Stair climbing

[LAL]

My Fitbit one suddenly decided to credit me with a great deal more stairs climbed then I had done. Has anyone else had this experience?

[ALathome]

Yes - its either because I have walked up steep slopes or I have been it the car and it records altitude change when travelling. But it sometimes does not record floors climed

[WendyB]

How Floors how counted

Floors are counted using an altimeter. An altimeter is a sensor that calculates altitude based on atmospheric pressure and atmospheric pressure decreases with increasing elevation, so the it calculates elevation gain based on the reduction in atmospheric pressure. Your trackers register a floor when they detect continuous motion combined with an elevation gain of about 10 feet. Given the fact that 10 feet is an average between residential and commercial floor heights, although commercial floors in particular tend to be higher than residential floors.

It will add floors when it is windy or cold.

[LAL]

Thank you for the information. It explains the difference from what I normally get. Recently I have been in a small bus with a rough ride. The continuous motion and changes in altitude. I blame the bus because it does not happen in my car. Thanks again.

Sent from my iPhone

[Chris92057]

The device and all stair climbers no matter what brand use a barometer not an altimeter.

It does not help that the company says it is an altimeter— it is a barometer. The device measures air pressure. An altimeter is is more sophisticated and not as tiny as the one.

Moderator edit: merged reply

[LAL]

If you say so

Sent from my iPhone

[Chris92057]

It is a common misconception by companies. Ask aviation experts: it is a barometer. An altimeter uses a barometer for altitude. Without it, only GPS, and that isn’t exact. 

[ALathome]

I dont care what they call it - I just want a clip on that counts stairs

[LAL]

I never use the clip on. I put it in a soft pouch like you often see jewellery in and put it in my sock just behind my ankle. It stays there beautifully. Of course it doesn’t work if you wear boots leave the Fitbit in the clip on it came with.

Sent from my iPhone

[Rich_Laue]

---

@Chris92057 wrote:

The device and all stair climbers no matter what brand use a barometer not an altimeter. 

---

An altimeter is simply a barometer that is calibrated to show feet above sea level based on the weight of the air above it. 

A barometer is calibrated to show the weight of the air above it 

Fitbit uses a scale based on the changes in air pressure that is equivalent to a 10 foot change in altitude. Therefore like what a pilot sees in an airplane it is an altimeter.. 

When it comes to reading altitude with GPS, this can not be trusted when in a fast moving vehicle such as an airplane, and is why the GPS may not be used as the primary means to measure altitude in a plane. 

A barometer and altimeter are physically the same device, the difference is in the markings on the scale. 

Kind of like the difference in a thermometer that measure Fahrenheit instead of Celsius, a metric ruler instead of inches.