AcuRite 01012M Weather Station

4 times in just under 3 years I had to remove the 5-in-1 sensor housing to clean connector contacts on the temperature sensor CCA. This was to address the all too well known "ridiculous outdoor temperature reading" problem (+147°F, -92°F, etc.) that, for me, cropped up every 8 to 12 months (see pictures). Cleaning the main sensor cable connector plug and jack with 91% isopropyl alcohol would usually address the problem, but it still meant an annual trip up the extension ladder to take the unit down. My 4th occurrence resulted in only 3 hours operation after the usual fix, requiring me to replace the 5-in-1 module. There are conformal coatings that are designed to protect exposed electrical contacts from condensate buildup and/or corrosion. I would think a system intended for exposed standalone operation like this would have this sort of protection from the factory. My other concern is with durability of the plastic that the outdoor system is composed of. Note the attached photo. The foreground unit that I replaced was approx 2-1/2 years old. The material color change was drastic and notable even on the first instance of taking it down to address the temperature sensor mentioned above. Additionally, one of the anemometer cups snapped off quite easily during one of these incidents. Bottom line, just one thing to pass on the next time you communicate with your injection molding supplier: UV STABILIZED MATERIAL. I've never seen a product application where this requirement is more desperately needed (and using material with this property is not going to clobber your cost model). My only other beef is that my Acurite Access (internet gateway) module had it's 3 Duracell AA batteries rupture and essentially destroy the unit. It's odd because 1) the batteries were only about 18 months old and 2) I've never had Duracell alkalines do that before (and I've got many that have been installed for much longer periods). No problem - Acurite offered to sell me a replacement module for $129, two thirds of what I paid for my entire system. I do like my Acurite system. Don't get me wrong. I just wish they could apply a couple of relatively minor design changes to make it a tad more robust. If so, they would have a true winner! Note on Rating Stars: I would have likely given more stars for "Sheerness", only if someone (Amazon) would have bothered to describe what the heck "sheerness" even is!