Where to put the temperature bobcat?

[ajgriglak]

I've been very disappointed with the temperature bobcat that was a lot more money than I wanted to spend...

It was a pain in the *** to set up in HS, and I can't get an acurate reading out of it whenever the sun is out. I have it on the sunny side of the house, but it is not in direct sunlight. It is not touching anything that might also conduct heat - I have it hanging from the bottom of a deck in a shady area. When the sun is out, it can vary the reading by +15 degrees...

Is there anyway that I can keep this on the sunny side of the house, or do I have to re-run the wiring again??

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-=A.J. Griglak

[jon00]

If the temperature is rising by as much as 15 degrees, then the sun must be influncing the sensor. Have you considered building a pagoda?

Rupp has posted some pics at this thread.

Patrick Sikes at his web page

and me here.

It is basically just a sunshade, which allows airflow to travel past the sensor.

Jon

[ajgriglak]

Thanks, Jon.

A bit more complicated than I expected, but I will add this to my list of projects... I will also start looking for some bowls.

Thanks again! And thanks to Rupp and Patrick Sikes...

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-=A.J. Griglak

[JeffCharger]

I built one of these too. It has really helped. I live in Canada and we haven't much warm and sunny weather as yet to really test, but I have registered a temperature differential of +15 C between my pagoda sensor and one not protected.

BTW - my whole arrangement cost me $11 including a can of glossy spray paint (and that's Canadian!)

[Rupp]

I want to create my own fan aspirated pagoda and was trying to figure out a way to use a solar sensor and a small fan combo. Kinda like the ones that use to be built into hats . Any ideas? TIA

-Rupp

[jon00]

I am going to put a fan in mine - but will run it off 12V. I hope to mount it above the sensor and suck the air around it. I am thinking of using a fan off one of those PCI fan cards which are both thin & cheap here.

As I have a few spare Ocelot relay contacts left, I could use that to switch the fan on/off

I like the idea of using a solar panel & fan! It would automatically speed up as the sun's intensity increased and stop at night. Hmmm.... I might take a look at solar panels.

I am sure Radio Shack sell them in the USA - Our equivalent does!

Jon

[ajgriglak]

OK, weather gurus... I had a half hour to blow today, so I went to WalMart and Lowes to get all the stuff. I'm not sure if my bowls will be big enough, though... They seem kinda small.

They measure 7" across at the widest part, and are about 4" at the most narrow part. They are about 2 1/2" deep. Will these work?

-=A.J.

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-=A.J. Griglak

[jon00]

A.J. - If you have 7" then that sounds about the right size!

Actually, my design uses 6" plant saucers and that works fine for me.

Jon

[ajgriglak]

OK, cool! Will post pics when I'm done...

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-=A.J. Griglak

[ajgriglak]

OK, guys... few questions:

Is the 6 bowls a requirement? The reason I ask is, I cut the spacers without measuring or calculating, and 5 bowls fit perfectly.

The bowls are 2" deep, and I have 1-3/8" between the lips. Is that enough overlap?

Do the holes in the center of the bowls go through all but the top bowl, or the top two?

I'm thinking of putting some silicone around the bolt heads to keep water out - good or bad idea?

Thanks!

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-=A.J. Griglak

[Rupp]

5 aught to work just fine. I drilled holes in all but the top and bottom bowls. The more holes, the better the air will circulate and this is what it is all about.

-Rupp

[JeffCharger]

I would agree that you should silicon the bolt holes to keep water out.

Also, drill the largest hole possible through the middle bowls for max air flow (without sacrificing the integrity of the bowl).

Make sure you paint everything glossy white - including any bolt heads showing at the top.

[JeffCharger]

an idea occurred to me while I was driving......in thinking through what to use for a fan in the pagoda.....what about those silly baseball caps that have a built-in fan run by a small solar panel. They can't be very expensive and likely good enough to get sufficient airflow.

[ajgriglak]

Hey, guess what? I finally got around to getting this all set up.

Hmmmm 3 - 1/2 years - not too bad, eh?