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STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

For discussion of DIY weather equipment - sensors, accessories, improvements to existing kit etc
westonweather
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by westonweather »

Project thread recreated here as original lost due to server replacement: http://www.westonweather.co.uk/phpbb3/v ... hp?f=5&t=2
Last edited by westonweather on Fri 21 Feb 2014 7:45 am, edited 1 time in total.
KevinF
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by KevinF »

Good job!
callum91
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by callum91 »

Finally finished mine today. I painted the screen with white marine paint so hopefully it will last a while. The stand is from a £30 bird table which unscrewed with wing nuts so I used the bolts that we're holding the bird table on to attach the stevensons screen. I used the bird table platform as a platform for the rain gauge.
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Repairman77
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by Repairman77 »

Well done Cullom; but are they left in that position near to the fence? Ideally they need to be out in the open but I know it's not always possible.
Mine is in the back garden but the whole back garden tends to be a heat trap so it always reads a degree or two above the temperature from the remote sensor on the tower above the roof. I have my manual rain gauge on top of a 5ft fence fairly in the open.
Mike.
Retired Radio and Electronics Engineer residing in Cambridgeshire, UK.
westonweather
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by westonweather »

Nice work Callum.

I too have a suggestion if I may. Put the rain gauge on top of the Stevenson's Screen? It's what I would have done had I not put a solar panel on the roof of mine.

Well done though. Mike's idea is catching on! :D
callum91
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by callum91 »

Thanks guys, I'm quite pleased with my handy work. I'm definitely not normally a DIY person but I've found it quite rewarding!
Repairman77 wrote:Well done Cullom; but are they left in that position near to the fence? Ideally they need to be out in the open but I know it's not always possible.
Yes unfortunately my cottage only has a small patio courtyard which will be a sun trap in the summer. Ideally I'd put it on the neighbour's lawn if they'd let me! It's mobile so I can always try moving it and I'll be able to take it with me when I move (hopefully my next place will have a proper garden! It's quite handy that the bird table was just the right height making the temperature sensor the standard 1.25 metres above the ground.
westonweather wrote:I too have a suggestion if I may. Put the rain gauge on top of the Stevenson's Screen? It's what I would have done had I not put a solar panel on the roof of mine.
Yes I didn't think of that! I'm not sure if it might get affected by the wind more if it's high up as I know the met office rain gauges are only 1 foot high and placed on the ground.

Kind regards

Callum
westonweather
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by westonweather »

Putting the rain gauge on top may make the whole thing blow over in the wind, that's a given!

Portable is good, especially if you think you might move in the not too distant.

Do you have a WMR88? Same rain gauge as me, so definitely an Oregon?
westonweather
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by westonweather »

Meant to say Callum, I moved my rain gauge off the floor as I found it became a play thing for the local wildlife! My own cats would drink out of it too! Not helpful for getting accurate readings!
callum91
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by callum91 »

westonweather wrote: Do you have a WMR88? Same rain gauge as me, so definitely an Oregon?
Yes that's right it's Oregon scientific which has the advantage of being wireless!
westonweather wrote:Meant to say Callum, I moved my rain gauge off the floor as I found it became a play thing for the local wildlife! My own cats would drink out of it too! Not helpful for getting accurate readings!
I don't have any pets and thankfully I've had no problems so far with wildlife!

Kind regards,

Callum
jim-easterbrook
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by jim-easterbrook »

westonweather wrote:Putting the rain gauge on top may make the whole thing blow over in the wind, that's a given!
I suspect it might blow over even without anything else on top. I'd look into some way of pinning down the bird table feet, particularly if you do move it to a more open location.
Jim
prodata
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by prodata »

@Repairman77: Sorry, totally OT here, but if you're monitoring this thread and should see this post, what rainfall did you measure at Littleport tonight (Tuesday 8th July)? I'd be interested in some corroboration.
John Dann
Prodata Weather Systems
Littleport, East Cambs, UK
http://www.weatherstations.co.uk
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Repairman77
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by Repairman77 »

prodata wrote:@Repairman77: Sorry, totally OT here, but if you're monitoring this thread and should see this post, what rainfall did you measure at Littleport tonight (Tuesday 8th July)? I'd be interested in some corroboration.
Hi Prodata, we had 35mm in approximately one hour. Very rare for us; and some thunder and lightning as well. Looking on the Rain radar it appeared to be just one smallish patch, a few miles away they would have missed it.

