Author Topic: $30 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!  (Read 132034 times)

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Offline upweather

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #150 on: December 14, 2009, 10:25:34 PM »
I'm looking into a 15 minute cycle timer on 15 off 15 minutes this to me would limit evaporization I believe im getting. Some of them are quite pricey..looking for the cheapest one that will work, and if the idea doesn't work im not out allot of money.



Just picked up 4.5 inches of snow iss measured .08     cocorahs gauge .20 more on target maybe i have to much heat?  there was virtually no wind when it started and 13 degree temp...its warmed to 25 and wind is picking up out of the north after observaton time.. so wind is ruled out this time as being a factor..im frustrated because this is really effecting my logs ....  Maybe i could make a rheostat or something to limit the heat.. any ideas ??
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Offline WeatherGoose

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #152 on: December 14, 2009, 11:00:39 PM »
I just can't believe that you are getting that much evaporation.  Your temps are much colder than mine, and I saw basically zero loss of measurement during our entire snow event.  What we had on the ground matched what my ISS recorded within 0.001 according to all the conversions I could find on the web.

I am basically using the same heater that you are.

I think your accuracy problem lies somewhere else.


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Offline Mark / Ohio

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #153 on: December 14, 2009, 11:05:14 PM »
.... Door-bell wire is NOT approved for 110vac usage. ...

Actually it is 24 V on the wire between the on/off switch box and the heater.  It uses a wall wart to drop the voltage.   ;)

http://davisnet.com/product_documents/weather/manuals/rain_collector_heater.pdf

http://davisnet.com/weather/products/weather_product.asp?pnum=07720

I did though make the assumption that Chief would know better then to try and run 120V through a wire not labeled and approved for it.  He is a teacher after all.  And also that he had the Davis heater.    #-o
« Last Edit: December 14, 2009, 11:19:21 PM by Mark / Ohio »
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Offline upweather

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #154 on: December 15, 2009, 11:30:23 AM »
I know it seems hard to believe, however i know that rainfall was on par when measured with both..And back in october I got snow and didn't have the heater I let it melt when the sun came out and it was also on par with the CoCorahs gauge.? I dont know what else it could be.. I know i have the 50 w retile cord and its wrapped on the inside cone allot, very close to the buckets. I Also have it insulated on the bottom of the collector inside and out. Not sure what else it could be.

I just can't believe that you are getting that much evaporation.  Your temps are much colder than mine, and I saw basically zero loss of measurement during our entire snow event.  What we had on the ground matched what my ISS recorded within 0.001 according to all the conversions I could find on the web.

I am basically using the same heater that you are.

I think your accuracy problem lies somewhere else.
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Offline Strgazr27

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #155 on: December 15, 2009, 12:28:48 PM »
Where is the manual gauge in relation to the VP? If it's lower to the ground than blowing snow would likely give you a different reading than what is captured in the elevated VP bucket. I also find it hard to believe that your losing that much to evaporation in the short time it should take for the snow to melt and run down inside the cone.

I'm also using the 50w reptile cord but as of yet had almost no measurable snowfall to check my readings. I also need to pick up a manual gauge.
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Offline WeatherGoose

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« Reply #156 on: December 15, 2009, 12:40:04 PM »
I know i have the 50 w retile cord and its wrapped on the inside cone allot, very close to the buckets. I Also have it insulated on the bottom of the collector inside and out. Not sure what else it could be.


WHOA!  Hold on a second... I forgot that you were using a 50W version of the cord!  I am using the 25W that is defined in the original directions for this heater design.  It sounds to me like the 50W is heating way hotter than you actually need even for your climate, and perhaps that is enough to evaporate a lot of the moisture.  The other thing that was already mentioned is the location of your other gauge in relation to the VP2 bucket.  Both should be at the SAME HEIGHT and preferably, within a foot of each other.

It might be cheaper in the long run to change over to the 25W version of the reptile heater element?  As I said, I don't have any evaporation issues with mine at all.
« Last Edit: December 15, 2009, 12:43:18 PM by WeatherGoose »


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Offline upweather

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Re: !
« Reply #157 on: December 15, 2009, 01:20:02 PM »
Yea it s the 50w version...I got extra insulation on it then everyone else. Maybe ill remove the extra insulation and see how it goes.. i have it insulated around the drains inside and out ,to limit heat lose in the rain collector.. I just know winter has not set in yet and snowfall in the single digits is likely in the near future. but the percentage of this condition is less .

