿🇦
The rainfall season can probably be used to get totals that match water year measurements, which typically starts on October 1 in the US: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_year
Thanks for the video review. In one part you very quickly show opening the battery compartment, but it's done so fast that it's hard for me to figure out how the cap comes off the battery compartment. How is it done?
You are welcome. The cover should just slide off. If you have the manual there is a diagram on it or if not, you can download it from Ambient Weather website.
Thank you for the very informative and well-done video! It appears the internal rain gauge bucket is weighted or spring loaded, so it isn't prone to sending false rain data in heavy winds? Heavy winds would rock my old Accurite 5-in-1 unit, causing it to send false rainfall data no matter how much I tried to stabilize it on the 12' pole - very frustrating issue!!
In addition, the temperature sensor would always read too high in the intense sunlight of Las Vegas. How would you rate the accuracy of the temperature data on hot, sunny days??
That is correct. I had the same issue with the old station when heavy hail would trigger the rain sensor to function. Have not had this issue with this unit and I tried shaking it, as you have seen in the video, and it did not false trigger the rain guide yet.
Hi, this video was very helpful. Thank you so much for creating it. If possible, could you do a supplement video to describe the calibration sequence in detail, which starts at 16:16 on your video. It is somewhat confusing via the manual, especially how to the use for the main station and the additional sensors. I received one as a gift and am in the process of getting it tuned in. Glad that I found this video, the manual just does not explain the set ups and calibrations in the detail as you did. Thanks again. Super helpful.
yes, would like to see additional sensor interfaced with display monitor. particularly the pool sensor.
Thanks for taking the time to put this together. I am concerned with the variance between the internal and external sensors when you first fired it up. Did the temperature and RH from those two get closer after a bit or stay that far apart?
Thanks for watching. Yes, it did. Bringing it outside takes some time for temp to stabilize.
Thanks for the video! I just purchased this unit, installed yesterday. I installed it very similarly to yours using a repurposed satellite dish mount and a 1.75" metal pole. After installing it the first thing i thought of was that I just installed a lightning rod! My previous station installed differently using a 2"x4" piece of wood instead of the metal pole. I'm wondering if I should ground it just to be safe.
Good question. I think it would depend on individual setup, how close it is to other objects, any other higher items close to this? Grounding it would not be a bad idea specially if there is nothing else higher. In my case, there is a street light outside of my fence and also - in my case- it is on my garage side of the house and the living areas has a higher roof elevation than garage. If lightning must strike, I'd rather have it strike the poll / garage side than the living room section of the house section.
You didn't mention that the WS- 2000 display does not have battery backup. That's a major negative if power loss or interruptions are an issue, as is often the case during severe weather.
That is true but I never expected a weather station to come with battery back-up for power outages. I have a UPS battery that runs my modem, wireless router, and indoor weather station display/console in the event of a power outage. During most power outages, broadband internet signal is still available so having UPS for modem, WiFi router, and this display keeps the weather station going.
@@ColoradoRMN My understanding was that in the event of a power interruption, even if momentary, the data for the day up to that point is lost. Is that incorrect? I have a full house generator so power interruptions are not an issue for me either, unless the data is lost. As an additional point, the previous generation and less expensive display unit from Ambient - WS 2902 - runs on AC power but also has backup batteries. Seems illogical for a later, upgraded, and more expensive unit from Ambient to take a step back on this issue.
Thanks for the comprehensive review and setup! I am new to the PWS and in my recent research I came across the AW-5000 Beta which just came available for purchase. It looks to have all the features as the 2000 without any moving parts?
In the short time you have had your 2000 and your 5 years of experience with the 1000, can you please share what kind of issues you had and the parts you had to replace if any?
Thanks again for this review! With your insight I will probably by the 2000.
The 5000 is expected to be released in late 2020. The beta 5k is out of stock.
Nice find on the WS-5000. It was not available when I got the 2000 or else I would not mind trying it out. No issues with the WS-2000 so far - I am getting more accurate rain readings with it than I had with the 1000-WiFi rain sensor. The 1000 WiFi seemed to be extra sensitive and would get triggered hail. On the 1000 one, I did strip the screw on the wind vane when I was cleaning it around year ~4 and replaced it with another screw. The console died on the 1000 at year 5 and that is why I decided to try this WS-2000. The 100 WiFi has the ability to recharge the batteries via solar. The 2000, does not, it will power the station via solar and use the batteries at night but will not charge them. So I do expect to be doing more "maintenance" on it than the 1000. Not sure hwy the decided against having 2000 form having rechargeable batteries.
With 16 second updates, does the anemometer (wind) feature miss gusts that occur between update intervals, or does it record the highest, lowest, average or absolute current speed with the data send?
