To maintain accuracy of your rainfall measurements and reporting, your Davis® Rain Gauge should be inspected and cleaned on a regular basis.
The maintenance interval will vary depending on numerous factors such as weather conditions and seasonality, and users will need to decide how often their specific rain gauges require inspection and maintenance. Some of the things to consider might be:
- Recent farm operations that may have introduced debris into the bucket i.e. from using machinery or ploughing in the area,
- Seasonal issues with insect intrusion,
- Periods of high bird activity,
- Chewing activity or damage from livestock or wild animals in the area
- Blowing dust into the tipping bucket,
- Inclement weather such as flooding around the base of the pole or high winds may have caused subsidence or tilting of the bucket.
Any of these issues can affect the accuracy of your rain gauge, so it is important to inspect and maintain your specific gauge as often as necessary. Generally if you have correctly installed the rain gauge and pole with concreting at the base, the level should be correct and simply cleaning the tipping bucket will be sufficient. However it is good practise to check the level periodically and keep the tipping bucket clean and free of debris to allow for the most accurate reporting through the Incyt by LX app.
Equipment Required
- Soft damp cloth
- Tools and concreting equipment where installation maintenance is required
Procedure
- Make a visual inspection of the rain gauge and associated cabling. Ensure there is no obvious physical damage from animals or machinery.
- Remove the rain bucket from the base, by twisting it counter clockwise.
- Inspect inside the rain bucket for any debris, such as leaves, twigs, spider webs, etc. If necessary, you can remove the debris screen at the bottom of the bucket, by twisting counter clockwise.
- With a soft damp cloth, clean any debris from the bucket, screen and tipping spoons. Ensure you clean any accumulated dirt from inside the tipping spoons.
- Check the drain holes under the tipping spoons are clear.
- Check the levelling bubble, and ensure the base of the rain gauge is still level, with the bubble in the centre of the black circle. A level base is critical to the accurate operation of the rain gauge.
- If you need to relevel the base, loosen the U-bolts, and level accordingly.
- Reattach the rain bucket and debris screen.