Adding outside temp display?

[troverman]

Anyone added an outside temp display like a car has?

 

[GreensvilleJay]

Have to ask WHY ?
Seems rather 'silly' as you know what it's like outside when you hopped into your tractor....
Any external sensor needs to be properly mounted( not in sun, not on metal, not in wind, etc.) I spent 3 decades doing remote temperature control systems...sigh...
If you want to go 'hightech' cut or download an 'ap' to read your current GPS location then grab the 'current' weather information plus stats from database, process through some 'math' to get close real temperature.

 

[mikester]

Have to ask WHY ?
Seems rather 'silly' as you know what it's like outside when you hopped into your tractor....
Any external sensor needs to be properly mounted( not in sun, not on metal, not in wind, etc.) I spent 3 decades doing remote temperature control systems...sigh...
If you want to go 'hightech' cut or download an 'ap' to read your current GPS location then grab the 'current' weather information plus stats from database, process through some 'math' to get close real temperature.

I guess I have to ask WHY someone would buy a BX23 when you should simply buy a REAL tractor or REAL lawnmower...and WHY would you need to use an APP for the weather when you can simply look out the window? WHY would you even need a phone and GPS on your lawnmower?

All kidding aside I picked up a cheap LCD clock off amazon for my tractor cab that also displays inside and outside temperatures and voltmeter. Sorry I cant find the link to it for you there are a million lcd clocks showing up on amazon search. For some reason you can get an all in one display for the same price as a plain old Chinese lcd clock with the batteries that die after 24 hours of use.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

M...
I have 3 REAL Tractors (had 4, it got sold to buy the Kub) for doing the REAL farming here, the BX23S is my retirement 'toy' from last year.
As for the 'ap', I program microcomputers and design 'stuff' for somethng to do. While I prefer to cut in Assembler, I'm self teaching myself 'C', so yes, an old dog can learn new tricks.

BTW no cab on any of my tractors, so I always KNOW what temperature it is....

 

[troverman]

Have to ask WHY ?
Seems rather 'silly' as you know what it's like outside when you hopped into your tractor....
Any external sensor needs to be properly mounted( not in sun, not on metal, not in wind, etc.) I spent 3 decades doing remote temperature control systems...sigh...
If you want to go 'hightech' cut or download an 'ap' to read your current GPS location then grab the 'current' weather information plus stats from database, process through some 'math' to get close real temperature.

I guess I'm interested what the actual ambient temp is at the location I'm at. The phone / GPS temp readouts are based upon the temp located somewhere else and I find can vary considerably from what you see in your car.

It's also a lot easier to glance at a display then pull your phone out of your pocket while operating a tractor.

The canopy roof above the cab is made of plastic and has enough overhang to mount a sensor that will be out of the sun and be mounted on the plastic which doesn't conduct heat very well.

Sorry, I didn't realize it was such a horrible thing to have an in-cab outside temp display.

 

[SidecarFlip]

It's not. We have one of those old school analog ones screwed to the window by the kitchen so I know the temp before I go outside.....

 

[NHSleddog]

ROFLMAO - I usually have a weather rock somewhere on the hood.

 

[troverman]

I wonder why every car has an outside temp display in it these days, when "you can just look at your phone," or "just look at an analog thermometer before you leave?"

 

[GreensvilleJay]

why ?? simple YOU have to PAY for it !!! Big $$$ option apparently you MUST HAVE......

My way of using GPS to grab local temp works, though you NEED to cut code to access a database of historical temperatures, do some 'math' to guesstimate the probable temperture. This is NOT the same as what a phone pops up( usually the temp at the airport or other 'nearby' weather station.
$5 'weather station' attached to tractor cab works.....30 second solution...
It took me 4 hrs of cutting code to get what I wanted.

 

[D2Cat]

But Jay you're a code cutter by trade/hobby, and Troverman just needs the answer to your problem solving!!

 

[Tornado]

Weather is one of my many hobbies. I run a professional weather station at my house and monitor everything and its all logged digitally for historical records. Having said that - Yes you could do this on a tractor very easily. The easiest way to do it of course would be to simply buy a good, cheap wireless thermometer that runs on batteries, and then attach it to the tractor using any number of ways. Magnet, screw, etc. Most of these battery operated wireless thermometers will run for a year or longer before needing new batteries. If you want to go the extra mile and try to put it all in the dash then you will have to invest more effort obviously, but it could be done.

Given my tractor is used almost exclusively on my own property, I can check my own weather station data right from my phone, so I get all the data I could want. If youre mostly interested in just the weather at your home I could show you lots of options and talk to you about what I use

 

[troverman]

I want something that looks nice and as built in as possible.

I have a nice weather station at my house, mounted on the peak of my garage and transmits into the house. Wind speed / direction, rain, temp, humidity, dewpoint, etc, etc. It does connect to wifi and keeps historical data. However, my tractor goes to job sites all over the place, many with no cell signal. Its nice as you mow for 6 hours straight to get an idea of how hot or cool it is. I only want the temp. I just figured if I can have it in my truck, why can't I have it in my tractor?

Believe me, I'm thrilled to death this tractor has a clock, let alone a readout showing your fuel consumption, DPF percentage full, etc. It just seems since Kubota already has this nice display in the dash, why not spend an extra $10 and add a temp probe somewhere and display this info?