Great review just set my WS 200 up today your video helped allot thanks. tell me about your pole setupcould not figure out why two poles used is that necessary i just used one ?
Glad you found the video helpful. The u-bolts will hold a pole that is 1" to 2" in diameter. The current step I have is there is an existing smaller ~1/2" or 3/4" attached to the property. So Using the existing pole I use hose clamps to attach and hold the larger poll (seen in the video) from the other weather station and use the u-bolts to attach the weather station to that larger poll. So in total: smaller poll is attached to the larger poll via two hose clamps. The larger poll is attached to the weather station via the provided u-bolts. Hope this helps.
Hi there. Thanks a lot for the review and comprehensive video of the functionality and setup of the weather station. I just bought the 2902A model before seeing this review. Can you please, if you know, tell me the difference of this model 2000 vs the one that I bought 2902A? Again, thanks a lot for the review.
Both are great stations and models. The External outdoor unit is the same for both. The difference is the indoor consoles/display is different. The 2902A has temperature, humidity and pressure sensor built into the console while 2000 has a separate indoor wireless unit for this. Also the 2000 can have up to 8 additional sensors (I use them. place and monitor temperature in different areas) while 2902A does not have that capability. There are some additional/optional sensors like PM2.5 that WS-2000 can support (I do not have one but may add it if price goes down) that I do not think 2902A can support.
ColoradoRMN thanks a lot for the response. Appreciate it.
Hi, thank you for the great review. I have a question before buying this device, can't find it anywhere ¿Does the history data gets lost if there is a power failure?
I may ask you, what distance should it be between the outdoor and indoor console to stay connected ?
And it’s not related to the internal house WiFi yes ??
Appreciate your effort.
Should be within 100 feet in the real world. The manual states in an open area with no interference or obstructions (walls) it can reach up to 330 feet but once you factor in windows, doors, etc should be within ~100 feet.
Great review, thank you for posting! How has the unit held up now that it's 2 years later?
same question, especially now that there is a 5000 model
@@Schweigardt Nice review. Same question, you were concerned about the pole mounting bracket.
@@marks2254 I was thinking the same thing. I installed mine a few days ago and couldn’t help but think that this is a pretty pricey station to be trusting that small piece of plastic that’s holding it to the pole.
Two questions: (1) How long does solar panel work before needing cleaning? (2) Are birds a problem?
This is an awesome weather station! Question though i am worried about pole options for the station preferable pbc i do not want issues with lighting. Will it slip?
It should not slip but if you use plastic you need to get one that is made for outdoors.
Veery nice precise review thank you. I plan to buy this and set it up in Panama where we live.
Glad it was helpful!
Have you had the alarm system beep? Do you know why this system beeps, did we set something up incorrectly? If so, how do you deactivate the alarm? Or, why is there an alarm going off at all hours of the day? Ours randomly goes off, day or night and we don’t know how to deactivate it.
Great review. Very concise and thorough.
Thank you, Omar! Thanks for watching!
Nice if they included base to see unit on top of 4C4 wood post.
Dude. This review is Dope as Fk. Not kidding yeh? You are like a wizard. Do you have a long grey beard? Coz that would confirm my suspicions!
Sorry, I do not. :)
Hi, I have a questions about this weather station. Could you show the graph of the wind speed? How accurate is it and how often the data are collected from the station to the server? Are data on the graph second by second? Does the station have any API where I can get the data and collect into my own system?
The difference between the 2902C and this one?
Is it cheaper then the 2902C?
What website is best to order from I’m in Melbourne Australia?
I don’t see your station online on weather underground
Good video but how the hell do you change the batteries with it mounted that high in the air? They have to be changed every 2-3 years.
Kind of like doing maintenance on any other item; when you take it down for cleaning every 2 - 3 change the batteries. Interestingly, mine are still running all these years but I am in Colorado and we have a lot of sun in the day time. I will likely replace batteries before this winter to ensure I do not have to do it during the winter.
Fantastic video!
Thank you very much!
I've found the transmission interval of 16 seconds to be way too long, in particular for wind direction and wind speed.
You get very choppy wind-readings
Excellent review sir, thank you.
Great video, thank you for spending time and using so much detail
Glad you like it!
Can this device be used as a mobile station, for example, mounted on a two-wheels cart to measure temperature, wind speed and direction along a transect? Does it provide coordinate system for saved data?
do you still have the weather station and it's working good
Question, are you familiar with the alarm system and why the alarms starts to ring? We are so confused on why our units alarm periodically goes off…our system wakes us up during the night and we have no idea how to turn it off.
