I was using a nearby personal weather station for rain measurements but the station was flaky. It worked for a month and would drop off.
I did not want to set a whole weather station since my roof is very inaccessible for mounting it above the roof line. So I went ahead and setup a rain sensor and use it for my Rachio’s rain data instead.
It uses the 915MHz ISM radio band. Range is quite good compared to WiFi. I have a mositure sensor, also from Ecowitt and that is about 50 feet away and through three concrete foundation walls away from the gateway. It still shows full signal strength.
My rain gauge is only about 20 feet away from the gateway.
Do keep in mind Ecowitt makes their sensors and gateways in three different frequencies. Officially US only has the 915MHz equipment but you can order other frequencies from their website. But all the frequencies of the gateway and sensors must match with each other.
I may end up doing the same after seeing one of the local weather stations stop reporting data a few hours a day randomly. Not sure how much of an effect that has but irritation not having the confidence it. Ive mentioned this here