I know i have the 50 w retile cord and its wrapped on the inside cone allot, very close to the buckets. I Also have it insulated on the bottom of the collector inside and out. Not sure what else it could be.


WHOA!  Hold on a second... I forgot that you were using a 50W version of the cord!  I am using the 25W that is defined in the original directions for this heater design.  It sounds to me like the 50W is heating way hotter than you actually need even for your climate, and perhaps that is enough to evaporate a lot of the moisture.  The other thing that was already mentioned is the location of your other gauge in relation to the VP2 bucket.  Both should be at the SAME HEIGHT and preferably, within a foot of each other.

It might be cheaper in the long run to change over to the 25W version of the reptile heater element?  As I said, I don't have any evaporation issues with mine at all.
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Offline dalecoy

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #158 on: December 15, 2009, 02:03:14 PM »
Just for comparison, the Davis heater is 24 watts, and is located inside the reflective insulation that is placed inside the outer shell (and no insulation on the inside of the cone).  I am fairly confident that Davis engineering thoughtfully engineered the amount and distribution of heat.

http://www.davisnet.com/productpics/big/07720.jpg

Using a 50 watt heater (or even 25 watts) that's perhaps located adjacent to the code and under an insulating layer on the cone will probably produce different results.

And, I know it's fun to build stuff - but I wonder how much those $20 heaters are really costing.  And how much more heat they supply to the collecting cone, than the Davis one does. 

If you want to build one like Davis', get a 1 ohm wire wound resistor (50 watts or so) from digi-key, newark, alliedelec, or a local parts house.  And a 24-volt wall wart that will do 1 ampere continuous. 


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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #159 on: December 15, 2009, 05:40:18 PM »
Just for comparison, the Davis heater is 24 watts, and is located inside the reflective insulation that is placed inside the outer shell (and no insulation on the inside of the cone).  I am fairly confident that Davis engineering thoughtfully engineered the amount and distribution of heat.

http://www.davisnet.com/productpics/big/07720.jpg

Using a 50 watt heater (or even 25 watts) that's perhaps located adjacent to the code and under an insulating layer on the cone will probably produce different results.

And, I know it's fun to build stuff - but I wonder how much those $20 heaters are really costing.  And how much more heat they supply to the collecting cone, than the Davis one does.  

If you want to build one like Davis', get a 1 ohm wire wound resistor (50 watts or so) from digi-key, newark, alliedelec, or a local parts house.  And a 24-volt wall wart that will do 1 ampere continuous.  


My melt rate is about double that of the Davis unit.  Probably because I have the heating cord coiled around the under surface of collector cone in addition to around the inner wall of the bucket.  I used the same insulation wrap as indicated in the original post here.

How am I so sure of the difference you ask?  ;)

The station about .7 miles from here ON Bass Lake has a VP2 with the Davis Heater.  While my rain rate is nearly double that station's during a snow event, our rain totals when all is said and done are usually identical.  We are a lot more in sync in this regard AFTER a snow event than after a rain event.

The thing is... The Davis melt rate is so much slower than mine, his rain total usually takes about 2 hours longer after the snow stops to provide the final total.  Meaning... He is still indicating precipitation with an inaccurate current rain total on CWOP long after the event has passed.   ;)

So... I think I'll stick with this heater.  1/5th the price, and far more effective!  :D



« Last Edit: December 15, 2009, 05:46:04 PM by WeatherGoose »


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Offline dalecoy

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #160 on: December 15, 2009, 06:35:51 PM »
OK with me - your melt rate is double.

What's the comparison in "evaporation rate" with light snow/precipitation?  I thought that was the major issue being discussed.

