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Wireless hygrometers?

Joined
Jan 29, 2017
Messages
30
Hi BOTL/SOTL,

I'd like to know what everyone uses for wireless monitoring of their storage. Specifically with the option of showing historical data
So far from what I have read is the Sensorpush is basically the king, with the Govee units a cheaper alternative. Xiaomi apparently use the same sensors as the Govee or Sensorpush - but I'd be hesitant to buy a bunch of those if they turn out to be duds.

As I am in Australia pricing will be from Amazon (listed). Unfortunately, me being in Australia means there is a nice tax on it because Australia.

The options I have:
  1. Sensorpush. $83 each.
  2. Govee. $19 each.
  3. Inkbird. $22, or $44 depending on the unit.
  4. Maybe something from Alibaba/Aliexpress?
  5. Xiaomi?
  6. Anything else?
Ideally, the unit would be under $100 for each sensor and be accurate to ±3, or less.

I'm receiving a Raching MON1800A (basically a cigar cooler with humidifying) and would like some decent hygrometers to monitor and have the ability to do graphs.
So before I go ahead and buy 5 of anything, I'd like to know.
I've currently bought 3 different units, but anyone recommendations from experience would be great.

Thanks!
 
I have 3 SensorPush units in the cabinet, and a Govee in my day humidor. They were all within a point and a half when I salt tested them. I still recommend salt testing them and calibrating them, to be sure. I like them all. Got to say the Govee is tough to beat, if you don't need internet connectivity. For $19 i don't see buying anything else. Very easy to recommend.
 
Govee user here. Have quite a few and most of their models. Out of 15 units purchased in the last year and a half or so, only one had any issues. The faulty unit works but drains the battery in like less than a month. The other 14 units are going strong and I believe all are still on their original batteries.
 
What I've done:
Bought 5 Govee's.
Bought 2 different Inkbirds.
Bought 1 Sensorpush.

Initial thoughts:
The Inkbirds are always off a bit, even after calibration. Requiring constant fiddling.
The Govee's are solid. The only problem I foresee is replacing the battery. Since the ones I have are so tiny they might be easy to break.

The Sensorpush hasn't arrived yet.
 
What I've done:
Bought 5 Govee's.
Bought 2 different Inkbirds.
Bought 1 Sensorpush.

Initial thoughts:
The Inkbirds are always off a bit, even after calibration. Requiring constant fiddling.
The Govee's are solid. The only problem I foresee is replacing the battery. Since the ones I have are so tiny they might be easy to break.

The Sensorpush hasn't arrived yet.
Thanks for doing the comparison, intrested in the results.
 
Govee's:
±3% seems right.
Calibrated to 75% after 3 days. Moved to a 65% fresh Boveda pack and it's within ±3%.
I'm very anal, so I'll most likely use Govee's as a reference.

Inkbird:
Too much variation on the 2 different units I have.
I gave up keeping them the same. But both units are again ±3%

Xiaomi:
The default firmware doesn't allow calibration. I flashed a custom firmware. The downside to this is the app won't work now.
This arrived today so it's calibrating.
Initial thoughts - it seems promising.

Future:
Sensorpush is yet to arrive.

Looking at wirelesstag.net as a possibility. They claim ±1%. Very pricey, and conflicting reports in terms of after-sales support. I'm very technologically inclined, so if I can fix things - I would. But if it breaks/DOA then after-sales would need to be there.

Alternatives in terms of most accurate I'd have to research. I've bought everything I could find on cigar-related forums recommendations.
Obviously, not exact units, but I don't want gigantic units.

Boveda butlers are no longer for sale - but reviews on them were pretty crap.

Eagerly awaiting the Sensorpush.

In other news: I recalibrated 10 of my Caliber 4's and they all were the same in terms of adjustments. I set them to 0 before calibration and had kept a label on them pre-calibration offset. So that's nice.

Hoping the calibration kits stay fine until all of this device testing is over. I can't find any in Aus for sale, so Amazon (USA) it is, so for free shipping to Australia, I'd need to spend $50 or more.

I've bought a Raching MON1800A so this stuff would go in that. Currently, the ship that delivers the item can't get into the port as China is surrounded by a shit-load of ships, so it's very congested. For some reason they don't ship by air; something to do with the refrigerant used.
 
Lots of options now a days for remote hygrometers. Ten years ago, not so much. It is nice to have the options and features of the units out today. I've been running out of space in my coolers and have been supplementing them with tupperadors, so I'm up to like 11 Govee units. Glade I don't have to have 4 Oregon Scientific base stations sitting around!
 
I‘ve got I think 10 of the Govees in different coolers/humidors and acrylic jars, 1 Sensor Push and 10-12 Caliber IV’s to keep an eye on the lot of them, lol.

I set ‘em all in a freezer storage baggie with a few 69 Bovedas for 2-3 days and adjusted accordingly. Went another couple of days and they were all within +/- 1%. Good enough for me. 😎

So far so good for a couple of weeks. I just ordered 8 more of the Govees today. 😬. At $15 a pop on Amazon (vs. $50 for the SensorPush) I’ll take the gamble and see how they hold up long term.
 
For you guys doing the salt / humidity testing, you'll get far, far more consistent results with a mason jar, or some jar with a screw on lid. If you've got to bag it, double bag the test environment. Makes a BIG difference in consistency and repeatability.
 
Further update:
Xiaomi with custom firmware (no edits to any settings) seems more accurate than without.
Unfortunately, the deal-breaker is the fact the app doesn't work with the Xiaomi unit itself having custom firmware.
There is a way to have it read using an app - but it involves having "home assistant" setup - this is basically a thing you can set up on a server/raspberry. It's too much just for monitoring humidity/temperature in a humidor IMO.

