Topic: A lot of excess raindrops in funnel - no rain recorded

[kenthcwx]

There seems to be a lot of excess rain drops in the rain funnel and not sure entirely sure what to do since other stations have recorded 0.2mm but I’ve recorded nothing.

Any solution to this? Pic attached below.

[Rover1822]

I'd have to think its a limitation of the device.  0.2mm is small amount to record though.

Since mine is high up and I can't see into it, I would be surprised if it didn't look similar.

I guess the other question is how often you wipe down the funnel? Dust and other matter will sit on it and create a place for drops to stick.

I do wipe down mine when I do maintenance on the tilt bucket.

[kenthcwx]

I'd have to think its a limitation of the device.  0.2mm is small amount to record though.

Since mine is high up and I can't see into it, I would be surprised if it didn't look similar.

I guess the other question is how often you wipe down the funnel? Dust and other matter will sit on it and create a place for drops to stick.

I do wipe down mine when I do maintenance on the tilt bucket.

I wipe down the funnel with soap & water but not sure if that's made it more sticky or not. Pretty sure the rain readings never used to be that off with local ones. Not sure if there's a solution I can spray to decrease that risk.

I wiped it down few days ago funnily enough.

[weather34]

tip ! find your local motorcycle specialist shop and enquire about helmet visor super hydrophobic spray , comes in different variations . do it every three months or replenish as an when you feel required .
what it does allows the large drops of rain to run and not stick to the surface , i do mine every 3 months on a clear dry calm day and look for forecast of following day to be similar normally takes 12-24 hours to cure .
spray evenly or brush on evenly do not be generous just a light thin coating is sufficient. it will need replenishing due to spring to summer uv and winter cold effects . a motorcyclist will benefit immensely in rain conditions simply allows the rain to run of the visor which is exactly what it does to the rain bucket and being your bucket is somewhat vertically and steeply angled it will do exactly the same.

have a read up on hydrophobic methods useful for many other things where water is required to run off .

 brian

[kenthcwx]

tip ! find your local motorcycle specialist shop and enquire about helmet visor super hydrophobic spray , comes in different variations . do it every three months or replenish as an when you feel required .
what it does allows the large drops of rain to run and not stick to the surface , i do mine every 3 months on a clear dry calm day and look for forecast of following day to be similar normally takes 12-24 hours to cure .
spray evenly or brush on evenly do not be generous just a light thin coating is sufficient. it will need replenishing due to spring to summer uv and winter cold effects . a motorcyclist will benefit immensely in rain conditions simply allows the rain to run of the visor which is exactly what it does to the rain bucket and being your bucket is somewhat vertically and steeply angled it will do exactly the same.

have a read up on hydrophobic methods useful for many other things where water is required to run off .

 brian

Following your advice, I've sprayed it with WD40 & hope that does the trick!

[Rover1822]

Not sure I would have used WD40, which is an oil. Typically that attracts dirt and dust and it will stay there. The compound suggested previously or a "dry" silicone spray may have been a better choice.

[kenthcwx]

Not sure I would have used WD40, which is an oil. Typically that attracts dirt and dust and it will stay there. The compound suggested previously or a "dry" silicone spray may have been a better choice.

I do weekly checks on the station so I'll see if anything builds & can remove it if needs be.

[Rover1822]

Not sure I would have used WD40, which is an oil. Typically that attracts dirt and dust and it will stay there. The compound suggested previously or a "dry" silicone spray may have been a better choice.

I do weekly checks on the station so I'll see if anything builds & can remove it if needs be.

You can do a simple test, take a pinch of flour , place it in your palm, and blow it into the funnel. You will more than likely see the flour stick to the funnel.

[weather34]

Not sure I would have used WD40, which is an oil. Typically that attracts dirt and dust and it will stay there. The compound suggested previously or a "dry" silicone spray may have been a better choice.

I do weekly checks on the station so I'll see if anything builds & can remove it if needs be.

sigh  WD40 !!  i certainly wouldnt have used for that purpose but hey who knows . next time just order the some super hydrophobic and digest some info https://www.neverwet.com/consumer/index.php

or pop into B&Q or similar and buy some degreaser..

[GHammer]

Clean mine once a month and use teflon on it.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0031T82NO/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Mandrake]

You might find it hard to get Teflon spray as that's a trademark and not always available.
You can however use PTFE spray or Dry Silicon as those will broadly achieve the same result.

I have wondered about trying RainX or equivalent but never remember when I am in a Motor Factors!

