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Frequently asked questions
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When I run weectl extension install I receive a command not found error, why and how can I install the Ecowitt gateway driver extension?
The command not found error may occur due to a number of reasons. weectl was introduced in WeeWX v5.0.0, consequently if you are using WeeWX v4 or earlier the weectl command will not be available. The recommended solution is to upgrade WeeWX to version 5, alternatively you can install the Ecowitt gateway driver extension using the legacy installation instructions. Another cause of the command not found error for WeeWX v5 pip or git installs may be the failure to activate the Python virtual environment before using weectl. Failure to include the path to weectl for WeeWX v5 git installs may also result in this error. If opertaing WeeWX v5 refer to the relevant WeeWX installation method instructions for the correct weectl usage.
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The Ecowitt gateway driver version I am currently using is causing WeeWX to crash, can I downgrade to an earlier version?
Yes, you can. Instructions for downgrading to an earlier Ecowitt gateway driver release can be found on the Downgrade wiki page. Note that care should be taken when downgrading to an earlier release as subsequent releases may have entailed enduring changes; for example database schema changes, that are not undone by simply uninstalling the driver.
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Can I use the Ecowitt gateway driver with my existing non-Ecowitt/non-gateway station?
Yes you can. The Ecowitt gateway driver can be used as a WeeWX data service allowing the data from your existing station/driver to be augmented by data obtained from an Ecowitt Gateway device. The Using the Ecowitt gateway driver as a WeeWX service wiki page explains how to do this.
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How do I configure the Ecowitt gateway driver?
The Ecowitt gateway driver is configured through config options set in weewx.conf. A basic installation of the Ecowitt gateway driver will work with no user specified config options (though specifying a gateway device IP address is recommended). There are numerous config options that control how the Ecowitt gateway driver operates. These options are detailed on the Available Config Options wiki page.
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I have multiple Ecowitt gateway devices, what is the best way to get my data into WeeWX?
There are numerous ways to operate WeeWX with multiple Ecowitt gateway devices. Possible solutions are:
- run multiple WeeWX instances on one or more machines with each instance running the Ecowitt gateway driver connected to a single gateway device,
- run a single WeeWX instance using the Ecowitt gateway driver and multiple services using the Ecowitt gateway driver, or
- implement a hybrid configuration of the two previous configurations.
Refer to the Multi-gateway device architecture wiki page.
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I have an Ecowitt piezo rain gauge, how do I get my rainfall data into WeeWX?
By default, the Ecowitt gateway driver maps rainfall data from piezo sensors to a number of unique WeeWX fields so that existing Ecowitt gateway driver installations that use tipping bucket rainfall gauges continue to operate. The solution is to either add these unique WeeWX fields to the database or alter the Ecowitt gateway driver field map to map these fields to existing unused database fields. Refer to the Support for Traditional and Piezo Rainfall Gauges wiki page. `
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I have both a tipping bucket and a piezo rain gauge, how do I get my rainfall data into WeeWX?
By default, the Ecowitt gateway driver maps rainfall data from a tipping bucket gauge to the default WeeWX rain related fields and rainfall data from piezo sensors is mapped to a number of unique WeeWX fields. This was done so that existing Ecowitt gateway driver installations that use tipping bucket rainfall gauges continue to operate. The solution is to either add these unique WeeWX fields to the database or alter the Ecowitt gateway driver field map to map these fields to existing unused database fields. Refer to the Support for Traditional and Piezo Rainfall Gauges wiki page.
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My Ecowitt station has a light sensor on my station, but I don't see WeeWX field radiation. Where is it?
When connected to a station with a suitable light sensor the Ecowitt gateway device will send light, UV and radiation (solar insolation) data to ecowitt.com, but the Ecowitt gateway driver emits light and UV fields only. This is a limitation of the Ecowitt Gateway device API. The solution is to use the WeeWX StdWXCalculate service to have WeeWX approximate radiation (solar insolation) using the same formula as Ecowitt uses to submit data to ecowitt.com. Refer to the Understanding Ecowitt LAN/Wi-Fi Gateway API radiation fields wiki page.
Note: Whilst Ecowitt uses a simple linear equation to convert what Ecowitt calls light to solar insolation, this is at best an approximation. This situation is further complicated by an anomaly with the luminosity field in the default WeeWX database schema. Further information can be found on the Understanding Ecowitt LAN/Wi-Fi Gateway API radiation fields wiki page.
