RESCUE, REPAIR AND RESTORATION! of a Davis Pro Vantage 2 Weather Station - Part 1

Hi,
I was driving past a skip, and noticed something that looked interesting sat on the top of it!
I felt I had to go and rescue it, and try and save it from the landfill!
Let's see if we can repair and restore it to it's former working self...
#electronics #electronicsrepair #electronicscreators
Davis Pro Vantage 2 Weather Station Repair
Davis Pro Vantage 2 Repair
Davis Weather Station Restoration
Davis Weather Station Repair
Repair Video
Restoration Video

[@Mymatevince]

Fun video, looking forward to watching Part 2.

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Vince 👍👍👌

[@andymouse]

Fancy finding you here !! Hi !

[@Mymatevince]

@@andymouse Hey Andy Mouse, I'm a big fan of Mick's work. I always try to keep up to date with all his videos 👍👍

[@andymouse]

Yeah, seems a great bloke I just subbed!@@Mymatevince

[@MrEwool]

Very nice find, I love finding stuff like that, that's been thrown out, but the wife isn't always agreeing with me on that. Can't wait to see the second part of the video.

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Morten👍. Just finished recording that, as was waiting for another part..

[@stoicgreg]

Great video, looking forward to part 2 & seeing it all come together. What a surprise to see the new weather station was actually attached to the old one.

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Gregory👍. I've actually just finished recording part 2 about 5 minutes ago... bloody cold here as you'll see on the video next week!

[@sp523]

Great video. I can’t wait to watch Part 2!

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks SP 👍

[@rabsrealm]

We used those DALLAS modules on ICL servers back in the day. If memory serves me correct, they had 16K of NVRAM with a small lithium cell. We used them to store the EISA hardware configuration (IRQ's, addresses etc for each EISA slot). After a while, the lithium cell would deplete and we would need to replace them and run the EISA configuration again. I always had a few in my spares kit :)

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks for the info!

[@wisher21uk]

My Mrs calls me a skip rat, I always look in skips 😊 brilliant clean up and fix

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Cucumber Man 👍, one man's trash is another man's treasure!

[@wisher21uk]

@@BuyitFixit exactly 😃

[@michaelburns8073]

Interesting content as always. I sometimes get a few things from 'dumpsters' as we call them here in the States, but most are locked down here. We do have a local community recycling places where electronics are dropped off, and the guys will sell you the items for usually from $2-$10 dollars. Gotten a few interesting things this way.

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Michael 👍 Those open type skips are quite common over here but usually just filled with total garbage or bricks wood etc. We too have recycling places, but the people aren't allowed to sell items usually for 'health and safety' reasons. Unless you know the guys fairly well 😉

[@johnhousego9218]

Nice find look forward to part 2

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks John 👍

[@Cha-chingWV]

Cool find! Enjoyed watching!

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks W L 👍 Yes I wasn't expecting to find one in a skip. I had actually been looking on Ebay a couple months ago for a one to repair!

[@Tokaisho1]

Nice job, the Aardware Design weather station inside was a surprise! I might have used another cable tie for that capacitor as removing glue the next time could be a super annoying process for your future self but otherwise great to see this get some tlc.

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Tokaisho👍, Yes the other weather station was a surprise! I think IPA removes hot glue fairly easily. Stay tuned for part 2 next week!

[@DaveBrown1]

Great channel, keep up the good work.

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Dave 👍👍

[@sundaybighouse]

interesting skips you have around your way!

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Sunday Bighouse. Few and far between unfortunately 🙁

[@andymouse]

Off to part 2 .....cheers.

[@chrisbartlett6022]

Currently on my Third WX Station, none of them as posh as that one though. I don't have much luck with the rain gauge bit. Clean them out regularly of the spider nests etc but the bit I am most interested in, the rain fall keeps being intermittent. About time I had a mess with mine again 🙂

[@mercuraz]

If it helps, did you check the reed switch itself for continuity? If it's intermittent, maybe the reed switch isn't making proper contact or it's corroded.

[@BuyitFixit]

Was just thinking along the same lines 👍

[@chrisbartlett6022]

@@mercuraz I will have a look next time I take it down.