[CW2274]

Not sure I would have used WD40, which is an oil. Typically that attracts dirt and dust and it will stay there. The compound suggested previously or a "dry" silicone spray may have been a better choice.

I do weekly checks on the station so I'll see if anything builds & can remove it if needs be.

Like others have said, WD40 is a fantastic dust/dirt collector. No idea how hard it is to get to your tipping mechanism, but the WD40 and all its collected "stuff" will settle onto the spoon surfaces as well possibly throwing off the calibration over time. I'd suggest something like this, but you'd have to clean out what you've already done.

https://www.rainx.com/product/plastic-water-repellent/rain-x-plastic-water-repellent/

[wd68]

Maybe because there isn't must dust here, ( semi swamp), i have used wd40 for years. first on the Acurite and now on the Ambient with no issues, maybe because i clean it every couple of weeks as the spiders love my station for some reason. They web the temp sensor and rain gauge. wd40 also has a thing with wasps and birds as they can't land or build a nest. Both don't like wd40. Birds can't stand on wd-40 treated surface. Funny to watch birds land and slide off the cup!! If you are cleaning and doing maintenance then shouldn't be much of a issue.

[Aardvark]

while looking for. a solution, have you contacted the manufacturer of that collector?   Send them the picture and ask what they recommend.  It obvious to me that it is something on the surface causing surface tension and hence the drops.   The manufacturer should be aware of that problem and might already have either a replacement for that unit or a viable solution.

In the meantime, you could get some Rain-X and carefully wipe the surface to break that tension, and see if that works,  but I definitely would write the company as well.  You don't want to have to be going  out to put something every week on that collector.

[kenthcwx]

You might find it hard to get Teflon spray as that's a trademark and not always available.
You can however use PTFE spray or Dry Silicon as those will broadly achieve the same result.

I have wondered about trying RainX or equivalent but never remember when I am in a Motor Factors!

Not sure I would have used WD40, which is an oil. Typically that attracts dirt and dust and it will stay there. The compound suggested previously or a "dry" silicone spray may have been a better choice.

I do weekly checks on the station so I'll see if anything builds & can remove it if needs be.

Like others have said, WD40 is a fantastic dust/dirt collector. No idea how hard it is to get to your tipping mechanism, but the WD40 and all its collected "stuff" will settle onto the spoon surfaces as well possibly throwing off the calibration over time. I'd suggest something like this, but you'd have to clean out what you've already done.

https://www.rainx.com/product/plastic-water-repellent/rain-x-plastic-water-repellent/

Yeah that was just me trying to think ahead of everything and not thinking it through properly. I'll search around for some PTFE spray on Amazon. Not sure how available RainX is in the UK though. Thanks for all your help.

Edit: Ordered some cheap Dry Silicone Lubricant Spray on Amazon. Learnt my lesson for trying to be the smart one ahead lol.

[kenthcwx]

while looking for. a solution, have you contacted the manufacturer of that collector?   Send them the picture and ask what they recommend.  It obvious to me that it is something on the surface causing surface tension and hence the drops.   The manufacturer should be aware of that problem and might already have either a replacement for that unit or a viable solution.

In the meantime, you could get some Rain-X and carefully wipe the surface to break that tension, and see if that works,  but I definitely would write the company as well.  You don't want to have to be going out to put something every week on that collector.

I plan to email them shortly about it. I believe Ecowitt did put out a video showing the rain funnel with a Teflon Covering a while back. I'll see if Lucy has any recommendations.

[Mandrake]

Ecowitt does recommend a Teflon spray coating to improve the hydrophobic properties however as mentioned you cannot always buy it in spray form in your locality due to licencing.
PTFE is the same thing however and is simply the generic chemical name for the coating so if you can get that product then all is good (and probably cheaper than the branded product)

[Platokidd]

I use DuPont Teflon Snow and Ice Repellant https://www.amazon.com/DuPont-Teflon-Snow-Repellant-10-Ounce/dp/B0031T82NO/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=dupont+spray&qid=1593393609&sr=8-3

[kenthcwx]

Ecowitt does recommend a Teflon spray coating to improve the hydrophobic properties however as mentioned you cannot always buy it in spray form in your locality due to licencing.
PTFE is the same thing however and is simply the generic chemical name for the coating so if you can get that product then all is good (and probably cheaper than the branded product)

This stuff should do the trick! Due to rain on Tuesday so that'll be the tester.

[kenthcwx]

UPDATE:
1.6mm of rain recorded today with some light rain. Coated the interior of the funnel last night and the coating has stayed on with only some dead flies being caught in it. Thanks for all your help guys!