diff --git a/src/fabledassistant/routes/journal.py b/src/fabledassistant/routes/journal.py
index ca9a859..8c4a6b5 100644
--- a/src/fabledassistant/routes/journal.py
+++ b/src/fabledassistant/routes/journal.py
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ The ambient endpoints read locations + temp_unit + topic preferences from the
 """
 from __future__ import annotations
 
+import asyncio
 import datetime
 import json
 import logging
@@ -222,12 +223,50 @@ async def _journal_temp_unit(user_id: int) -> str:
 # ── Weather ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 
+_STALE_THRESHOLD_SECONDS = 4 * 3600  # 4 hours — start refreshing well before the 7-day forecast window slides past today
+
+
+def _is_stale(cache_row) -> bool:
+    if cache_row is None or cache_row.fetched_at is None:
+        return True
+    age = (datetime.datetime.now(datetime.timezone.utc) - cache_row.fetched_at).total_seconds()
+    return age > _STALE_THRESHOLD_SECONDS
+
+
+async def _refresh_stale_in_background(user_id: int, stale_keys: set[str]) -> None:
+    """Best-effort refresh of stale cache rows. Silently no-ops if the user's
+    config has no usable lat/lon for a given location_key."""
+    cfg = await _resolve_config(user_id)
+    locations = cfg.get("locations") or {}
+    for key in stale_keys:
+        loc = locations.get(key)
+        if not loc or not loc.get("lat") or not loc.get("lon"):
+            continue
+        try:
+            await weather_svc.refresh_location_cache(
+                user_id=user_id,
+                location_key=key,
+                location_label=loc.get("label", key),
+                lat=loc["lat"],
+                lon=loc["lon"],
+            )
+        except Exception:
+            logger.warning("Background weather refresh failed for user %d / %s", user_id, key, exc_info=True)
+
+
 @journal_bp.get("/weather")
 @login_required
 async def get_weather():
     user_id = get_current_user_id()
     rows = await weather_svc.get_cached_weather_rows(user_id)
     temp_unit = await _journal_temp_unit(user_id)
+
+    # Kick off a best-effort background refresh for stale rows so the next page
+    # load gets fresh data; we still serve whatever's currently cached now.
+    stale_keys = {row.location_key for row in rows if _is_stale(row)}
+    if stale_keys:
+        asyncio.create_task(_refresh_stale_in_background(user_id, stale_keys))
+
     cards = [
         card for row in rows
         if (card := weather_svc.parse_weather_card_data(row, temp_unit)) is not None
diff --git a/src/fabledassistant/services/weather.py b/src/fabledassistant/services/weather.py
index c734e00..34f7eb3 100644
--- a/src/fabledassistant/services/weather.py
+++ b/src/fabledassistant/services/weather.py
@@ -156,15 +156,13 @@ def parse_weather_card_data(
 ) -> dict | None:
     """
     Parse a WeatherCache row into the metadata.weather card schema.
-    Returns None if the cache is stale (older than 24 hours) or unavailable.
+    Returns None if the cache row is missing or unparseable. Stale data is
+    returned as-is — the frontend uses `fetched_at` to convey freshness, and
+    WeatherCard handles missing today/forecast fields gracefully.
     """
     from datetime import date, timedelta
 
-    if cache_row is None or cache_row.fetched_at is None:
-        return None
-
-    age_seconds = (datetime.now(timezone.utc) - cache_row.fetched_at).total_seconds()
-    if age_seconds > 86400:
+    if cache_row is None or cache_row.fetched_at is None or not cache_row.forecast_json:
         return None
 
     raw = cache_row.forecast_json or {}