reliability & aging

[thezenox]

I just want to share some info about the long term outdoor behavior of the components.
The first stations are hitting 1.5 years now, including one winter. No major issues so far. One station went out of battery, but i didn't
find the reason, just recharged it and it worked again.

For testing, I left it on the mountain in winter. When its snowing, it looks like that

Just make sure your beam would hold the extra weight. This sensor was still working, but not showing usable values.

The solar cell becoming dull is a problem of the cheap resin covered cells. If it bothers you, you can get a fancy laminated PEI one for 5x the price. Or just replace the cheap one 5x. This is after 1.5 years. Besides the moss, it still looks perfect. not glossy anymore, but works. Also the randomly used old USB cable and ABS housing performs good.

The polycarbonate top of the WS80 looks a bit more concerning. Still tight but we will see how long it can survive. In general the color of the WS80 case changes to ivory-colored quite fast, but not getting bridle at all.

I therefore recommend the WS85 with a improved top.

I got one WS80 test station wich was not properly mounted on a tree (facing downwards) an collected rain water in the tube. Make sure to seal your wire entry. I didn't do on this one.
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Just removed the water, reworked the oxidized wires, recharged the battery and it was back in service.

[thezenox]

About one year ago I did the PCB V2 redesign with the integrated battery mount, wich allowed for a way smaller casing.
I selected a cheap ABS housing with foam gasket.
ABS is not super UV resistant, but this station is not designed to withstand decades anyway.
(Housing and solar cell can be replaced for a material invest of <5€, not worth designing for a costly UV resistant case and ETFE colar cell)
Here is a picture of the case after ~1year of sunlight and weather. Only the top is a bit yellowed, but no sign of decomposition, yet.
The cut edges of the RF4 board of the solar cell look a bit frayed and the resin coating is slightly undermined at the edges, but nothing to worry about.

I opened the lid to check if its ok inside and it looks great. No signs of humidity or corrosion, gasket looks good.