Coastal Maine Cottage - Advice for solar cellular weather station and security camera!

[snowwors2]

After years of searching, I’ve finally found (and purchased) my  dream cottage in Harrington, Maine!

It’s “off the grid” so now I need help finding the best solar cellular weather station and solar cellular security camera so I can keep tabs on things remotely when I’m not there!

Thank you for any thoughts you have!

[dendrite]

You'll probably want to go with some kind of Davis setup. Either the VP2 with Vantage Connect or their EnviroMonitor.

https://www.davisinstruments.com/enviromonitor/

https://www.davisinstruments.com/vantage-pro2/
https://www.davisinstruments.com/data-collection/

Either way it won't be cheap.

[wxeyeNH]

For a camera I have been using the Nest products for several years.  You would have to research how they work with solar power and the type of internet service you will have. That might be the biggest issue with band with and interrupted power.   Assuming that can be worked out the cam's work great for security as they can send you notifications of sound or motion.  Lots of customization.  Also with the Nest aware you can easily create time lapses of interesting weather events,  for instance this time lapse of a summer storm. 

https://video.nest.com/clip/462c15255bfe4cd4804b2a96a5036360.mp4

  I also have a VP2 weather station.

To look at the quality of the Nest cam's and the VP2 info my weather link is www.bridgewaternhweather.com

Congrats on your purchase.

[moneypitmike]

Congrats on the new place!  You must have really wanted to get away--Harrington's pretty far up there.

[snowwors2]

On 10/30/2020 at 6:55 AM, moneypitmike said:

Congrats on the new place!  You must have really wanted to get away--Harrington's pretty far up there.

Thanks...

LOL...YEP...with the craziness of the world I figured why not really go for it if I’m going to Maine...Only about 1.5 hrs south of Canada!

[tamarack]

9 hours ago, snowwors2 said:

Thanks...

LOL...YEP...with the craziness of the world I figured why not really go for it if I’m going to Maine...Only about 1.5 hrs south of Canada!

Some great hikes in that general area - Acadia to the west, Cutler coast to the east, Tunk and Black Mountains west of Cherryfield.

[snowwors2]

14 hours ago, tamarack said:

Some great hikes in that general area - Acadia to the west, Cutler coast to the east, Tunk and Black Mountains west of Cherryfield.

Thanks for the tips...

Settling on it in mid-November, I’ll be going crazy waiting til I can open it back up in April!

[PhineasC]

On 10/31/2020 at 11:12 PM, snowwors2 said:

Thanks...

LOL...YEP...with the craziness of the world I figured why not really go for it if I’m going to Maine...Only about 1.5 hrs south of Canada!

Same mentality drove me to a town with 300 residents in northern NH.   

[snowwors2]

On 10/24/2020 at 10:49 PM, snowwors2 said:

After years of searching, I’ve finally found (and purchased) my  dream cottage in Harrington, Maine!

It’s “off the grid” so now I need help finding the best solar cellular weather station and solar cellular security camera so I can keep tabs on things remotely when I’m not there!

Thank you for any thoughts you have!

Heading home a week from today after arriving mid-April ...It’s been everything and more than my wife and I expected!

Solar, Elon Musk’s Starlink Internet, Tempest and Blink cameras installed ready for some winter weather remote viewing!

Just south of last night’s aurora  borealis but we did have this beautiful Sundog this evening (just left of center)‼️

[dendrite]

54 minutes ago, snowwors2 said:

Heading home a week from today after arriving mid-April ...It’s been everything and more than my wife and I expected!

Solar, Elon Musk’s Starlink Internet, Tempest and Blink cameras installed ready for some winter weather remote viewing!

Just south of last night’s aurora  borealis but we did have this beautiful Sundog this evening (just left of center)‼️

Nice! Going up in the winter at all?

[DavisStraight]

2 hours ago, snowwors2 said:

Heading home a week from today after arriving mid-April ...It’s been everything and more than my wife and I expected!

