Flir One (Gen 2) Questions - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: flirt
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 22, 2018, 05:13:25 pm
content: Hello everyone.Thank you a great forum. After going having heat loss and condensation issues with my house, I've decided purchase a Flir One (Gen 2 - Android phones) to hopefully find out the cause. I know it's not up there with the really expensive thermal cameras, but I'm hoping to find something.Let me give you a bit of a background.............My home has been suffering from condensation on the double-glaze windows since I've moved in for a number of years now. During spring/summer it's fine. But during Autumn/Winter periods, the windows get a whole lot of condensation. At first I thought it was due to the the usual culprits in the house such as moisture from kitchens, bathrooms, breathing, clothes drying. But I then got a dehumidifier which brought the humidity down to 40-45%.However this has not resolve the issue and on cold the days the windows still have condensation and cold draught.Can you guys please kindly help me with the following:-1. What android app can you recommend?2. What settings should I use to get the best detail and info? palettes?3. How do I use it to detect cold issues and how do I recognise there is a problem?4. When I test it, do I set my home central heating to high/low/medium temperature?Any other tips?Thanks!

author: WallyGator
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 23, 2018, 01:03:49 am
content: Quote from: flirt on November 22, 2018, 05:13:25 pm1 - I have the iOS version, so I can't speak to Android, but I would suggest starting with the official Flir apps. The iOS apps seem pretty good and I have not looked for any 3rd party software.2 - It is easy to switch from one palette to another for a given scene, so cycle through them and see which is most helpful for your particular conditions. The one I have found most useful is called "Iron"; it is patterned after black body radiation colors and is pretty intuitive. Dark "cool" colors are cooler/colder and bright "hot" colors are warmer/hotter.3 - It will show you temperature variations within its field of view. You already know what some of them are but this will help quantify them - if outside temperatures are lower than inside, window glass should be colder than surrounding insulated walls, air gaps will be even colder, etc. It reveals hot spots or cold spots you might not otherwise know about, such as might be caused by gaps in wall insulation triggered by sagging.4. I would have everything set the way you normally keep it so you can see the effects of outside temperatures on your indoor living space. You can also do a survey from outside to investigate heat loss through windows/doors/vents/joints/weather stripping, etc. Ditto with summer cooling if you use it.One thing that can confuse the issue when surveying an area that is larger than the field of view is the default setting that causes it to automatically recalibrate every few minutes. It rescales the temperature/color correlation based on maximum/minimum temps within the field of view, which can make colors inconsistent for a given temperature. This can be turned off in one of the settings, and the color spectrum can be locked in so you can compare photos taken at different times or of different views. This matters when surveying a room that contains a cold/hot source like an exterior window and then reframing the scene so it doesn't contain that source. The color to temperature correlation shifts if it recalibrates.My biggest problem with the Flir One is the very small battery. I don't have much problem with short run time as much as the frustration of the battery being discharged about every time I pick it up. I find this limits its spontaneous use, since I almost always have to charge it before I can use it. That's ok for planned surveys, but it limits "I wonder what..." use.

author: flirt
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 23, 2018, 06:46:12 pm
content: Thanks ever so much WallyGator for your detailed response.As suggested, I've now disabled auto-calibration.I'm okay with the battery. The problem for me is that the official Flir One app has very basic settings. For example, unlike Compact Seek camera, you can't set the ambient temperature of the room.Also if the temperature difference between the walls and double-glazed windows is 3-4C, how do I know if anything needs fixing? When I check from outside the house, my windows show on average 3.5-5C...what does this mean in terms of heat-loss? How do I know if this is normal or really bad?

author: WallyGator
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 24, 2018, 03:12:36 am
content: Quote from: flirt on November 23, 2018, 06:46:12 pmI can't answer that; there are a lot of variables that make it hard to generalize. Difference between inside and outside temperatures, type of construction, age of construction, air leaks, wind direction and speed and other factors all play into it. The Flir One will show you relative differences in temperatures but you may have to investigate actual construction materials and techniques to find out what is "good" or "bad" for your location. For example, aluminum frame windows lose/gain some heat no matter how good the double-glazing they surround. Less so for wood or vinyl frame windows. I have heard of, but not experienced, double glazed windows losing their seal and becoming less effective.The bottom line is your window surfaces are dropping below the dew point of your inside air, so the solution is to either lower the dew point or warm the inside surface of the windows. It may be you have to use your Flir One to survey cooperative friends/relatives homes to get a feel for what is similar or different in other locations.Sorry I can't be more help.

author: flirt
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 24, 2018, 01:22:49 pm
content: Quote from: WallyGator on November 24, 2018, 03:12:36 amI understand buddy. Thanks for your help. I'm surprised that being a beginners section, your the only one replying and no other expert has joined. I'm just wondering whether it's worth uploading some youtube videos showing an inspection of my house...maybe this way someone could give some tips?