I do not use the alarm system but I think you may have setup some parameter that trips it. Go into the alarms section (in settings) and confirm that all of them are off.
What is the distance that you can have your display screen away from the outdoor unit and still be able to get accurate information or any at all?
Depends on a lot of factors as to how many walls and type of material is in between. Mine is ~100 feet away with limited obstructions.
Quick question :how does console handle being unplugged or power outtage? Reboots at plug in no problem,or what? Thanks in advance!
Once power is back, it comes back online and start-up. Had no issues with that.
great vid , very thorough. for the same the atlas pro from accurite has lighting detection .
lighting detection is a nice feature to have. WS-2000 can do it as an add-on but that sensor is $66 at the moment. I may get it if it goes on sale in the future. I do not really need it at my location (for now).
We have had our unit for 1 1/2 yrs and are not connected to wifi. It continues to be a learning curve for us. At this point in time, we get an outdoor temp reading every morning and again late evening. During the daytime hours, we get two dashes (- -) . The RF icon is always present but late evening, the wifi icon is next to the RF. The manual clearly states that the dashes will appear if temp go over or under Max/Min settings but no where is this explained. We know that you can change Max/Min settings but to what number/setting and why is not explained. Any thoughts???? please????
Hi :) Just got some internet research and i'm still conviced to go with this product.
Please.... if you imagine you are sending this via post, what would be the weight of the box of it?
(i did not find any seller to send it to my country)
Is it still working the same as day 1? Has it recorded strong wind?
So far it is still working well without issues. If I change the indoor sensor battery I seem to be needing to re-register it (perhaps it is a firmware issue). Station still works well. Highest recorded winds here have been 49 MPH on 4/14/2022.
Guten Tag,ich habe die Baugleiche Weatherstation. Meine ist WeatherScreen PRO. Ein Problem habe ich. Den Wetterserver kann ich nicht aktivieren. Können Sie mir einen Rat geben? Danke für die Hilfe. Wolfram Mueller, Germany
Hi.... can store data??? I want to make a study with a eolic turbine, and I want to collect data for one year, is that possible??? THANKS
I see you are not in Florida for sure .... The pole will last about couple of weeks during Hurricane season down here ...
Of course :) . Each area would need to adapt for their own application. Tornado ally or hurricane areas would need better and stronger mounting for sure!
Can you please tell me something about this? I cannot find an answer. I have had another brand for some time before it broke on me. And this brand required (all of us) to upgrade this hub they had that received data and from that hub then transmitted to the WeatherUnderground and internet laptop/phone app. If you did not purchase their "hub" then you could not connect to the internet.
Does this Ambient Weather model require such an additional purchase of a device? Or is it all included and internal?
For I was unable to determine from your video if perhaps you already had such a "hub" device already installed/available in your home from your previous/old weather station.
Thanks in advance.
Hi Kyle, the console in this model has WiFi capability and you can transmit weather data to wunderground.com and to ambientweather.net . No need to hub with this model.
How do I find the correct latitude and longitude for Florence, Mississippi
This is confusing to to me, help me if you can, thanks James
Try finding an app that shows GPS coordinates with altitude info.
I have a 4 year old WS 1001 with console issues. I was wondering why you chose the WS 2000 over the WS 1001 or 1002?
I like the 2000 display except for the tiny outdoor humidity and NO graph.
So my 5 year old weather station that I was replacing was the WS-1000 WiFi (early version of 1001 and 1002). The 2000 was newer and seemed to have a better display so wanted to give that a try. Nothing wrong with WS-1001 or WS-1002. Having multiple temp/humidity sensors is also nice ability with WS-2000 in case you want to monitor several areas. You can have up to 8.
Do you have a link to the android app to configure this station?
You shouldn't really be showing pulling the sticker off the solar panel in sunlight before installing the batteries. It can damage the unit. That is why there is a black sticker on it telling you in steps.
Other than that great information
Good to know. Thanks for the feedback!
Are you sure the rain gauge is reading 1/100 because it looks like 1/10s
I asked the Alexa version of Ambient Weather skill for last Monday's Weather (Jan 13th 2020) and she said "Your Personal Weather Station was not reporting on Monday Jan 6th 2020" because I did not have my weather station yet but when I said what was the weather for Monday it says Your Personal Weather Station was not reporting on Monday Jan 20th 2019. If I ask Google the same thing it knows I meant Jan 13th. If I ask Alexa for January 13 th's weather she tells me what the high and low were for last Monday the 13t. Why does the same skill not work properly on Alexa? Firefox on Apple, Windows and Linux operate exactly the same, so the OS has nothing to do with the way Application functions so why does the same skill respond differently on Alexa than on Google Assistant?