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I have a WN34 liquid or WN34 soil temperature sensor, but I have seen WH34 mentioned, what's going on?
An early version of the Ecowitt LAN/Wi-Fi Gateway API documentation made provision for a WH34 temperature sensor. Consequently, WH34 support was included in the Ecowitt gateway driver v0.2.0. Ecowitt subsequently released the temperature sensor in soil and liquid versions, but designated the device WN34 not WH34. This necessitated some minor changes to the Ecowitt gateway driver v0.5.0. Very few, if any, Ecowitt gateway driver users should be affected by these changes. Further details of the WH34/WN34 changes can be found on the Changes to support for WN34 sensors wiki page.
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I see numerous different sensor battery state values being emitted by the Ecowitt gateway driver, why?
Ecowitt sensors report battery state using a number of different ways, some sensors provide a simple 0/1 to indicate good/bad, others report a number and others report a voltage. Further details on the battery state reporting for each sensor type can be found on the Sensor battery state reporting wiki page.
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The Seasons skin does not display some of my data, what is wrong and how do I fix it?
There are two broad versions of the Seasons skin shipped with WeeWX. First there is version shipped with WeeWX v4.6.2 and earlier; this version is known as the original Seasons skin. The second is the version shipped with WeeWX v4.7.0 and later; this version is known as the parameterized Seasons skin.
The original Seasons skin was modular in nature, but the observation types displayed were hard coded in the skin templates and skin config file. Consequently, if a station provides a new or uncommon observation one or more Seasons skin template files and the skin config file would likely need modification by the user for the original Seasons skin to display the new observation type. To adapt the original Seasons skin to display new observation types refer to the Adapting the original Seasons skin to display a new observation wiki page.
The parameterized Seasons skin is also modular in nature, but many display functions are now parameterized allowing the choice and order of observations being displayed to be set via the skin or WeeWX config file. In some cases the parameterized Seasons skin will automatically adjust to include new observation types, but if it does not a few changes to the skin config file will see the new observation types included. To adapt the parameterized Seasons skin to display new observation types refer to the Adapting the parameterized Seasons skin to display a new observation wiki page.
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The Seasons skin does not display sensor battery state or signal data for some of my sensors, what is wrong and how do I fix it?
To be written
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When run as a service will the Ecowitt gateway driver overwrite data from my existing station?
No. When augmenting a loop packet from your existing driver/services the Ecowitt gateway driver will only add fields that do not already exist in the loop packet. Refer to the Using the Ecowitt gateway driver as a WeeWX service wiki page.
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There were changes to the 24-hour average particulate concentration field names in an earlier driver version, what is that about and does it affect me?
To better align with existing WeeWX particulate concentration field names, and in conjunction with inclusion of support for the WH45 air quality sensor, the 24-hour average particulate field names used by the Ecowitt gateway driver were renamed in v0.2.0. This change only affects the 24-hour average particulate concentration field names and will only affect users who have WH41, WH43 or WH45 sensors and use these 24-hour average fields in reports or save these fields to database. Other users are not affected. Refer to the Changes to 24-hour average particulate concentration field names wiki page.
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I have a problem with my Ecowitt gateway driver installation, what debug output is available?
WeeWX debug output appears in the WeeWX log and is traditionally obtained by setting debug = 1 in weewx.conf. Some drivers/services/extensions also support higher debug option settings resulting in more extensive debug output. The problem with this approach is that setting the debug option in weewx.conf affects all WeeWX services/drivers/extensions which can result in huge amounts of log output from many sources making the debug output difficult to analyse. The Ecowitt gateway driver uses a different approach by setting various options under the [GW1000] stanza in weewx.conf to generate debug output for various aspects of the Ecowitt gateway driver operation. The traditional debug setting has limited effect on the Ecowitt gateway driver debug output, making analysis of detailed debug output from the Ecowitt gateway driver much easier. Refer to the Debug output wiki page.
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I have a problem with my Ecowitt gateway driver installation that is not covered in by this FAQ, what should I do?
Please post your problem to the WeeWX User Group (weewx-user) on Google Groups. Please do not raise an issue on GitHub, this should be used for confirmed bugs only, not for general user support. Also, do not post to the WeeWX board on WXForum.net, I do not provide support via WXForum.net.