CanisLupusArctos
07-28-2008, 12:51 PM
On June 22, the weather station observed the direct overhead passage of an intense thunderstorm (see weather thread.) While the resulting data was exciting and informative, the storm's lightning also damaged some equipment including the water temperature monitor.
One of the forum's senior members expressed gratitude for the information the station provides, and suggested I make an appeal for donations to replace lost equipment.
That has not occurred until now because it took a while to figure out what exactly was damaged and how badly it was damaged. The forum member and I exchanged several emails about lightning strike stories and the odd things is does once on the ground.
Some odd things certainly happened here: Surge-protected equipment lost its internet capabilities while non-protected equipment stayed running.
While the forum member started things off with his own donation check, I am extremely grateful that much of the equipment has been replaced for free. One of my friends is a computer technician who showed up one day with some new internet stuff in exchange for a night of beer and football (fan) food. He had it all up and running within ten minutes, and we were off to the six-packs.
Most notably, Sensatronics (http://www.sensatronics.com) (in Bow, NH) replaced their water temperature monitor for free, provided I send back the old one. The water temp is up and running again thanks to them.
This, therefore, will be a donation request for a battery backup surge protector system.
Currently the WeatherCam (camera) is on a surge protector/battery backup that makes it last about 2 hours after power goes out. The weather data is on a different computer that is not on battery backup and should be. If it was, you'd be able to see the current weather here for the first 1-2 hours of a power outage, and the weather station's computer would be less prone to electrical attack.
After looking at battery backup systems at www.NewEgg.com where I have had great luck ordering electronic equipment, I discovered two potential systems that could work for the weather data:
powercom SMART KING SMK-2000A 2000VA 1200 Watts max 6 Outlets UPS (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16842106119)
and
CyberPower CP1500AVRLCD 1500VA 900W UPS - Retail (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16842102048)
The first one is about $400 plus shipping. Battery run time is listed as about 2 hours. Since the weather station is not a power-hungry computer, it would probably last even longer. The WeatherCam is plugged into a 30-minute surge protector and lasts 2 hours.
The second one is NewEgg's highest-rated UPS Battery Backup system and costs $180 plus shipping. Its battery run time is listed as 50 minutes, which again would probably last a lot longer given that the weather computer doesn't use much power and its monitor isn't normally turned on. The second one seems to be the more popular of the two, among NewEgg's customer reviews.
Which one do you think I should go for? Or do you know of something better that I missed? Donation total so far is $50.
I'd almost be inclined to make the less-expensive one my goal, because we have many neighbors at the southeastern end of the lake who've lost everything to last Thursday's tornado and therefore need the money way more than the weather station does. But I'll let the forum members decide.
Both causes are closely related; storm relief is a present need, and at the same time this weather station (and others like it) are continuously collecting data that helps improve the accuracy of future warnings. Having the station reporting its data on battery backup for even an hour after the power goes out could allow internet users to see things like high wind gusts that might otherwise go unreported due to power outages they cause. The data is logged by a datalogger (powered by C-cells) and goes online as soon as the power comes back on, but that's not when most of the website's viewers really want the info. It's better to have it current as much as possible.
For now, this donation request will be for the weather station while NH's tornado victims assess damage. The chaos seems to be in the beginning stages of settling now, after which they'll have a better idea of what they need. I'm talking to friends about that, trying to get some kind of group effort going.
Weather Station Donations may be sent to:
Black Cat Images
P.O. Box 1547
Center Harbor, NH 03226
Write "Weather Station Donation" on the check, so I know what it's for. Enclose a note if you like.
One of the forum's senior members expressed gratitude for the information the station provides, and suggested I make an appeal for donations to replace lost equipment.
That has not occurred until now because it took a while to figure out what exactly was damaged and how badly it was damaged. The forum member and I exchanged several emails about lightning strike stories and the odd things is does once on the ground.
Some odd things certainly happened here: Surge-protected equipment lost its internet capabilities while non-protected equipment stayed running.
While the forum member started things off with his own donation check, I am extremely grateful that much of the equipment has been replaced for free. One of my friends is a computer technician who showed up one day with some new internet stuff in exchange for a night of beer and football (fan) food. He had it all up and running within ten minutes, and we were off to the six-packs.
Most notably, Sensatronics (http://www.sensatronics.com) (in Bow, NH) replaced their water temperature monitor for free, provided I send back the old one. The water temp is up and running again thanks to them.
This, therefore, will be a donation request for a battery backup surge protector system.
Currently the WeatherCam (camera) is on a surge protector/battery backup that makes it last about 2 hours after power goes out. The weather data is on a different computer that is not on battery backup and should be. If it was, you'd be able to see the current weather here for the first 1-2 hours of a power outage, and the weather station's computer would be less prone to electrical attack.
After looking at battery backup systems at www.NewEgg.com where I have had great luck ordering electronic equipment, I discovered two potential systems that could work for the weather data:
powercom SMART KING SMK-2000A 2000VA 1200 Watts max 6 Outlets UPS (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16842106119)
and
CyberPower CP1500AVRLCD 1500VA 900W UPS - Retail (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16842102048)
The first one is about $400 plus shipping. Battery run time is listed as about 2 hours. Since the weather station is not a power-hungry computer, it would probably last even longer. The WeatherCam is plugged into a 30-minute surge protector and lasts 2 hours.
The second one is NewEgg's highest-rated UPS Battery Backup system and costs $180 plus shipping. Its battery run time is listed as 50 minutes, which again would probably last a lot longer given that the weather computer doesn't use much power and its monitor isn't normally turned on. The second one seems to be the more popular of the two, among NewEgg's customer reviews.
Which one do you think I should go for? Or do you know of something better that I missed? Donation total so far is $50.
I'd almost be inclined to make the less-expensive one my goal, because we have many neighbors at the southeastern end of the lake who've lost everything to last Thursday's tornado and therefore need the money way more than the weather station does. But I'll let the forum members decide.
Both causes are closely related; storm relief is a present need, and at the same time this weather station (and others like it) are continuously collecting data that helps improve the accuracy of future warnings. Having the station reporting its data on battery backup for even an hour after the power goes out could allow internet users to see things like high wind gusts that might otherwise go unreported due to power outages they cause. The data is logged by a datalogger (powered by C-cells) and goes online as soon as the power comes back on, but that's not when most of the website's viewers really want the info. It's better to have it current as much as possible.
For now, this donation request will be for the weather station while NH's tornado victims assess damage. The chaos seems to be in the beginning stages of settling now, after which they'll have a better idea of what they need. I'm talking to friends about that, trying to get some kind of group effort going.
Weather Station Donations may be sent to:
Black Cat Images
P.O. Box 1547
Center Harbor, NH 03226
Write "Weather Station Donation" on the check, so I know what it's for. Enclose a note if you like.