Fantastic video sir. Thank you!
Thanks for watching! Glad you liked it.
Does the outside unit not charge the batteries like the old unit did?
No - not on this model. I am, however, still using the original batteries still. They only kick-in when solar power is unavailable (too cloudy or at night).
Thank you very much!
You're welcome!
I have an older version of these but I don't have a high speed one like this.
Does this work with Cumulus too?
Does the station automatically communicate with the screen as soon as you turn it on the first time or is there a set up process similar to syncing?
Mine auto connects on first boot up, as shown in the video. If not, manual does have setup / reset process (I did not have to do that for my station).
Hello, can you run it with out WI FI? Just hard wired?
You do not need the WiFi unless you want to transmit that info to WU and he Ambient Weather Network. Without WiFi it will just transmit the data to the console and that is it. No hard wire option, if you want to connect it to the computer, as far as I know.
why is identical at froggit WH3000 SE and other station,
I wonder why there are the same weather stations on the market but of different brands, can you tell me why?
Seems like the manufacturer makes them for different companies. It does appear, however, that the firmware is different and devices are not cross compatible (i.e. you cannot but another display and have it work with the outdoor unit from another vendor even if they do look the same).
Best review. Thanks 🙏
Glad you liked it!
Can the temperature be made in degrees celsius?
Yes, in the setup menu you can choose C or F options.
Is it possible to make an app with this weather station?? (Like a personal app)
Check out its API for the ifttt protocol to see if it will let you do / code for what you are looking for.
Question when a strong storm moves in and the winds are gusting 70MPH or even micro burst will this hold up or will it break the wind vains
Highest wind reading at my location so far has been 47.4 mph and 41.2mph. It did ok so far but cannot speak what would happen at 70 MPH. Manual for this station shows specifications of "0 to 100 mph (operational)"
@@ColoradoRMN I live in tornado alley and if we are not getting a tornado we get severe storms with gusting winds. So I just don't want it to be broke after one season
We set one of these up today. We can’t get it to connect to WiFi. Our network does not pop up on the drop down choices. So, we enter our info, it just reads ‘connecting’. Then, it switches to a different network. It’s only different by a few characters, but still not our network. Any ideas? (We are old and not tech minded!🙄) thank you
You may have to check that your WiFi deice is broadcasting on the 2.4 Ghz signal / band (check wireless configuration). If you have a newer WiFi network, maybe you only enabled 5Ghz? If you do enable 2.4, make sure you have a password setup for it.
Does the information module (display) have a battery?
No, it does not. I did get a small UPS battery to power the console and modem / router to keep it online if there is a power outage. The small ones are good for low drain devices as long as you do not plugin a desktop computer / monitor to them.
Well done! Thank you.
Thanks for watching!
I have this same unit and installed it a few days ago. Im having issues with the INDOOR temp being correct. Ive adjusted it to read close to the other thermometers in my house, and i have one mounted next to my WS on wall where they are about 3 inches apart. After a few hours the WS indoor temp always ends up 10-20 degrees higher or lower. It wont maintain the correct temp.
That is strange. Sounds like the indoor sensor is bad or maybe has some sort of an issue where internal electronics creating extra heat? Contact Ambient Weather and have them diagnose or replace it under warranty.
@@ColoradoRMN I resolved the issue by installing a 2nd sensor and renaming it for indoor and set the program to read it all time. It reads the correct temp and humidity now.
what kind of SD card do you use
Any basic one - these are not high use or high write devices so any basic card should be able to handle it. Mine is 8GB.
I have been unable to calibrate the indoor temperature. I used a reliable source to set the indoor temp in calibration but it is wildly inaccurate. Currently showing 30 degrees cooler than actual temp., Any suggestions?
30 degree is more than a calibration issue - it is a problem! First, re-register your transmitters just in case your station is picking up another probe / sensor? If it is still the same, contact them for a replacement as 30F off is a defect.
Great video!
Thank you!
Amazing work 👍🏻
Thanks!
What is your current firmware? The latest is 1.5.8 as of December 25 2019.
Thanks. I updated mine few weeks ago to 1.5.7. Will get it updated to 1.5.8 now.
Does the unit communicate with the console via wifi or RF?
Should be RF. Outdoor unit communicates to the console via RF. Console is connected via WiFi to the internet (if you so choose).
Well done review.
Thank you!
Oh, and how do you handle snow load?
this is another question I have, getting ready to go into our first winter with the WH2000, but we won’t get anywhere near as much snow as Colorado. So I would like to know how it handles snow and ice buildup or if it has any solar power issues if there is low sunlight or snow buildup
Excellent👍
Thank you! Cheers!