Today a full home weather station can be enjoyed minus weather instruments. A PC or digital station can be set up to receive ongoing local weather conditions from a service provider, who maintains instruments in the area.
Having your own weather instruments does provide the most accurate reading for your location. However, a wayward ball, frisky animal, or curious child can wreak havoc on weather equipment. Setting up a station and sensors can also be quite challenging for those who lack the time or mechanical skills.
Online weather services such as WeatherBug and Weather Underground have developed a wide network of weather stations. Advances in the Internet allow for real time reporting from the stations, to the point that the wind direction dial appears to move like a wind vane. Access to hour by hour historical data makes weather patterns easily identifiable.
By tapping into services like Weather Direct, standalone weather stations can provide current weather conditions without any additional sensors. Weather readings are updated constantly and include wind, rain, chance of rain, temperature and humidity. NWS warnings are also carried.
The location of sensors plays a key role in choosing a home weather station. A weather service may have a station right in your neighborhood, which would make the virtual readings almost indistinguishable from those on your own instruments. On the other had, if a service has weather instruments that are 50 miles from your location, the result may be a very different picture of current conditions. Usually it is possible to find the location of available stations for a weather service.
For some a combination of a virtual solution with a home instrument may provide the most satisfaction. The most immediate weather needs can be provided by an instrument that includes both barometer and temperature readings. More detailed readings and historical data are then found via a virtual solution. This approach still involves minimal set up time. Before purchasing an instrument, it is recommended to visit a website that ranks products to find the best product in a given category.
A very different and opposite approach for some may be hosting a public weather station. Instrument readings are broadcast over the Internet and picked up by the public through the given weather network. Local residents will use the readings as part of their virtual stations, and others in distance locations may access the information for travel or relocation. Joining a weather network includes the expense of quality instruments, which are often specified by the organization.
A sensor-free home weather station can provide the enjoyment of tracking weather conditions without the hassle of setting up and maintaining weather instruments. While not for everyone, it has become a rewarding option for those with a love of weather.
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