Customer Reviews

Oregon Scientific Cable-Free Long-Range Rain Gauge

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Follow-up to the review below with an added caution: I mounted the collector with the 4 supplied screws to a solid oak block, sealed & painted. About a month into the rainy season it became increasingly inaccurate and finally quit completley. Turns out the wood had swelled and warped, distorting the collector and binding the tipping bucket. In addition to leveling the unit the instructions should caution you to mount it on a flat, dimensionally stable, non warping surface and use extra care while screwing it down to avoid distorting the base.
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Just received the rain gauge from Amazon. The instruction manual is at least as bad as everyone says. It makes no mention of the reset switch in the outdoor unit along with numerous other omissions. On the other hand, looking the unit over, it appears to be very well made. The level of workmanship and quality of the circuit board and wiring in the outdoor unit is much higher than you would expect from a consumer electronic device in this price range. The indoor unit has a nice heft and its switches have a quality feel.

In setting up the outdoor unit, the two screws that hold the collector/funnel assembly are easily lost and probably metric. Be careful! The screws for the battery box cover, on my unit, were "captive". Loosen until you feel them 'bump' on the thread insert and they will stay with the cover. Remove the plastic insulating strip from the battery box, reinstall the batteries and press the "RESET" switch with a straightened paper clip. As larryaol mentioned, it's a good idea to leave the cover open until everything is working.

The indoor unit also has a plastic insulating strip in the battery box that must be removed. That done and the batteries installed, press its "RESET" switch with the paper clip. The upper display should stop flashing once the two units establish contact. Although the manual makes no mention, clearly the radio link isn't continuous. It seems to need up to 30 seconds for the display to update. With the rain collector still open, you can carefully remove the tape that holds the tipping bucket mechanism and manually tip it a couple of times to check operation. Its resolution is 0.04" per tip. Wait about 30 seconds for the rainfall reading to update.

Another serious manual omission is in clearing the rainfall reading. The manual instructs you to "Press and hold the RAIN RESET/SINCE button for 2 seconds" but this doesn't work. Oregon Scientific's call center was helpful. What you need to do is press & release then immediately press & hold. This also loads the current "SINCE" date in the lower display.

Hopefully, someone at Oregon Scientific will do something about the instruction manual.
RCT

As others have mentioned, the instruction booklet is almost worthless. I went to the manufacturer's website: www.oregonscientific.com, it wasn't any better.
TIPS:
1. You need a very small jewelers screwdriver, pref. a phillips head.
2. There are 10 tiny screws (2 sizes) you must remove from the outdoor unit! Have containers ready to hold them.
3. After opening the outdoor unit's battery cover, remove the batteries, take out the clear plastic spacer, reinsert the batteries, and MOST IMPORTANT-- press the reset button next to the batteries with an unbent paper clip.
4. BEFORE closing-up the outdoor unit, do the following on the indoor unit--
5. Remove battery cover, remove the batteries, take out the clear plastic spacer, reinsert the batteries, and press the indoor unit's reset button above the batteries with an unbent paper clip.
6. Wait a minute or two for the indoor unit to lock in on the outdoor unit's signal. The top two lines of the display will flash until it finds the signal.
7. If the display keeps flashing, press the OUTDOOR unit's reset button again.
8. Then press the indoor reset, again.
Once the display stops flashing, then close-up the outdoor unit. Don't jiggle the outdoor unit or it will record that as "rainfall."
9. I could not get the rainfall total to reset with the "rain reset" button. I had to do the full reset on the indoor unit.
10. If all else fails.... Reset, reset, reset! Outdoor unit first!

This is a dandy little device for those of us who like to keep track of Rainfall for some reason or another. Being a bit of a cynic the first few times it rained, I kept my manual graduated stick in the ground rain gauge out as well, and the measurement of each was so close I can only assume I misread the manual type by .o1 inches. The automatic emptying is a great feature and it appears to measue in .01 inch increments, which is close enough for anyone.
The only drawback is a somewhat stuborn 'reset switch' which is described incorrectly in the manual. Telephone suppport was timely and helpful when I called about this, and have had no problems since. I would recommend highly for those of us with this penchant or any one who has a need for an accurate reading of rain fall. J E Hoeksema

I bought this item about a year ago. The rain gauge is very accurate. I was surprised how difficult it was to install the batteries. To install the batteries in the rain collector, you must take it apart. Once you take it apart you still must remove eight tiny screws to get to open the battery compartment. Once the batteries are installed you must set up the date, time and other options. Again, the instructions are very poor in this area. I recommended one to a person I work with. He was very frustrated trying to get it to work. After a week or so, he sent it back. Once I had it set-up I was pleased with how it worked. Don't expect to get anywhere near the 300' range that the manufacturer claims. With the main unit in the house & the collector outside, the range is only 20' to 30'.

I like to reset the rain totals at the beginning of each month. Even after doing this for a year; I have difficulty figuring out how to do it. Just recently the batteries died on me. It was not so difficult to replace them the second time; but I couldn't get the unit to work after they were replaced. I eventually gave up and started searching for a new unit. I was interested in the LaCrose, but the reviews were terrible. I then checked the Oregon Scientific reviews and found they were extremely positive. Several people complained about the instructions and the installation of the batteries. But at least two of the reviewers mentioned how you should reset both units after the batteries are replaced. None of this was mentioned in my instructions. Following there advice I found one tiny pin hole in both units. After sticking an unbent paper clip in each hole the unit was "reset" and is now working properly.