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #161 on: December 15, 2009, 07:54:44 PM »
first off I dont have the funnel wrapped with insulation however several ft of the cord is. This is my plan. I'm going to remove the cord from the funnel portion and relocate it on the inside of the  cone as the original directions indicated and also i'll remove the added insulation that was also not called out. I do know if it was snow lightly the collection area felt warm and dry.. I will also perform a evap test with a spray bottle before making the change.. I do know this has to be happening my gauges are within 30 ft of each other and within 6 inch height. I gathered 6.6 inches total yesterday and measured .28 precip w/cocorahs gauge and .11  w/ VP2..ave temp during this time 18 degrees so at that temp on the snow table wouldn't even equal half the snow accumulation.... This was a light snow last storm when it was snowing harder it was allot closer between the gauges.
« Last Edit: December 15, 2009, 07:57:31 PM by upweather »
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Offline WeatherGoose

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #162 on: December 15, 2009, 08:43:56 PM »
OK with me - your melt rate is double.

What's the comparison in "evaporation rate" with light snow/precipitation?  I thought that was the major issue being discussed.

Not seeing it here.  We had light flurries for the first 6 hours of our first snow of the season, and I saw no loss.  If you are talking any less than "measurable" precip, then I doubt having a heater or not having a heater is going to make any difference.  If the bucket doesn't tip, then whatever is in there when the drizzle/snow stops is going to evaporate and not be counted regardless.  ;)

If I go out to my ISS when temps are below 35 degrees when my heater would automatically switch on, and put my hand into the collector cone, it is slightly warm to the touch.  Not HOT.  The interior of my rain bucket hovers at around 75-78 degrees which is not warm enough to evaporate anything before it drips into the tipping buckets.

Beside the singular issue with a 50W heater, I think this evaporation concern over the original 25W version in this thread is "much todo about nothing" if you ask me.  Everyone loses far more precip by the "last bucket load" NOT tipping, than you will ever loose from this heater.

It makes for an interesting debate, regardless of how pointless that may be.  ;)
« Last Edit: December 15, 2009, 08:58:45 PM by WeatherGoose »


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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #163 on: December 15, 2009, 09:06:37 PM »
first off I dont have the funnel wrapped with insulation however several ft of the cord is. This is my plan. I'm going to remove the cord from the funnel portion and relocate it on the inside of the  cone as the original directions indicated and also i'll remove the added insulation that was also not called out. I do know if it was snow lightly the collection area felt warm and dry.. I will also perform a evap test with a spray bottle before making the change.. I do know this has to be happening my gauges are within 30 ft of each other and within 6 inch height. I gathered 6.6 inches total yesterday and measured .28 precip w/cocorahs gauge and .11  w/ VP2..ave temp during this time 18 degrees so at that temp on the snow table wouldn't even equal half the snow accumulation.... This was a light snow last storm when it was snowing harder it was allot closer between the gauges.

I still can't fathom this much loss even from a 50W heater.

We had 7.5 inches of snow on day 1 of our storm, with a measured rain total from the VP2 of 0.83 in.  I can't understand how you can have 6.6 inches on the ground and end up with only 0.28 leave alone 0.11.  Even if the snow was really light and fluffy, that is still a HUGE difference from what I measured here.  Did this conversion jibe with your conversion table?  What are you using to convert the snow to rain values?

I should also point out that the VP2 at the lake with the Davis heater measured 0.82 in of precip during the same snow event.
« Last Edit: December 15, 2009, 09:27:24 PM by WeatherGoose »


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Offline upweather

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #164 on: December 15, 2009, 10:09:49 PM »
It is very close with the conversion table, I got it online don't remember but someone had a link to it. anything below 19 makes a big difference ..And im not saying even the cocorahs gauge picks up everything either but it's very close . I know it seems very odd this much evap is going on. I got a IR thermometor from work tonight and in the morning im going out to check temps in the funnel portion and also try to shoot a beam directly down the center into the tipping bucket area. After that i'll make spray a light mist onto the collection area and wait to see if it evaps quickly. Next remove all cord from the inside of the funnel which is heavely wrapped with the heater cord. then recheck temps.
I'll update tommorrow my findings.

 
first off I dont have the funnel wrapped with insulation however several ft of the cord is. This is my plan. I'm going to remove the cord from the funnel portion and relocate it on the inside of the  cone as the original directions indicated and also i'll remove the added insulation that was also not called out. I do know if it was snow lightly the collection area felt warm and dry.. I will also perform a evap test with a spray bottle before making the change.. I do know this has to be happening my gauges are within 30 ft of each other and within 6 inch height. I gathered 6.6 inches total yesterday and measured .28 precip w/cocorahs gauge and .11  w/ VP2..ave temp during this time 18 degrees so at that temp on the snow table wouldn't even equal half the snow accumulation.... This was a light snow last storm when it was snowing harder it was allot closer between the gauges.