[@MegaTerryWogan]

😃 Nice Love it!!!! Just realised it's the cup final today - wor lass clearly a Newcastle fan and I'm MU so should be a fun time this afternoon 🤣

[@BuyitFixit]

Stupid Weather station 😂😂😂

[@MegaTerryWogan]

@@BuyitFixit 😂😂 not gloating 😉

[@kennybacchus1488]

Rescue repair and. Restoration of. a. David. Pro

[@alexxustube]

Hot glueing the super capacitor in place is probably not the best idea, because of the changing weather conditions the hot glue has to withstand. I would have used an other zip tie instead ✌️

[@BuyitFixit]

I think someone else mentioned the same. I might have another look sometime and fit one. Thanks for commenting 🙂👍

[@RobatRobot]

I think... I may have the software for that older weather station. Let me have a hunt.... It was on a floppy disk. EDIT: I do but KZbin won't let me post a dropbox link. The battery backed ram will need replacing. The bearings and the PCB with the opto-switches for the anemometer and wind vane along with their current limiting resistors will have likely rusted away, but can easily be replaced. The vane is easily replaced with a bit of plastic, but the anemometer may need 3D printing or a substitute part. The cross-arm was a sun sensor and temperature sensor.

[@BuyitFixit]

Interesting, I still have the board lying around but I don't really plan on doing anything with it. Thanks for letting me know about the software etc though. Much appreciated 👍

[@ISquishWorms]

Nice find amazing how wastefull us humans are, glad to see you are saving it and putting it back into use.

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks, if you didn't see part II, it's all up and running complete with nosey horses 😂😂😂😂

[@ISquishWorms]

I see part 2 looks like a really smart unit and probably useful on a farm/small holding. @@BuyitFixit

[@drorhaz]

I like the "dumpster diver edition" 😂 i think its way more interesting from those ebay junk videos that everybody doing on youtube..

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks black panther! 👍

[@SlartiMarvinbartfast]

Anemometer is the word that you were looking for (to measure wind speed in this case). 🙂 Nice repair, but ........ did it all work? We need a demo. 🙂

[@BuyitFixit]

Just finished recording part 2 about 5 minutes ago.. bloody freezing outside as you'll see next week!

[@kardnewt5296]

I don't know why you used hot glue when it has a place for a zip tie I can tell you that hot glue will let go once exposed to heat changes from sun on solar panel then a cold night

[@BuyitFixit]

I tried to get the board out but I couldn't get enough play on it due to the antenna wire and didn't want to damage it, so it was easier just to put a blob of glue on it.

[@wherami]

Woohoo

[@erg0centric]

Probably rs485, current loop on shielded twisted pairs.

[@Lightrunner.]

Yeahhhh dumpster dive and fix 🥳🥳👍👌

[@BuyitFixit]

Yep, nothing like a good dumpster dive. Unfortunately dumpsters aren't that common around where we live now 🙁

[@wherami]

Yup can hear the reed switch

[@BuyitFixit]

Yes when I played back on the TV you can just hear it slightly 👍

[@murfy593]

Just started watching this and you said there is something quite interesting about the pole at 38s in. So I’m putting my guess out now at about what it is: It’s a stripper pole?

[@BuyitFixit]

Yes a stripper pole 😂😂😂I guess you found out after watching 😉

[@murfy593]

@@BuyitFixit I did indeed and I was way off 🤣🤣 Great vids btw, your logical approach to every task is inspiring.

[@BuyitFixit]

@@murfy593 Thank you 👍

[@Mynameja]

Even them floor brackets in the skip Are 200 a piece

[@BuyitFixit]

😂😂😂😂

[@mickwilson127]

Did you ever get the console fixed?

[@BuyitFixit]

Yes, it all works. Might be in Part 2. It's been a while since I did this video.

[@nixer65]

SHT11s are still available.

[@BuyitFixit]

When I looked at the time all of the suppliers said it was obsolete or "Out of stock"

[@ralphj4012]

Interesting. Expensive and built to last so resurrection should be possible. Not a fan of tacking components on or hot glue, especially as the PCB looked easy to remove, but each to their own. Looking forward to the episode which shows you on the roof, installing it.

[@BuyitFixit]

Thanks Ralph👍. I did look at getting the PCB out but the antenna had a nut on the back of it onto the PCB and there wasn't much room on the antenna cable, so I chose the easy option 😂😂

[@jonabitstream]

where are sourcing the new parts from?

[@BuyitFixit]

Hi, I got a couple of the parts from eBay, and some from here: weatherspares.co.uk hope that helps 👍

[@robertshrimplin9130]

should off got the metal out as well lol

[@BuyitFixit]

Lol.

[@vanhetgoor]

And if you add an extra heating element then you can use it to proof the climate crisis.

[@BuyitFixit]

😂😂😂

[@damright]

the last of us

[@chrismclaren113]

That not rechargeable batteries

[@BuyitFixit]

They are not supposed to be. There is no battery charger in the unit. The solar panel charges the super capacitor, and the battery is only used as a backup if the capacitor runs out 🙂