Along with many parts of western Europe we've had a fairly showery couple of weeks. With south westerly winds, warm early autumn sunshine and then of course the problems that can go with this - spiders.
So over the coming weeks it's ideal 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 taken residence over the summer. 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 to prevent false recordings.
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. No debris screen? We've several different styles to suit all rain funnels.
Also talking of spider webs, if you have a traditional or sonic 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 those Autumn and Winter storms.
See something unusual or out of the ordinary with your weather equipment, drop us a message or even a photo and we'll try and help you out. With either replacement parts of advice.
