RainWise Weather Stations, Telemetry And Accessories

RainWise is one of the oldest players in the weather monitoring market, having been around since 1974. For reference, that’s only 4 years younger than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Through the years this Maine-based company has logged several advancements in the field starting with RainWise’s very first product, the tipping bucket rain gauge, which is now an industry standard. Since then they have introduced the first consumer digital weather station and the first wireless consumer weather station among other pioneering innovations.

With more than 40 years of experience, the products that RainWise produces today are just as inspired. Their meteorological solutions have grown and adapted with a changing environmental marketplace, one that is bigger and arguably more segmented. Weather data are now front and center not only for research meteorologists and weather enthusiasts, but also for leading decision-makers in industry and government.

RainWise MK-III Weather Stations

For most environmental monitoring applications, for armchair meteorologist to professionals, RainWise has a perfect solution in the compact and wireless MK-III-LR Weather Station.

These factory-assembled stations are quick to deploy and easy to maintain. Most anyone desiring accurate and dependable data from a fixed installation site within a mile of the receiving unit could opt for an MK-III-LR weather station – a solid choice for enthusiasts, scientists, research, government or agricultural applications alike.

The MK-III-LR stations all use research-grade sensors, are compact, factory-calibrated, easy to set up and ready to use out of the box. Each model tracks wind speed, wind direction, humidity, air temperature, barometric pressure and rainfall. An agricultural configuration of the MK-III, called the AgroMET, also allows users to add measurements of solar radiation and leaf wetness to that list.

These stations are powered by solar panels, made in the United States and come with an impressive 2-year warranty. They incorporate a proprietary magnet-run rotary blade wind sensor, and offer an option to add a tipping bucket rain gauge among other components. The MK-III-LR and AgroMET use wireless radio telemetry to convey data to the receiver.

“The MK-III was the first wireless consumer weather station in the market and MK-III-LR was the first consumer station to break the 1-mile wireless range,” said Sonia Turanski, marketing and communications manager at RainWise. “The MK-III-LR continues to be the best value available for high-end stations. We offer an LED wall display that has earned the consumer’s choice for best visibility, and with the addition of our IP-100 network interface and a modem, these stations seamlessly and directly connect to our cloud-based portal, RainwiseNET. With RainwiseNET, there is no need for an onsite computer – all of your weather station data is accessible instantly online and through mobile device apps – anywhere, anytime.”

The MK-III-LR has proven itself the station-of-choice across multiple venues, especially due to the simplicity of deployment and durability of construction. As one example, the MK-III-LR has earned a coveted recommendation as a station of choice for providing data to the expanding Weather Underground PWS (Personal Weather Station) network.

For professional and industrial applications where Modbus communication protocol is required, RainWise has just introduced a new line of Modbus compatible stations including the all-purpose MK-III-MB station (upgradable with an ultrasonic wind sensor), and an agricultural-specific AgroMET-MB station. These stations offer the same plug-and-play features for the Industry standard Modbus platform.

Portable and Remote Weather Stations

The RainWise PortLog is compact and rugged enough for harsh conditions. (Courtesy of RainWise)

Weather stations that acquire data in remote locations, or are to be used for temporary monitoring purposes, require a different kind of solution and here RainWise offers several options.

The PortLog portable weather station is a complete data logging unit that comes with a tripod and carrying case. Each PortLog can keep track of parameters including wind speed and direction, air temperature, barometric pressure, dew point, relative humidity, rainfall and solar radiation. Like the MK-III stations, the PortLOG comes fully assembled and can be deployed with little effort.

Powered by 3-watt solar panels and backed by a 5-year warranty, Turanski says that the stations have made a name for themselves across the industry for ease of use while maintaining reliable operation in harsh conditions and in out-of-the-way placements.

“The PortLog is a stand-alone weather data logger that can function in remote locations and with extreme conditions, where it can be set up and left for a period of time before returning to collect the stored data. One person can easily deploy the station in a few minutes,” said Turanski. “Depending on memory and data configuration, the logger can hold readings anywhere from a few months up to over 9 years.”

The data logger has features that professionals and scientists find useful, like the ability to adjust the data collection interval down to 1 minute, to stop logging when the memory is full or “wrap” it and override old data with new, to output data in a format compatible with Microsoft Excel.

When it is necessary to have real-time readings from remote locations rather than downloadable, logged data, RainWise offers the latest advancement in cellular telemetry, the TeleMET II, which can be paired with the MK-III-LR or AgroMET weather stations. This configuration is especially useful in situations where real-time, on-site data are important for decision-making, such as conditions at remote air landing strips, or spray and irrigation conditions at large-scale agricultural farms.

The TeleMET II allows station data to be sent directly to the cloud via a cellular connection, permitting any station in a cell-phone reception area to provide real-time data. If power is not available, a solar pack option allows for independent, remote installations with cellular capacity. In the event that there is an interruption in cellular transmission, the TeleMET II comes with a 6-month data logging storage backup.

Additionally, RainWise offers a low-cost hosting service for accessing the data as well as several platform options for integration with common domestic and international carriers.

Accessories

RainWise offers a host of accessories to complement their weather stations. There are many display options for viewing weather data: The IP-100 Network Interface is a great way to view up-to the-minute data anywhere and anytime through the cloud-based weather data portal, RainwiseNET. A RainwiseNET PRO upgrade is also available with graphs, alarms and other customizable features. To round out the RainwiseNET suite, mobile device apps are available for both Apple and Android devices.

RainWise has also gained popularity for their unique LED wall displays, the Weather Oracle and the Weather Oracle Multi View. These attractive wall displays can easily be read from across the room.

To assure the best fit for the job, many of the stations allow for multiple sensor upgrade options available at the time of ordering, and finally, to round out the offerings, a tripod mount or the popular Mono Mount make the installation of these stations a snap.

As a leading global provider of high-quality, innovative meteorological and monitoring solutions, RainWise continues to be a trusted go-to provider for easy-to-use, dependable and accurate research-grade weather equipment.