Poll

How often do you check the accuracy of your tipping-bucket rain gauge?

I never have
7 (43.8%)
Only if it seems off
6 (37.5%)
Yearly
0 (0%)
Only when first installed (I don't trust the factory calibration)
0 (0%)
Every chance I get!
3 (18.8%)

Total Members Voted: 16

Author Topic: How often do you check the accuracy of your tipping-bucket rain gauge?  (Read 1671 times)

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Offline nincehelser

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Purely out of curiosity.

If you're one who has had to recalibrate, how far off have you been?

Offline DanS

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Re: How often do you check the accuracy of your tipping-bucket rain gauge?
« Reply #1 on: August 26, 2014, 07:30:48 PM »
I find that I need to get into them about once or twice a year to clean out the accumulated crud in the spoons but never needed to readjust the stops in them. (that I've noticed, against a manual gauge)
« Last Edit: August 26, 2014, 07:48:19 PM by DanS »

Offline wxtech

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Re: How often do you check the accuracy of your tipping-bucket rain gauge?
« Reply #2 on: August 26, 2014, 07:50:23 PM »
I have tested more than 30 tipping bucket rain gauges.  Most test within 15% error so I don't make adjustments.  I test at 2 or more rain rates.  http://www.lexingtonwx.com/equipment/html/novalynx.html
Rain gauges should be cleaned often depending on what accumulates in the buckets or if spiders or bugs affect the operation of the mechanism.
Al Washington, Lexington, Ga.,  NWS Coop station=LXTG1, Fischer Porter, SRG, MMTS. 
CoCoRaHS=GA-OG-1. CWOP=CW2074.  Davis VP2+ WLIP 5.9.2, VP(original) serial, VWS v15.00 p02. ImageSalsa, Win7 & Win8 all-in-one.

Offline Old Tele man

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Re: How often do you check the accuracy of your tipping-bucket rain gauge?
« Reply #3 on: August 26, 2014, 08:47:40 PM »
I clean the crud out every time I open it up, but I "...don't fix, what ain't broken..."
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Offline ocala

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Re: How often do you check the accuracy of your tipping-bucket rain gauge?
« Reply #4 on: August 26, 2014, 08:55:52 PM »
Being that my cocorahs gauge is about 8 inches away I check the accuracy with each rain fall.
Since I calibrated it a few years ago it remains pretty much even with the plastic gauge with the exception of heavy rain events where it under reports.
« Last Edit: August 26, 2014, 08:58:06 PM by ocala »
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