The unit once setup is pretty slick. Setting it up is another story. Once you remove the exterior sensor battery cover and remove the plastic strip BE SURE TO DEPRESS THE RESET BUTTON next to the batteries. If you don't do this (the manual barely mentions it) you will have to remove all 10 screws again to gain entrance to the reset button. I too, like a previous reviewer have difficulty clearing the rain amount, it seems to work when it is in the mood, not me.

After reading the mostly positive reviews I decided to give this product a shot. Having spent 20 years as an Air Force weather observer/forecaster and another 22 as a launch processing systems engineer on the Space Shuttle at KSC, I figured I could master this device. Even though I followed the advice from earlier reviewers, I could not clear the rainfall amount except by using the reset button with a paper clip. I have had a chance to experience this rain gauge through several heavy rainfalls. This rain gauge is not even remotely accurate. It is an average of a .5 inches low. I have two manual rain gauges as do several of my neighbors. I live only a few miles from the local airport and their reports are close to my manual gauges. The use of multiple tiny screws to hold the rain collector batteries is tiresome and is at the limits of my manual dexterity. It is possible that the unit is faulty. I will continue to rely on the old inexpensive Wal-Mart plastic tube. I have probably kept this modern marvel too long to return in hopes that I could get it work. This Oregon Scientific rain gauge is a poor excuse for measuring instrument. I will avoid any product produced by Oregon Scientific in the future.

I never even looked at the instruction manual, considering what I read about it here. Setup was easy using the reviewers instructions. The unit works great, just make sure to level it with a REAL level, don`t use the droplet method. Unless you enjoy removing all of those screws, do as I did, replace the batteries in the outdoor unit with Lithium ones. I have a set in my temperature sending unit over 3 years old, still going strong!

****** UPDATE 1/27/10 *****
Lithium batteries in the outdoor sensor finally died in Jan. 2010 after almost 4 years of use. After I replaced both units this time with lithiums, I couldn`t get it to sync. I found a review on another website stating to let it sit for a day or so and try it again. Lo and behold it worked! Don`t give up, take the batteries in and out and don`t forget to reset the outside unit. Then install the batteries in the inside unit. Bring it outside next to the sensor to see if it will sync up. Sometimes it takes upwards of a minute. If nothing hit the search button on the indoor unit. Once you get it to sync bring it to your indoor location, trying not to block the signal on the way there with your body or other obstruction. If you arrive with it still in sync, your all set. If it loses the signal, try a different location. In the almost 4 years before my original lithiums died it NEVER lost sync. My indoor unit is 25 feet from the outdoor unit, with the signal going through a wall with no obstructions. And believe it or not, the ones in my temperature sensor are still working after almost 7 YEARS! Litiums are the way to go if you don`t like changing batteries.

I just received my new Oregon Scientific Cable-Free Long-Range Rain Gauge. 3 stars because of the poorly written instruction manual.

Out of the box, I started to read the instructions which indicated that 4 AA batteries were needed. Nowhere in the instructions did it say that the batteries were included. It would have been nice if it made some mention that batteries were included, and that it was required to open up the unit to remove the protective plastic thing which prevents the battery from running out. Ok here is my experience with it:

After having to use a very small screwdriver to disassemble the rain gauge, I noticed batteries were already in it, so I put it back together, only to find out later that there was a clear plastic "thing" inside it to prevent the batteries from running down. I had to disassemble it again to remove the plastic thing. There is a plastic 'protector' in the receiver as well.
Make sure you have removed the 'protector' from the transmitter/gauge, BEFORE you do the same with the receiving unit, otherwise the receiving unit wont pick up the signal, if you power up the receiver first.

The instructions are POORLY written. It does not tell you how to determine whether or not the receiver is receiving. If the receiver is flashing the #'s for the rain amounts, it is not receiving from the transmitter. Remove, then put the batteries back in the receiver. If it doesnt flash, then it's receiving.

You'll eventually figure out how it works. It was frustrating for me though. When testing it, the amount of water doesnt immediately show up on the receiver. There is a mode setting, that is not explained. It shows "E", "S", "I", "F", or "D".
I think it means English, Spanish, Italian, French, or Deutsch..

It was VERY frustrating to set up, but it's alright once you figure it out. I almost got fed up, and packed it up for return. It didnt work at first, but after removing the batteries from the receiver and putting them back it, it started to work.

I bought this Oregon Scientific Rain Gauge for my husband for our anniversary. He is a volunteer weather watcher for a TV station and also a Daily Newspaper here in Florida. He has the other equipment (thermometer and rain gauge) but this item is cable free and long range. This means he does not have to go outside and read gauges when we have one of those bad Florida storms that have the lightning and thunder and pouring rain. He can stay inside and read the gauge of rain fall and then send in his reports. We both think it is a wonderful addition to helping with the weather watching he is involved with. Its is a great product.

I purchased this product under the assumption that I would have a hard time getting it operating after reading the horror stories regarding the instruction manual. After receiving it, I follwed the manual and had the rain gauge properly functioning in under 10 minutes. I dont claim to be an electronically handy person, quite the contrary. If you have common sense and a general understanding of simple electronics, you should have no trouble with this product. If you still have a VCR that flashes 12:00, dont buy this product, otherwise enjoy!