I still can't fathom this much loss even from a 50W heater.

We had 7.5 inches of snow on day 1 of our storm, with a measured rain total from the VP2 of 0.83 in.  I can't understand how you can have 6.6 inches on the ground and end up with only 0.28 leave alone 0.11.  Even if the snow was really light and fluffy, that is still a HUGE difference from what I measured here.  Did this conversion jibe with your conversion table?  What are you using to convert the snow to rain values?

I should also point out that the VP2 at the lake with the Davis heater measured 0.82 in of precip during the same snow event.
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Offline upweather

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #165 on: December 15, 2009, 10:20:57 PM »
This thread will never die  ](*,) here is the table i've been going by..

link  http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/conversion/newsnowfall.html
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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #166 on: December 15, 2009, 10:37:45 PM »
It is very close with the conversion table, I got it online don't remember but someone had a link to it. anything below 19 makes a big difference ..And im not saying even the cocorahs gauge picks up everything either but it's very close . I know it seems very odd this much evap is going on. I got a IR thermometor from work tonight and in the morning im going out to check temps in the funnel portion and also try to shoot a beam directly down the center into the tipping bucket area. After that i'll make spray a light mist onto the collection area and wait to see if it evaps quickly. Next remove all cord from the inside of the funnel which is heavely wrapped with the heater cord. then recheck temps.
I'll update tommorrow my findings.

 
first off I dont have the funnel wrapped with insulation however several ft of the cord is. This is my plan. I'm going to remove the cord from the funnel portion and relocate it on the inside of the  cone as the original directions indicated and also i'll remove the added insulation that was also not called out. I do know if it was snow lightly the collection area felt warm and dry.. I will also perform a evap test with a spray bottle before making the change.. I do know this has to be happening my gauges are within 30 ft of each other and within 6 inch height. I gathered 6.6 inches total yesterday and measured .28 precip w/cocorahs gauge and .11  w/ VP2..ave temp during this time 18 degrees so at that temp on the snow table wouldn't even equal half the snow accumulation.... This was a light snow last storm when it was snowing harder it was allot closer between the gauges.

I still can't fathom this much loss even from a 50W heater.

We had 7.5 inches of snow on day 1 of our storm, with a measured rain total from the VP2 of 0.83 in.  I can't understand how you can have 6.6 inches on the ground and end up with only 0.28 leave alone 0.11.  Even if the snow was really light and fluffy, that is still a HUGE difference from what I measured here.  Did this conversion jibe with your conversion table?  What are you using to convert the snow to rain values?

I should also point out that the VP2 at the lake with the Davis heater measured 0.82 in of precip during the same snow event.

I guess those low teens and below really do make a huge difference in the comparative values.  We rarely get below the mid 20s when it is snowing due to the elevation and cloud cover.  Heck... Our coldest overnight temps are rarely lower than 15 F on a clear cloudless night.

Definitely looking forward to what you record for the core temp of the collector cone. When my bucket has any reasonable amount of snow in it, my inner bucket temp falls down into the mid 60s.  There ain't going to be any evap going on at 60 F!  Not during the few minutes the snow takes to melt and drip through to the tipping buckets.


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Offline upweather

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #167 on: December 16, 2009, 01:48:32 PM »
Here is my update.  I went out today and its snowing lightly 14.5 degrees.  I Looked inside the rain collector watched the snow fall and almost disappear as it hit the collection area. I put the IR thermometer on the top of the cone it was 53 degrees. mid point it was 63.2 degrees and towards the bottom 72.3..I tried to shoot a beam straight down into the tipping bucket but was still reading low 70's ..
I removed the bucket after chipping away ice and struggling about 10 mins hoping it wouldn't break the plastic locking tabs :-x but ended up getting it free . I removed the heater cord that heavily wrapped around the inside of the  cone. distributed it throughout the inside of the bucket like the original directions imply. I put it all together and currently waiting to recheck temps after about 30 min.. The heater has now been on for about 35 mins The temps after the change are as follows AIR TEMP 16 DEGREES
Top of cone 40.5  , mid point 52 deg,  bottom 40 deg ... The temps are different with the warmest point being the middle not the bottom as before.
I wonder if anyone else has a IR thermometer could check there temps to compare?
 
