Low battery or solar charging problems

The station powers itself from sunlight with a battery to carry it through the night and cloudy spells. A low battery almost always means the panel isn’t collecting enough light.

Common causes

• Dirty panel. Leaves, dust, pollen or bird mess dramatically cut charging.
• Shade. Overhanging trees, tall reeds, or the shadow of a bank or building — especially to the south, where the low winter sun sits.
• Drifted position. Wind can move the station under cover of trees or a bank.
• A long dull spell. Several overcast winter days in a row draw the battery down faster than it charges.

How to fix it

1. Clean the panel with a soft damp cloth.
2. Check it sits in open sky — reposition it out of shade if it has drifted, keeping it in the deep, sheltered zone but with a clear view up.
3. Give it sunny days. A healthy panel recharges the battery quickly once it’s back in the light.
4. Reduce demand if needed. On stubbornly shaded lakes we can lengthen the sampling interval (for example a reading every 10–15 minutes instead of 5) so the station uses less power — it still captures the trend. Ask us to adjust it.
5. Larger panel option. For genuinely dark spots, a bigger solar panel is available.

Will I lose data if the battery dies?

No history is lost — everything already sent is stored in the portal. While a station is flat it simply stops taking new readings, and the app flags it as offline so you know. Once it recharges it resumes automatically.

Still draining after a clean and a few sunny days? Contact support — there may be a panel or battery fault we can sort under warranty.