VP2+ Soil and Moisture Station

Hey guys!

I’m trying to get the tags for the soil moisture working on a webpage for this soil temp/moisture station, and I’m just wondering if I’m using the correct tags.

I’m using the Alt dashboard (6.94) testtags.txt file from from Burnsville Weather and I’m getting the soil temps, but not moisture. I’m using $VPsoilmoisture, $VPsoilmoisture2, etc. but no data.
testtags.php is here: http://daculaweather.com/Partee/testtags.php?sce=view

On the console it does show moisture, so I’m wondering about the tags.

Ideas?

Could you post the testtags.txt from the Wdisplay\webfiles folder?
It seems that your testtags.php has values for moist as if the sensors are not installed.
// SENSOR #1
$VPsoilmoisture = ‘255.0’; //Davis Soil Moisture #1
$hiVPsoilmoisture = ‘-100.0’;
$loVPsoilmoisture = ‘1000.0’;

I am using these WD tags, which deliver normal values
|soilMoistAct_1|moist|%VPsoilmoisture%|!
|soilMoistMaxToday_1|moist|%hiVPsoilmoisture%|!
|soilMoistMinToday_1|moist|%loVPsoilmoisture%|!

Wim

The tags I have in the testtags.txt for soil look like this:

// Tags for Soil Moisture Measurements - Alternative Dashboard 6.5 & WXsoil 1.0
//

// SENSOR #1
$VPsoilmoisture = ‘%VPsoilmoisture%’; //Davis Soil Moisture #1
$hiVPsoilmoisture = ‘%hiVPsoilmoisture%’;
$loVPsoilmoisture = ‘%loVPsoilmoisture%’;
$mrecordhighsoilmonth = ‘%mrecordhighsoilmonth%’;
$mrecordhighsoilday = ‘%mrecordhighsoilday%’;
$mrecordlowsoilmonth = ‘%mrecordlowsoilmonth%’;
$mrecordlowsoilday = ‘%mrecordlowsoilday%’;
$yrecordhighsoilmonth = ‘%yrecordhighsoilmonth%’;
$yrecordhighsoilday = ‘%yrecordhighsoilday%’;
$yrecordlowsoilmonth = ‘%yrecordlowsoilmonth%’;
$yrecordlowsoilday = ‘%yrecordlowsoilday%’;
$recordhighsoilyear = ‘%recordhighsoilyear%’;
$recordhighsoilmonth = ‘%recordhighsoilmonth%’;
$recordhighsoilday = ‘%recordhighsoilday%’;
$recordlowsoilyear = ‘%recordlowsoilyear%’;
$recordlowsoilmonth = ‘%recordlowsoilmonth%’;
$recordlowsoilday = ‘%recordlowsoilday%’;

// SENSOR #2
$VPsoilmoisture2 = ‘%VPsoilmoisture2%’; //Davis Soil Moisture #2
$hiVPsoilmoisture2 = ‘%hiVPsoilmoisture2%’;
$loVPsoilmoisture2 = ‘%loVPsoilmoisture2%’;
$mrecordhighsoilmonth2 = ‘%mrecordhighsoilmonth2%’;
$mrecordhighsoilday2 = ‘%mrecordhighsoilday2%’;
$mrecordlowsoilmonth2 = ‘%mrecordlowsoilmonth2%’;
$mrecordlowsoilday2 = ‘%mrecordlowsoilday2%’;
$yrecordhighsoilmonth2 = ‘%yrecordhighsoilmonth2%’;
$yrecordhighsoilday2 = ‘%yrecordhighsoilday2%’;
$yrecordlowsoilmonth2 = ‘%yrecordlowsoilmonth2%’;
$yrecordlowsoilday2 = ‘%yrecordlowsoilday2%’;
$recordhighsoilyear2 = ‘%recordhighsoilyear2%’;
$recordhighsoilmonth2 = ‘%recordhighsoilmonth2%’;
$recordhighsoilday2 = ‘%recordhighsoilday2%’;
$recordlowsoilyear2 = ‘%recordlowsoilyear2%’;
$recordlowsoilmonth2 = ‘%recordlowsoilmonth2%’;
$recordlowsoilday2 = ‘%recordlowsoilday2%’;