Govees:
After calibrating them in a Boveda calibration kit I moved them to a 65% Boveda in a similar-sized bag, mind you the 65% one I use is also the same size as the calibrating size. I put in a freshly calibrated Caliber IV, and low and behold - they read the same as the Caliber 4. Not exactly the same as the Caliber only does xx% whereas the Govees do xx.xx%. Temperature was a bit off.

InkBirds:
Similar results to the Govee's, sort of. I'm not too impressed with them but I adjusted them to the Caliber IV's settings.

Overall:
So far Govee's win.

I'm interested in seeing Sensorpush results when it arrives.

I contacted wirelesstag.net for a discount - no response.
I also contacted a guy claiming to offer wirelesstag.net discounts (he gets a kickback) also no response.

I'd like to try wirelesstag.net, but at the price, it's too much, especially since the Govee's are so accurate after calibrating them from 75% to 65%.
 
Interested in the sensor push results as well. I’ve had great luck with all my Govee’s so be hard to switch out and get 5 sensor pushes. Rather spend that on more cigars and bourbons and scotch lol. But hey your results may sway me
 
Riding my Boveda Butlers out til they die, then probably going sensorpush, but I'm still good for now.
 
For you guys doing the salt / humidity testing, you'll get far, far more consistent results with a mason jar, or some jar with a screw on lid. If you've got to bag it, double bag the test environment. Makes a BIG difference in consistency and repeatability.
Tom is correct. After doing this process time after time decade after decade, it works. But, you HAVE to have a sealed environment.

Just using Boveda packs will get you within +/- 2.5 percent (which may be fine for most people) unless you use the Bovida Calibration Kit, which is much more accurate.
 
Update:
Xiaomi is rubbish with stock firmware.
Unfortunately, I'm not at all interested in doing a "home assistant" setup at present.
So Xiaomi has been sent to someone who will use it.

Sensorpush:
48 hours after I put it in a Boveda calibration kit I calibrated it to 75%.
It's now back in the calibration kit for another 48 hours.
The current reading it 74.8%.
The calibration kit is less than a month old and is triple bagged.

So far, I like the Govee's they're fairly accurate after fiddling with them. All to within 1% again.
I've got them in a bag with a Boveda humidity pack, and 2 hygrometers just to quadruple check, and will fiddle with them again throughout the week.

All I can say so far is he Govee's are very good for the price.
Inkbird is mediocre.
Sensorpush is also good, but pricey.
Xiaomi if you want to dick around with a "home assistant" setup is probably on-par with Sensorpush seeing as they use the same monitor.

Home assistant can be read about here.
From what I know, it supports all sorts of devices, Govee's, Sensorpush, Xiaomi, and probably lots more.
 
Thanks for the write up. I'm running a few of the Govee units in my humis and they seem to work really well once they are calibrated correctly.
 
Time for an update!
I've bought some units from Wirelesstags.net

Govee:
Temperature average (5 units) -0.24
Humidity average: -3.24
There's a massive difference between unit 1 and unit 5.
I'm not too happy with the accuracy of these. I'd rate them a 7/10.
I just can't confidently say go ahead and buy them - if you, like me, like accuracy.

Sensorpush:
It's a solid unit.
I don't see a way to change the update frequency.
Maybe the wifi unit makes it better?

Inkbird:
After much fiddling and calibration, they're a decent unit.
A 6/10 rating from me.
I'm using them for temperature/humidity logging outside, so no humidor.

I'm awaiting the wireless tags and will update.
 
I purchased a Govee hygrometer from an online seller for $14.95
The item description is “Govee Hygrometer Thermometer, Wireless Thermometer, Mini Bluetooth Humidity Sensor with Notification Alert, Data Storage and Export, 262 Feet Connecting Range”
I initially calibrated It with a Boveda bag. That will assist in the initial humIdity range settings.
After, I used my electronic Cigar Oasis in the humidor to come within less than a 4 tenths of a degree in
humidity to what Govee initial setup was.
I then repeated and re-adjusted the Govee using the Boveda bag and Govee and then the Govee and the Oasis controls Inside the humidor.

My humidor now keeps within 2-3 tenths of a degree of humidity permanently, except for when I open one of the draws.
I have a report sent to me by the Govee, once a week to my IPad giving the exact range each hour within .1 tenth of a degree.
I can say with without reserve that the Govee is very accurate.

The main cause I believe in the reported variance in the Govee measurements is not the Govee or other hygrometers but the
devices thats supplying the humidity in the humidor and the quality of the humidor seal.
If the humidor is not receiving enough humidity and/or an inaccurate measured supply of humidity and if the humidor losing humidity from a seal loss. THEN… Both will cause a highly inaccurate humidity figures from the hygrometer to you.
In all my humidors I sell or design, no matter the size, I recommend and supply an active humidifying device.
Active humidifying devices aren’t inexpensive but either is purchasing 100-1000 cigars.
Passive devices are good for zip lock bags only if the need for accuracy of humidity is not essential.
 
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I picked up a few Govees off of Amazon due to these writeups, @Lucifer Morningstar. I can trade off a point or two in precise accuracy for the cost differential between these and other units. I've had them salt testing for about 48+ hrs now; one is at 70.6%, and the other is at 72.1% RH. Double bagged.

For the life of me, I can't see or figure out how to calibrate them. Can you manually calibrate the Govee units, or should I just make note of how far off they are and go from there?
 
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