Time for some maintenance?

Along with many parts of western Europe we've had a fairly showery couple of weeks. With blustery south westerly winds, warm early autumn sunshine and then of course the problems that can go with this - spiders.

Over the weekend 7th/8th October we're expecting strong southerly winds which will bring some unusually high temperatures and along with it dust from the Sahara. 

So over the coming week it will be great weather to carry out some maintenance on your weather equipment and other outdoor sensors.

Starting with your rain gauge give it a good wipe and clear away dust, grit and grime, but also pay special attention to any spider webs or insects that may have recently taken residence. Spider webs are tough enough to stop a tipping spoon emptying fully when partly tipped and can even stop rain recording completely. Dust and grime in the spoon will add extra weight and cause more frequent tips causing an over reading of rain.

On the Davis Pro2 stations the rain gauge can be unplugged from the transmitter and given a good clean.

For others the tipping mechanism can normally be held level whilst a wet cloth is used to clear the dirt and grime before a dry one is used to finish off the job. 

Rain funnels should washed, the feed hole cleaned and also have debris screens rinsed to remove grime.

Also talking of spider webs, if you have an anemometer that's accessible, it's time to clear this of any webs that may have formed over the past few months ready to start recording the winter storms.

See something unusual or out of the ordinary with your rain gauge, drop us a message or even a photo and we'll try and help you out.