We’ve had a Netatmo Smart Weather Station since 2017. As I recall, it was gift. We have the basic system, with two additional room sensors. We added the rain gauge in 2019. It was readily integrated into Home Assistant. For an IoT device, it’s worked very well. That is, until very recently.
Back in June we had an incident involving the large Pecan tree in our back yard. After an extended rainy spell, it lost a major limb, which came down onto our deck and the roof of the house. The roof was damaged in two places. The deck was destroyed. The remainder of the Pecan had to be taken out completely.
The consequence of all of that is that our back yard, previously well-shaded, is now extremely sunny in the afternoon. The Netatmo outdoor module started to exhibit some excessively high readings. The module was mounted high up on the frame of the door to my office. In the past, that location didn’t get any direct sun. Between the eve of the garage and the shade of the Pecan, it was protected. Not any more.
At first I was concerned that the module was defective. I took it into the house for few days. While inside it exactly tracked the readings of the indoor module. That suggested that it was still working properly.
I took it back outside, putting it on the shelf under my BBQ. The BBQ is a big, offset smoker. I was pretty certain that it would not get any direct sun tucked under that beast of a BBQ.
To continue verifying it’s accuracy, I put a Shelly BLU H&T temperature sensor in that same location. I’ve used these to track the temperature in our freezer and the attic. They’re affordable little sensors. Not as comprehensive as the Netatmo Weather Station.
So far, it looks like the Netatmo Outdoor unit is working. However, the BBQ is a big, black, metal mass. It soaks up heat, making the readings unreliable as the day wears on. It’s simply not a good location for the outdoor module.
Checking the Netatmo sub-Reddit I discovered that Netatmo makes a sun shield for the outdoor module. It’s a nice molded plastic item. Exactly the right solution to my problem.
Thinking I’d just order one, I looked on Amazon but could not find their products. Checking their web site directly, I found a notice advising that Netatmo has left the US & Canadian markets as of June 1, 2026.
“Missed it by that much!” – Don Adams, Get Smart.
As a French company (they’re owned by LeGrand) I expect Netatmo ran afoul of some aspect of the American trade war. It’s likely that Canada is not a large enough market to sustain operation except from a US base.
I looked on E-bay to see if I could find a used sun shield. No luck.
I see that the sun shield is available in Germany, but the price is quite high.
Hunting around online I found that people have been 3D printing comparable Stephenson screens. I don’t have a 3D printer. But maybe I can get one made for less than importing one from the EU.
For the moment, I’ve moved the outdoor module to our front porch. On the porch, on a small ledge tucked behind a brick column, it’s protected from direct Sun. Also, not so impacted by the large thermal mass of the BBQ.
I’m quite accustomed to the Netatmo user interface. Conceptually, I could build my own weather station using a collection of sensors. Creating my own UI in Home Assistant. I’m just not sure that’s worth the effort.