« Last Edit: December 16, 2009, 02:14:27 PM by upweather »
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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #168 on: December 16, 2009, 03:12:37 PM »
It will be interesting to see if there is any noticeable difference in your recorded rain totals with these lower temps in the bucket.  They are now closer to mine, so hopefully you will get better results.  I am still not convinced that your problem lies with the heater.

Keep us posted!  :D


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Offline dalecoy

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #169 on: December 16, 2009, 03:14:31 PM »

Definitely looking forward to what you record for the core temp of the collector cone. When my bucket has any reasonable amount of snow in it, my inner bucket temp falls down into the mid 60s.  There ain't going to be any evap going on at 60 F!  Not during the few minutes the snow takes to melt and drip through to the tipping buckets.


You seemed quite certain of that.

Here is my update.  I went out today and its snowing lightly 14.5 degrees.  I Looked inside the rain collector watched the snow fall and almost disappear as it hit the collection area. I put the IR thermometer on the top of the cone it was 53 degrees. mid point it was 63.2 degrees and towards the bottom 72.3....
 

If the surface temperature of the cone is 33 degrees, and the precipitation rate is below that rate where the water will collect into droplets and run down the cone -- then the water will just "stick" to the cone (surface tension) until it evaporates.  That's particularly noticeable with snow, because the individual spots of meltwater are usually smaller than what you would get with raindrops.  But you can see the same effect with mist.

Evaporation (of "standing water")  can occur at any temperature above freezing.   

Offline d_l

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #170 on: December 16, 2009, 04:21:55 PM »
If the surface temperature of the cone is 33 degrees, and the precipitation rate is below that rate where the water will collect into droplets and run down the cone -- then the water will just "stick" to the cone (surface tension) until it evaporates.  That's particularly noticeable with snow, because the individual spots of meltwater are usually smaller than what you would get with raindrops.  But you can see the same effect with mist.

Evaporation (of "standing water")  can occur at any temperature above freezing.   

If the melt water simply wets the plastic surface (hydrophilic attraction) rather than beading (hydrophobic repulsion), the evaporation rate will be faster due to the extra surface area of the melt water.  That's one reason I've tried to make the funnel plastic more hydrophobic through use of Rain-X and then Plexus treatments. Can't say how well the Plexus treatment is holding up due to snow banks that prevent me from inspecting the collector cone.
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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #171 on: December 16, 2009, 04:55:52 PM »
If the melt water simply wets the plastic surface (hydrophilic attraction) rather than beading (hydrophobic repulsion), the evaporation rate will be faster due to the extra surface area of the melt water.  That's one reason I've tried to make the funnel plastic more hydrophobic through use of Rain-X and then Plexus treatments. Can't say how well the Plexus treatment is holding up due to snow banks that prevent me from inspecting the collector cone.

Great suggestion.  Thanks.

Regarding this and the "heater" situation - the effects will only be really obvious with light snow, less obvious with light rain, and essentially undetectable in heavy snow or heavy rain.

Offline d_l

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #172 on: December 16, 2009, 05:22:13 PM »
Regarding this and the "heater" situation - the effects will only be really obvious with light snow, less obvious with light rain, and essentially undetectable in heavy snow or heavy rain.

That's why powered off my Davis heater until some light snow had accumulated during the last snowfall we had. I think that worked well and then the storm became heavy enough so that there wasn't an evaporation problem.  The Davis heater can certainly melt the snow fast if necessary.  It was about freezing and its melt rate exceeded 0.40 in/hr for about 10 minutes until it caught up to the snowfall rate.  Then it had several other periods of melt rates higher than 0.25 in/hr (Davis' claimed max) and a sustained interval of almost 0.20 in/hr.