 

[BAP]

Have to ask WHY ?
Seems rather 'silly' as you know what it's like outside when you hopped into your tractor....
Any external sensor needs to be properly mounted( not in sun, not on metal, not in wind, etc.) I spent 3 decades doing remote temperature control systems...sigh...
If you want to go 'hightech' cut or download an 'ap' to read your current GPS location then grab the 'current' weather information plus stats from database, process through some 'math' to get close real temperature.

Just because you don’t want one doesn’t mean it is wrong for someone else to ask the question. If you don’t like what an poster is asking, don’t reply to the thread, it’s as simple as that. Troverman, I agree that the phone apps are useless around here, because their data is usually based upon some airport that has temperatures 5-10 degrees different than where you are located.

 

[troverman]

Thanks BAP.

 

[Freeheeler]

I just let the dog in. If he's wet it's raining, if he's white it's snowing, if he wouldn't go out in the first place it's too cold to be on the tractor

 

[gssixgun]

Hmmmm not a bad idea at all

I added a Clock / Temp / Humidity to the Cabin in the boat, simple in there of course with batteries and Velcro HTC-1 is the type

I didn't realize how much I used it until I had it

I am not sure how long the batteries would last, I change them each season

I think I put it in two seasons back and it works pretty darn good for $9

 

[Tornado]

I want something that looks nice and as built in as possible.

I have a nice weather station at my house, mounted on the peak of my garage and transmits into the house. Wind speed / direction, rain, temp, humidity, dewpoint, etc, etc. It does connect to wifi and keeps historical data. However, my tractor goes to job sites all over the place, many with no cell signal. Its nice as you mow for 6 hours straight to get an idea of how hot or cool it is. I only want the temp. I just figured if I can have it in my truck, why can't I have it in my tractor?

Believe me, I'm thrilled to death this tractor has a clock, let alone a readout showing your fuel consumption, DPF percentage full, etc. It just seems since Kubota already has this nice display in the dash, why not spend an extra $10 and add a temp probe somewhere and display this info?

I see

Well, You can do it of course, its just how much work you want to put into it . I think you know what it will involve. I will tell you this though, and if youre a weather nut like me you may have already thought of this - but one reason you likely dont see these on tractors is because of an issue you yourself are going to run into if you do this - getting accurate temperatures.

Its going to be hard to find the perfect spot to get an accurate reading. On cars the probe is almost always located in front of the vehicle on the outside of the radiator. Most vehicles also only update the temperature once you hit a certain speed - my F150 is like this. I think the speed is like 40mph or so - i forget exactly but its around that. Some vehicles dont require this and when you crank them up here in florida in the summer its not uncommon to see temperatures of 120 or 130 on the display, when the actual temperature is 96. This is due to radiation heat, which is the primary culprit of inaccurate thermometers. If the probe sits in full sun, or sits under a hot piece of metal like a car hood, it of course absorbs that heat. This is why my F150 requires a certain speed to begin sending updates. The wind from forward movement over the node helps remove all that radiated heat so you get a much more accurate temperature. I still notice though it takes a couple miles down the road for the temperature to level out to what I would call accurate. On a tractor you will not have this forward movement/airflow to help. You cant put the node under the hood for very obvious reasons. Outside the hood youre gonna be in full sun, and likely near hot metal. You could design something that would help with this, but youll want some type of enclosure for the node, and you'll need to think about placement on the tractor. If the gauge isnt able to be fairly accurate then its going to be useless imo, and itdoesnt take much for a thermometer to be several degrees off.

Many of the home weather stations suffer this same problem. The Accuweather stations you can buy at lowes or online for about $150 are bad about this - even the ones with a tiny solar powered fan over the sensor often read over 6 degrees too hot here in the summer. I think you will struggle to get accurate readings on a tractor unless youre very careful about the sensor placement. Just my 2 cents. Share some pics if you do something Id be interested in what you do.

 

[sheepfarmer]

I am with troverman, I can tell it is bloody cold by stepping out the back door, but I want to know how cold is bloody cold. I have a cheap thermometer stuck to the kitchen window, but it is affected by the sun and the heat from the house. The temps in Michigan vary all over the map, literally. The temps measured someplace else and reported on phone and watch are nice, but I covet real measuring devices.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

hmm ...cheap and prolooking ...
go to car wrecking yard
find a 'newer' Ford150
remove overhead console..
it has temp and compass
install into tractor

I got mine for free from neighbour....

 

[troverman]

...On cars the probe is almost always located in front of the vehicle on the outside of the radiator. Most vehicles also only update the temperature once you hit a certain speed - my F150 is like this.

Interestingly, on Ford Super Duty trucks, the temp probe is located on the bottom of the passenger side mirror. On RAM Heavy Duty trucks, the probe is located in a small channel under the left side mirror. Of course, these trucks all come standard with large towing mirrors that stick out further, and have places to hide a probe. I prefer these locations, because the probe is mounted in plastic away from ambient engine heat, and higher off the ground to be a little less affected by road heat.

For the tractor, there is a large rear overhang to the cab roof, which is plastic. I think a probe could be mounted back there without much trouble and well away from the ambient heat of the engine, and up high, but out of the sun.

A mount behind the grille might still be possible because the engine fan is constantly drawing in fresh air at a fairly high rate.