Cumulus Support

Could anyone please advise me on what is the best rechargable batteries to replace the present ones in my transmitter

Hi Geoff,

They shouldn't need replacing yet, but I'm not sure that even FO know!

Their manual says that you should use rechargeable alkalines but then says something like that for low temperatures you should use the (unspecified) "correct" batteries (I don't have the manual to hand for an exact quote). However that really refers to below -20 degrees C which you shouldn't experience too often in Harwich.

If transmitter range is not an issue then I would recommend "low leakage NiMH" batteries which are sold under various brand names such as "Infinium", "Eneloop", etc. (I usually buy the "good to go" from 7dayshop.com in the Channel Isles). But these only deliver 1.2 volts per cell (as do most rechargeables). So if your transmitter needs 1.5 volts per cell to give acceptable range then you either have to find rechargeable alkalines (they are available on ebay but IMHO at silly prices) or risk using non-rechargeable Lithium AAs. With the small amount of current availabe from a solar cell, I suspect that it's "safe" to use these cells in the 3080, but I've not seen anybody confirm or deny this. It's quite well established that it is "safe" to recharge "non-rechargeable" alkalines (despite what their manufacturers may say), so that is certainly the cheap/easy option.

Cheers, Alan.

Thanks for that Alan, I am just assuming that I have a battery problem, for what they cost I think its worth renewing them.

I keep getting the old "No sensor data" errors, the sensors are no further than 20 mtrs from the control panel.

Today the rain collector is not sending any data

I think its time to get another station

Hi Geoff,

Just put in fresh cheap standard alkalines for now! It's probably worth changing the orientation (antenna direction) of the various units (and of course checking for interference) but the maximum range of the FO units does seem quite variable (my 1081 is very good but a 3080 which I insrtalled is rather questionable, both 434MHz).

I must admit that I was recently tempted by a promotion from another vendor for a Davis at £255, but then discovered the Logger/PC interface is another £180. At that price one could buy another 4 or 5 FOs and should be able to make up at least one that works.

Cheers, Alan.

Thanks Alan, will sort it out tomorrow, or will try

I was going to order a top of the range Davies today then I realised that it wasn't me who won the "EuroMillions"

Will make a post tomorrow after taking down the sensors ect.

Sanyo Eneloop would have to be up with the better re-chargables these days. They hold their charge better than any others I've used and Sanyo claim reliable performance to -20C.
Here's their website: http://www.eneloop.info/

Hi Geoff,

(How) did you resolve the issue?

I ask because a 3080 which I installed for a friend, just a few months ago, has already started showing the "Low TX battery" icon. I've checked the (so called rechargeable alkaline)batteries supplied with the kit, which measure 2.6 volts - IMHO already too low even for non-rechargeable cells after such a short period. Next week I hope to have all my "tools" to measure the actual current consumption (and any possible charging) by the transmitter/solar unit, which may resolve whether it's a hardware or battery issue.

Cheers, Alan.

Hi Alan sorry for the delay I was out the weekend.

I don't really know what cured the problem, I removed the batteries, all contacts on batteries and in the battery compartment were spotlessly clean, the batteries were fully charged, I checked the connections from the solar sensor ect. they were clean, replaced it all put it all back in place and it has worked o.k since

So I don't know, perhaps just tinkering with it fixed it, I will just wait until it packs up again and delve right into it.

Hi guys.

ive posted elsewhere about my experiencees with batteries.

I use quality alkaline (Boots, Duracell) which lasted 18 months, now on my second set afte 3.25 years.

These run faultless thru hard winter with - 12 C and +32 in summer.

I'm just getting the same battery problem and will take Phils advice and put in good quality duracell type. When I measured the voltage on the rechargeable alkaline batteries they were each just below 1 volt so the sun cannot have been charging them. Even though it's winter the sun has been reasonably bright and anyway what's the good of a weather station that on works on hot sunny days!

Put the alkaline batteries into a Tronic (from Lidl) KH980 "intelligent" charger to charge them up and said that they were stuffed (i.e defective) this may just be the charging characteristics of the alkaline batteries as the charger is expecting LiMH or NiCd but I have no knowledge of this.