I don't think I can make a valid comparison with my CoCoRaHS accumulation.  There was a slight wind and the snow stacked and banked on the sensor shelf into an overhanging cornice.  The CoCoRaHS tube which has slightly better wind protection actually ended up with more snow plugging and capping it than accumulated in the bottom of the tube. The net difference was that the CoCoRaHS had about 10% more water.
--Dave--

Wireless VP2 w/ solar, 24hr FARS, Heater, (Envoy-WLIP)*3-Meteohub, plus custom VP2 @ 26', WL 6.0.4, WU & W4U=KNVRENO37 NetcamXL

People always talk about the weather, but they never do anything about it.  Not me.  I'm gonna measure it.  https://www.tceweather.com

Offline upweather

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #173 on: December 16, 2009, 07:40:19 PM »
This is exactly what i saw today.. My problem also is Lake effect snow is usually none consistant in snowfall rates.. It may snow 10 mins and nothing then 30 mins later startup again. thats what i've had lately.. Thats another reason I'd like to be able to cycle the heater to allow a slight build up before it completly melts I used a plastic polish today to help bead the water droplets. The snow lately has such little moisture in it ..it just makes specs on the cone when it hits . I may just have to settle for less then ideal collection data.

 

Definitely looking forward to what you record for the core temp of the collector cone. When my bucket has any reasonable amount of snow in it, my inner bucket temp falls down into the mid 60s.  There ain't going to be any evap going on at 60 F!  Not during the few minutes the snow takes to melt and drip through to the tipping buckets.


You seemed quite certain of that.

Here is my update.  I went out today and its snowing lightly 14.5 degrees.  I Looked inside the rain collector watched the snow fall and almost disappear as it hit the collection area. I put the IR thermometer on the top of the cone it was 53 degrees. mid point it was 63.2 degrees and towards the bottom 72.3....
 

If the surface temperature of the cone is 33 degrees, and the precipitation rate is below that rate where the water will collect into droplets and run down the cone -- then the water will just "stick" to the cone (surface tension) until it evaporates.  That's particularly noticeable with snow, because the individual spots of meltwater are usually smaller than what you would get with raindrops.  But you can see the same effect with mist.

Evaporation (of "standing water")  can occur at any temperature above freezing.   
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Offline upweather

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Re: $20 Rain Collector Heater - simple!!
« Reply #174 on: December 19, 2009, 01:53:48 PM »
PREVIOUS UPDATE Here is my update.  I went out today and its snowing lightly 14.5 degrees.  I Looked inside the rain collector watched the snow fall and almost disappear as it hit the collection area. I put the IR thermometer on the top of the cone it was 53 degrees. mid point it was 63.2 degrees and towards the bottom 72.3..I tried to shoot a beam straight down into the tipping bucket but was still reading low 70's ..
I removed the bucket after chipping away ice and struggling about 10 mins hoping it wouldn't break the plastic locking tabs  but ended up getting it free . I removed the heater cord that heavily wrapped around the inside of the  cone. distributed it throughout the inside of the bucket like the original directions imply. I put it all together and currently waiting to recheck temps after about 30 min.. The heater has now been on for about 35 mins The temps after the change are as follows AIR TEMP 16 DEGREES
Top of cone 40.5  , mid point 52 deg,  bottom 40 deg ... The temps are different with the warmest point being the middle not the bottom as before.
I wonder if anyone else has a IR thermometer could check there temps to compare?
 
CURRENT UPDATE  Today 12-19  I picked up 1.2 inches of light snow  not much but measurable after making the change to my heater and adding a 30 min cycle timer I measured .07 on my VP2 and .08 on the CoCoRahs gauge  \:D/ allot better not even 20 mins after emptying the CoCoRahs gauge the VP2 measured .08  \:D/ I'm very excited , although it's not allot of snow it's very close compaired to before being .17 below .28 on the CoCoRahs gauge.
VP2 6153 W/24HR FARS, HEATER,WEATHERLINK IP
CoCoRaHS MI-AG-1 ,CWOP-DW3971 ,
nearby webcam http://www.upadventures.net/webcam.php