OREGON SENSOR THWR800ABOXW POOL - LMA0362110111002

Update 4/8/11: I found an improved wireless pool sensor at the local Home improvement store called Acu-Rite model 00617. The design seems superior to this leaky one. The Acu-Rite has 5 screws that hold the top seal, and the base unit shows a temp graph for the last few hours and days, plus it shows the wireless signal strength. And it costs half the price of this one! The Acu-Rate is also made in China so let's hope it lasts longer than this one did.I'm on the 3rd pool sensor. The first two were from Brookstone and upon close inspection, it is the identical product to this one from Oregon Scientific, except for the color of the rubber ring. The first one developed a leak after about 3 months and rusted the internal circuits. I took steps to protect the second unit by putting silicone sealant around the seam next to the rubber ring. This lasted longer, almost a year, but it still developed a leak right onto the circuit board and was also destroyed! So I finally discovered that the leak also appears to be coming from the seam at the top where the Antenna's grey rubber cover meets the plastic enclosure (see my customer photo). I think that also covering the entire top part with clear aquarium silicone sealant may do the trick and make it last a lot longer before sprouting a leak. I highly recommend that anyone buying one of these do the same. Other reviewers are also having the same leak problems if you check out the other reviews on this product. The fact that I keep buying these despite this design/manufacturing defect shows just how useful these things are! It's a very nice design otherwise. Everyone loves to see the pool temp from inside the house and I'd get in trouble if I didn't replace it.

OREGON SCIENTIFIC NEEDS TO LISTEN TO THEIR CUSTOMERS AND REDESIGN THIS PRODUCT! First of all, I really love the idea of this product. It interfaces with my weather station and I can read my spa temp without going to the spa. I have bought FOUR of these over the past 2 years! Each time, I was hoping an improvement was made and did not deal with warranty return. The first one leaked and corroded inside. The other three became intermittent on the local display and stopped sending temp data to the master station. I finally made some noise and received a free-of-charge replacement from Amazon seller Portronics (GREAT COMPANY, thank you!) and was contacted by Oregon Scientific for warranty adjustment, as well. Thant only takes care of replacements for 2 of the 4 units, but I'm not complaining.

The bad news is that these leak eventually or pretty quickly if it gets held underwater. After going through 3 of them, trying to seal them, etc I gave up. The good news is I have a solution. Get one of the Oregon Scientific All Weather temperature/humidity sensors. I've had one of those outdoors in the rain for years and it is still going strong. Put it in a watertight glass container with a sealed lid and no metal parts with a bag of desiccant. I have an alarm set for if the humidity goes up which will catch failures before they destroy the unit. Barely floats on the surface and gives good readings. Probably better than almost any other pool sensor as they are not usually sealed this well.

I purchased this unit 12/17/2011 from Amazon as an accessory to the Pro Weather Station for use in my Koi pond.The sensor worked great for 6 months and then just stopped transmitting to the base station. After exhausting all manner of troubleshooting I finally decided to contact Oregon Tech support by email today. So I'll see what happens going forward from here. This is the first Oregon item I purchased that has failed within the warranty period. I have always had good luck with their products, however depending on the response from tech support will determine whether I continue to use their products.Update on Sensor 09/30/2012- The support person was very helpful and walked me through the steps to reset the unit. It resolved the issue and has been working well ever since.

I found out after unsuccessfully trying to get the thermometer to communicate with my WMR968 Weather Station, and calling Oregon Scientific Technical Support, this model is not compatible with the WMR968. It is only compatible with the WMR200, and there is no longer one available which will work with the WMR968. That is the reason for only two stars - the product description did not say it was not compatible with the WMR968 even though it looks just like the one I wanted to replace. Amazon was great and allowed me to return this product without hassle. I found and purchased from Amazon a stand alone pool thermometer, the GAME 4301 Wireless Pool Thermometer which is less money and works great!

This product started out very nice. Large digits and transmits to my base station and I'm able to publish my pool temp to the web.Then after 2 months the LCD display stopped being visible; but the unit continued to transmit to my base station. Then I had my first connection difficulty to the base station. I opened the unit and drained the water and cleaned the internal cavities. I sealed the unit with a waterproof pool lubricant. One month later; the unit stops transmitting again and I cannot seem to repair it. After purchasing the base station and software; I feel somewhat stuck. The expense of replacing this THWR800A even once seems like too much. My advice is look for an alternative product before purchasing this line of sensor equipment.

I have purchased three of these. They all worked at first, but each lasted approximately one year. The latest one simply decided that 54 degree water was 78 all of a sudden. I've given up on Oregon Scientific for monitoring my Koi pond. Can't justify $50 per year! The rest of the weather station still works fine. I'm now using an Ambient Weather sensor; the monitor and water temp sensor together cost about $85, so if it lasts two years, I'm ahead of the game.