// SENSOR #3
$VPsoilmoisture3 = ‘%VPsoilmoisture3%’; //Davis Soil Moisture #3
$hiVPsoilmoisture3 = ‘%hiVPsoilmoisture3%’;
$loVPsoilmoisture3 = ‘%loVPsoilmoisture3%’;
$mrecordhighsoilmonth3 = ‘%mrecordhighsoilmonth3%’;
$mrecordhighsoilday3 = ‘%mrecordhighsoilday3%’;
$mrecordlowsoilmonth3 = ‘%mrecordlowsoilmonth3%’;
$mrecordlowsoilday3 = ‘%mrecordlowsoilday3%’;
$yrecordhighsoilmonth3 = ‘%yrecordhighsoilmonth3%’;
$yrecordhighsoilday3 = ‘%yrecordhighsoilday3%’;
$yrecordlowsoilmonth3 = ‘%yrecordlowsoilmonth3%’;
$yrecordlowsoilday3 = ‘%yrecordlowsoilday3%’;
$recordhighsoilyear3 = ‘%recordhighsoilyear3%’;
$recordhighsoilmonth3 = ‘%recordhighsoilmonth3%’;
$recordhighsoilday3 = ‘%recordhighsoilday3%’;
$recordlowsoilyear3 = ‘%recordlowsoilyear3%’;
$recordlowsoilmonth3 = ‘%recordlowsoilmonth3%’;
$recordlowsoilday3 = ‘%recordlowsoilday3%’;

// SENSOR #4
$VPsoilmoisture4 = ‘%VPsoilmoisture4%’; //Davis Soil Moisture #4
$hiVPsoilmoisture4 = ‘%hiVPsoilmoisture4%’;
$mrecordhighsoilmonth4 = ‘%mrecordhighsoilmonth4%’;
$mrecordhighsoilday4 = ‘%mrecordhighsoilday4%’;
$mrecordlowsoilmonth4 = ‘%mrecordlowsoilmonth4%’;
$mrecordlowsoilday4 = ‘%mrecordlowsoilday4%’;
$yrecordhighsoilmonth4 = ‘%yrecordhighsoilmonth4%’;
$yrecordhighsoilday4 = ‘%yrecordhighsoilday4%’;
$yrecordlowsoilmonth4 = ‘%yrecordlowsoilmonth4%’;
$yrecordlowsoilday4 = ‘%yrecordlowsoilday4%’;
$loVPsoilmoisture4 = ‘%loVPsoilmoisture4%’;
$recordhighsoilyear4 = ‘%recordhighsoilyear4%’;
$recordhighsoilmonth4 = ‘%recordhighsoilmonth4%’;
$recordhighsoilday4 = ‘%recordhighsoilday4%’;
$recordlowsoilyear4 = ‘%recordlowsoilyear4%’;
$recordlowsoilmonth4 = ‘%recordlowsoilmonth4%’;
$recordlowsoilday4 = ‘%recordlowsoilday4%’;

I knew they weren’t populating but wasn’t sure why.

To ask a dumb question, is the data showing OK in WD itself?

When I looked at the console and scrolled through all 4 pairs of sensors, it looked like it was showing moisture, there was a % value to the right of the temperature. Unfortunately, the console is at different school from me and I can’t see it from here. But I’m very positive it was showing values.

The tags for moist are the same as I am using but no correct values in testtags.php

Did you tick the moist setting in WD also?

Wim


Yep. I did restart WD and now it doesn’t even want to create a testtags.php to upload.

VVP didn’t load, fixed that and it’s now creating all the clientraw files but no testtags.

Testtags now sending. Now it’s showing 200 for all four moisture sensors instead of 255. Go figure…

I will say the soil is VERY dry (just buried the sensors today in rock hard Georgia red clay) but not sure about 200.

Maybe you did not soak the soil moisture sensors overnight in water?
They should go into the ground very saturated wet, as losing the superfluous water is easier for the sensor then absorbing the needed humidity from the ground. Soil-Moist sensors react not as quickly (understatement) as an air-humidity sensor.

If they become to dry the sensor reports values above 240cb, so WD is giving correct values
If the ground will get wet the reported value by WD will be 1.

Davis manual page 16 has the sensor install instructions.
http://www.davisnet.com/product_documents/weather/manuals/VP2_Manual_Leaf_Soil_Temp_RevA.pdf

Seems all is OK to me,

Wim

You never plant a dry soil moisture sensor. If you can’t dig them up, then do as Wim suggests saturate the ground around each sensor, over water it. What will happen it might, just might work. I would replant them. The sensors are Irronmeter Watermark,

That’s the problem. Not a problem to dig them up. i must have missed that part somewhere… :wink:
Thanks guys!

Oh… one thing, in Winter, if the ground freezes, the sensor may also freeze and the values hit 200. No probllem , but something to know. Around here, I have 3 foot sensors, so I can tell how deep things are frozen.