Choosing the correct IP (Ingress Protection) rating and material for a weather station enclosure that’ll reside outside for years can be tricky. An enclosure that also looks nice is essential when the project is on display.
I’ve built a few Arduino-based sensors. Picking the right enclosure is essential for each one. A neighbor built a birdhouse camera housed in a clear polycarbonate enclosure that’s withstood two winters well. On Instagram, I loved this clever, viral weather sensor (300k likes)—the maker embedded a weatherproof enclosure inside a flower pot with the sensor probe extending out via a waterproof gland. He even stacked two enclosures with one housing a battery pack in the bottom, connected with sealed conduit to the upper enclosure which holds the electronics. For my own, I specially ordered a die-cast aluminum enclosure from Alibaba, and the gasket seal was just right out of the box. Another clever use of an enclosure is as a junction box for outdoor string lights, painted to match the wall. Also fun: mounting one under a drone for a payload release mechanism.
Where have you installed instrument enclosures in unexpected places (like inside a barbecue grill to measure cooking temperature)? How do you drill holes without cracking your material? Also, any ideas about adding a solar panel to the lid?