Hope that helps.

Mike

Update; The 35mm was from a conventional rain gauge; the WH1080 remote measured 33.9mm. Not bad for the remote, fairly accurate. :)
Last edited by Repairman77 on Wed 09 Jul 2014 7:22 am, edited 1 time in total.
Retired Radio and Electronics Engineer residing in Cambridgeshire, UK.
prodata
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by prodata »

Repairman77 wrote:Hi Prodata, we had 35mm in approximately one hour.
Hmm, we were showing 50mm at ESN in Wisbech Road - couldn't believe it when I saw the figure online at half-time (http://www.weatherlink.com/user/esnprodata/ - stats reset at midnight, but look at Storm on the Summary page for the current storm total). Hope the crop damage hasn't been too serious - plenty of wheat and barley only a few weeks from harvesting, though fortunately it is mostly short straw and therefore relatively resilient nowadays. I'll go through the data in more detail when I get a chance, see what the maximum rain rate was and get a graph organised.

For reference and from memory our Ely station was showing about 12mm and the one at Great Fen from memory just a couple of mm (for any non-locals reading these locations are only 5-6 miles apart). Again I'll check the details later. But it clearly was an unusual event - I was heading back up the A10 about 7.30pm and between the A142 and Downham roundabouts it was like passing from totally dry road conditions through a shower curtain at one point and with the shower on 'torrential'. Sky to the north (towards Littleport) was unbelievably and heavily dark grey for as far as the eye could see (and remember this is the fens with huge skies).

Apologies again for hijacking the thread.
John Dann
Prodata Weather Systems
Littleport, East Cambs, UK
http://www.weatherstations.co.uk
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Repairman77
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by Repairman77 »

prodata wrote:
Repairman77 wrote:Hi Prodata, we had 35mm in approximately one hour.
Hmm, we were showing 50mm at ESN in Wisbech Road - couldn't believe it when I saw the figure online at half-time (http://www.weatherlink.com/user/esnprodata/ - stats reset at midnight, but look at Storm on the Summary page for the current storm total). Hope the crop damage hasn't been too serious - plenty of wheat and barley only a few weeks from harvesting, though fortunately it is mostly short straw and therefore relatively resilient nowadays. I'll go through the data in more detail when I get a chance, see what the maximum rain rate was and get a graph organised.

For reference and from memory our Ely station was showing about 12mm and the one at Great Fen from memory just a couple of mm (for any non-locals reading these locations are only 5-6 miles apart). Again I'll check the details later. But it clearly was an unusual event - I was heading back up the A10 about 7.30pm and between the A142 and Downham roundabouts it was like passing from totally dry road conditions through a shower curtain at one point and with the shower on 'torrential'. Sky to the north (towards Littleport) was unbelievably and heavily dark grey for as far as the eye could see (and remember this is the fens with huge skies).

Apologies again for hijacking the thread.
No problem. The 35mm was from a conventional rain gauge; the WH1080 remote measured 33.9mm. Not bad for the remote, fairly accurate.
Retired Radio and Electronics Engineer residing in Cambridgeshire, UK.
prodata
Posts: 317
Joined: Sat 05 Feb 2011 7:13 pm
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Re: STEVENSON SCREENS - CHEAP OPTION

Post by prodata »

For the record, the figures were:

T = 5 min period, ending at:
RF = rainfall in that period (mm)
RR = Rainfall Rate (mm/hr)

T RF RR
19:15 1.2 22
19:20 3.4 70
19:25 5.4 169
19:30 7.8 150
19:35 4.2 103
19:40 7.6 177
19:45 4.6 177
19:50 10.0 256
19:55 4.2 206

Total = 48.4mm in 45 mins with a max rain rate of 256mm/hr

(From a Vantage Vue at 3m height, but minimal wind - max gust was 11mph)
John Dann
Prodata Weather Systems
Littleport, East Cambs, UK
http://www.weatherstations.co.uk
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