Forums are great for sharing this type of problem - I now know that there is probably a battery problem with the WH3080 and will not spend too much time on it. It is likely that the ability of the station to keep itself charged up with just the little solar cell provided is rather optimistic regardless of what the marketing blurb says.

Will get new batteries in the next couple of days for my station at http://www.harrywarrenhouse.com/weather/Weather.shtml and hopefully get back on line.

Thanks for the info.

Hi,

No, the Lidl charger is NOT suitable for recharging "Rechargeable Alkaline" batteries (because they operate at 1.5 volts and the "intelligent" charger is expecting the 1.2 volts of NiCd or NiMH cells). A "dumb" (fixed timer) charger might do better, but I tried trickle-charging my Rechargeable Alkalines (as might happen from a PV panel) and they were useless as well. I'm surprised that your cells got down to 1 volt, did you not get a "Low TX battery" warning icon on the console LCD before this? How long did your (supplied?) rechargeable alkaline batteries last? Mine managed about 3 months, but somebody has quoted only one week!

Actually, I believe that the PV cell IS large enough to run the transmitter (although the slope on the PV cell is inappropriate for our latitudes and/or users may wish to put the external module in a "shady" location to avoid excessively high temperature readings). In my case it is putting SOME charge into the battery, but the microcontroller in the "solar head" is consuming MUCH more current than is used by the transmitter. I hope to discover soon whether the solar head is actually faulty or if the overall design is just too "optimistic".

Cheers, Alan.

Thanks for the helpful reply, Alan. I had not realised that these were rechargeable alkaline batteries rated at 1.5v. Anyway your prediction of the time scale for the Duracells was right as they have now run out and I have to replace them. I want to replace them with a "trouble free" rechargeble battery that will last for some years. Any recommendations for replacement batteries would be welcome.

And why are there not hundreds of posts on this thread - it cannot just be the few of us that have posted that have the problem, surely. I'm in the south of England and the weather station has a clear view of the sun, surely the batteries are failing on everyone's station - or is it just me!

Will let you know what I do next and how it turns out - wouldn't recommend Duracells for anything other than a couple of months quick fix.

Andrew.

Hi Andrew,

The fundamental problem is that a significant proprtion of the 3080 Solar Pods (including mine and probably yours) continuously drain more current out of the battery than the PV cell can supply. So any type of battery is going to run out of charge in a relatively short time. My Solar Pod was replaced by the supplier, and I could not measure any "leakage" with the replacement Pod, so I have some confidence that at least the batteries should last longer now.

If you can't get the Solar Pod replaced, then the only solution may be to fit a larger PV cell yourself, since I haven't heard if anyone has identified which component (within the Pod) is draining the excessive power. However, fitting a new PV cell is not a trivial task as both the PV cell and the batteries need to be of the "right type". But I can give a little more advice if you decide to follow this route.

Cheers, Alan.

I too have this problem. Firstly I lost the Solar values on the receiver. After this the low battery icon came on. I replaced the rechargeable alkalines with some 2600NiMh's which lasted for a bit until they too went flat and I lost all data. In the meantime I got in touch with the supplier who sent me a new solar pod and some new batteries. This worked for about 24 hours. I now have no solar values - back to square one.

I have got back on to the supplier. Be interesting to see what they say. I'm not particularly impressed I have to say.

Thanks for the info, Alan. I have put the Eneloop batteries in and I have the "low Tx" icon already. I could test the Solar Pod and get another or I could send 3v from my shed straight up to the station - bit of a pain but it will either cure the problem or move it on to a new level. Am OK with a meter and a soldering iron and would appreciate it if you would outline your testing procedure so I can see if I have a leaky pod. I got my WH3080 from signatrol - are they good about sending out new solar pods? Also if I do get a new solar pod I must test it to make sure that it is not another leaky one.

Do the leaky solar pods still give good readings?

My last weather station was an Oregan Scientific WM918 that had the outdoor temperature sensor problem so this is a bit of deja vue all over again!

Thanks again,
Andrew