In some cases, the air-Q’s humidity value may differ from the values of a comparison device. This can have various reasons:
- Hygrometers (humidity sensors) lose accuracy over time, for example due to wear and contamination. This applies to all electric hygrometers.
- Hygrometers often have a deviation of a few percentage points from the factory.
- Installation location (see below)
The temperature and humidity sensor of the air-Q is located in the lower part of the device, which means that the measured values can be significantly influenced by the surface used. Materials that retain heat or have high infrared reflectance can result in an increase in the measured temperature that is higher than the actual values of the surrounding air. Since humidity is measured with the same sensor, an increased temperature with constant absolute humidity results in a lower relative humidity.
Placing the temperature sensor in the upper part of the device was considered as an alternative, but the heat generated by air-Q itself (approx. 1 watt) would lead to constant heating of the sensor, which would affect the measurement accuracy.
The optimal solution to this problem is to calibrate the temperature sensor at the point of use. This calibration also adjusts the humidity sensor, which improves the measurement accuracy.
It should be noted that this phenomenon does not only apply to air-Q specific devices. For example, thermometers attached to uninsulated walls often measure the temperature of the wall and not the temperature of the room air. In contrast to these devices, our air-Q offers the option of calibration. In comparison, conventional weather stations, which often use external sensors without their own heat source and therefore do not require an internal power supply, generate less heat and can therefore be more accurate. Nevertheless, the calibratability of the air-Q offers a significant advantage in the precision of the environmental measurements.
