Topic: Reminder to clean the rain gauge out....

[sam2004gp]

Here is another friendly reminder to check things out.

I went and removed the funnel/bucket from my rain gauge today.  Removed one spider about the size of a pencil eraser and cleaned the pollen and mildew out of the tip buckets.  Hopefully the next rain measurement should be just a little more accurate.

[aweatherguy]

How did that spider get in? The bottom exit screens and top screen have a really small mesh. Are spider eggs that small? I guess so.

Related to this, I discovered that placing a thin piece of cotton cloth over the top wire screen reduces the amount of debris that gets in (a lot), and I need to clean it less often. It may also improve the variability in rainfall measurements. One source of cotton for this purpose is (I'm embarassed to say  ) worn out un-mentionables!

Hope you don't mind the plug but there is a PDF document available for download here http://sourceforge.net/projects/wmrx00/files -- look under "Documentation" and release 2.8.1.2 and get the WxLogger-Appendices.pdf file. It describes my experiments with the rain gauge and the cotton cloth.

Cheers,

  -- Weber

[sam2004gp]

Hmmm, interesting a cloth.  I will download the pdf in the morning, and give it a read.

[sam2004gp]

That was an interesting read.  The rain gauge modification mentioned in the pdf, using the bucket, funnel, and cd case, was a somewhat cumbersome in it's design. Here is what I can up with last fall.

http://www.wxforum.net/index.php?topic=2738.0

[port1]

  My rain guage, other than yellowing from the sun, has remained clean for the past three years.  Probably chose a good siting location.  I've been lucky.  Still have my screen too.  Although it's on a lanyard, it's never blown out. Can't say my CoCoRaHS rain gauge has remained clean though.  Pollen accumulations have been tough to clean.
Thanks for the good reminder, Sam. 

Henry

[sam2004gp]

For those type of long tube rain gauges you can use a brush similiar to a baby bottle brush, or a fish tank/tube brush (which is what I have).

[tomcj2]

This is today's message from CoCoRaHS

CLEAN UP TIME!

Is your rain gauge inner-cylinder starting to look a little grungy these days? It's that time of year! For most of us dirt will eventually build up on the bottom of your CoCoRaHS rain gauge inner-cylinder. In humid climates, algae growth can also be a bother.

If you want to keep your gauge clean and looking like new, put some warm water with a little gentle liquid hand soap in the tube and let it soak for a few minutes. Then twist a thin soft towel and spin it into the cylinder until it reaches the bottom. This will wipe out most of the dirt. It is not recommended to use a firm bottle brush to clean the gauge, nor is using your automatic dishwasher (This will gradually scuff and haze the inside of the gauge).

Another method is to take a newspaper, role it to make a tight cylinder, and then rotate the paper on the inside of the tube all the way to the bottom. It will usually clean out the dirt.

If you have other great solutions for keeping your gauge clean and looking like new, send them to: info@cocorahs.org with a subject line “Clean Gauge”.

[Aardvark]

appreciate the information.. I went out and also cleaned the VP2 out.  the manual one I use for CoCoRaHs  is not too grungy yet..  I got some brown crud on the unit .. I think dead algae.. I might give it a bleach treatment  and a rinse and a wipe...  God.. sounds like going to the doctor

[aweatherguy]

I agree -- your design is less cumbersome, plus enjoys 3000+ views on this forum 

I wanted a design that did not require gluing anything to the rain bucket so I had to pay the price in a less compact design.

Either way, I think there is compelling evidence in my report that adding the thin piece of cloth on top of the wire screen can make a positive difference in the consistency of rain measurements.

[sam2004gp]

I agree -- your design is less cumbersome, plus enjoys 3000+ views on this forum  

I wanted a design that did not require gluing anything to the rain bucket so I had to pay the price in a less compact design.

Either way, I think there is compelling evidence in my report that adding the thin piece of cloth on top of the wire screen can make a positive difference in the consistency of rain measurements.

In my design even with the silicon caulk that I used the funnel can be pulled off easily.  My rain gauge's plastic has started to yellow, and I thought perhaps that I would take the funnel/gauge bucket combo, clean them up, and re-paint them together so they will match.

But hey, everybody is entitled to their own design, and I like the ingenuity that you came up with using "normal" household items to make yours work, for your situation/requirements.