Solar, Elon Musk’s Starlink Internet, Tempest and Blink cameras installed ready for some winter weather remote viewing!

Just south of last night’s aurora  borealis but we did have this beautiful Sundog this evening (just left of center)‼️

Awesome, we've been looking too but not quite as far up as you are. I have nest and it's great. You going up in the winter?

[snowwors2]

1 hour ago, dendrite said:

Nice! Going up in the winter at all?

Wish we could...Besides the 6 month on/6 months off “deal” with my wife, we have to shut the plumbing down and the road in doesn’t get plowed down our way, and with all the tall pines, the risk of getting stranded is higher than she wants to deal with...I’ll have to “live it” via my cameras...Hopefully one upcoming winter we’ll “bend the rules”!?! 

[DavisStraight]

1 minute ago, snowwors2 said:

Wish we could...Besides the 6 month on/6 months off “deal” with my wife, we have to shut the plumbing down and the road in doesn’t get plowed down our way, and with all the tall pines, the risk of getting stranded is higher than she wants to deal with...I’ll have to “live it” via my cameras...Hopefully one upcoming winter we’ll “bend the rules”!?! 

Get a wood stove and rough it for a week.

[snowwors2]

1 minute ago, DavisStraight said:

Get a wood stove and rough it for a week.

Got a pretty good cast iron LP but even last April we woke up to 44° in the “camp”!

Knowing that a Gulph of Maine nor’easter will no doubt tempt me for a 10 hour road trip north!

Good luck with your search...Nothing like the scenery/serenity up this way!

[tamarack]

12 hours ago, snowwors2 said:

Wish we could...Besides the 6 month on/6 months off “deal” with my wife, we have to shut the plumbing down and the road in doesn’t get plowed down our way, and with all the tall pines, the risk of getting stranded is higher than she wants to deal with...I’ll have to “live it” via my cameras...Hopefully one upcoming winter we’ll “bend the rules”!?! 

Retention on the Downeast coast is generally terrible (2014-15 excepted - Machias reached 74" that Feb.) so you can probably drive in and out with a 4WD SUV.  And pine wood is soft, easily cut with a chainsaw.  I don't think the board has ever had posts from Washington County.  Cool Spruce () was closest at Ellsworth.

[snowwors2]

1 hour ago, tamarack said:

Retention on the Downeast coast is generally terrible (2014-15 excepted - Machias reached 74" that Feb.) so you can probably drive in and out with a 4WD SUV.  And pine wood is soft, easily cut with a chainsaw.  I don't think the board has ever had posts from Washington County.  Cool Spruce () was closest at Ellsworth.

So I’ve heard...

Two biggest issues are the 9 mile (one way in/one way out) dense forest road leading to our place, most of which is dirt with several steep hills, and, moreover, no running water once we blow out plumbing to protect against freeze up since house sits on pilings!

With my cameras and Tempest weather station, I’ll, at least, be able to post observations and rough snow accumulations!

[tamarack]

On 10/13/2021 at 11:13 AM, snowwors2 said:

So I’ve heard...

Two biggest issues are the 9 mile (one way in/one way out) dense forest road leading to our place, most of which is dirt with several steep hills, and, moreover, no running water once we blow out plumbing to protect against freeze up since house sits on pilings!

With my cameras and Tempest weather station, I’ll, at least, be able to post observations and rough snow accumulations!

I read this several times and wondered where in Harrington there was 9 miles of road that fit the above description.  Only spot that far from Rt 1 appears to be Ripley Neck (looks like a wonderful spot) and it looks paved well into the neck itself.   Having driven other Downeast roads, mainly East Machias to Cutler plus many trips on the Blackwoods Road (Rt 182), I'm familiar with sudden curves, short steep hills and such, but most are plowed by the towns.  (My impressions are not the norm, however, after decades with travel on iced woods roads, sharing them with hundred-ton log trucks.)  .  Lack of water would seem the biggest issue unless there's a well that could operate with generator juice.

[snowwors2]

Never experienced anything remotely close to it in my 60+ years!