It's Fall again! And that means you need to clean those leaves out of
your rain bucket! Here are some tips for regular weather station
maintenance!
Temperature
Compare the temperature at your station to that of a calibrated thermometer. To calibrate a thermometer you simply do a test in an ice water bath and a boiling water bath. If your thermometer reads 32F (0C) in ice water, and 212F (100C) in boiling water, then you know your thermometer is accurate. Then compare this thermometer to your weather station at various times of the day. If the temperature at your station is incorrect, you have a few different options:
1) You can send back to the manufacturer for calibration.
2) You can often adjust the temperature error in your weather station software.
Also use warm water and soap to remove any dust, cobwebs, or any other debris from the radiation shield.
Humidity
To check your humidity or dew point data, check your data on dewy mornings or in rainy conditions. You should see high humidity in both of these conditions with dew point temperatures very close to the actual temperature. If your data shows very low humidity during these conditions, you again have two options:
1) You can send back to the manufacturer for calibration.
2) You can often adjust the humidity or dew point error in your weather station software.
Pressure
If you suspect your pressure reading is incorrect, compare your data to nearby weather stations as well as the nearby airport. If it is incorrect, you again have two options:
1) You can send back to the manufacturer for calibration.
2) You can often adjust the pressure error in your weather station software. Try to match the pressure at your station to the nearest airport.
Anemometer
Make sure your wind speed and direction measurements are accurate by ensuring your propeller or cup anemometer are able to spin freely. Dirt or dust can get in and disrupt the bearings, so you can fix this by cleaning the sensor with warm water. Actually, ice can freeze the anemometer from spinning freely, so also make sure to check the station after winter storms! If any parts are cracked or broken, or not spinning freely, send to the manufacturer for replacement or new bearings.
Rain bucket
Is your rain gauge reporting 0 inches of rain when it has been raining all day? Your rain gauge may be clogged with leaves or pine needles, or even bird poo! Make sure to rinse it out often with warm water and soap, but then remember to go into your history page later to delete the erroneous data. (See instructions below to delete bad data.)
Solar panel
Your solar panel must be cleaned regularly to maintain highest functionality possible. When the photovoltaics are dirty or dusty, the station is not receiving maximum power available. Warm water and soap will do the trick. Also for highest efficiency the solar panel should face due south in the northern hemisphere (north in the southern hemisphere).
To delete any bad data that may have been reported during your maintenance, follow the steps below:
You can delete your station data if you are logged into wunderground. Go to your PWS dashboard page (or history page) and select the date you are interested in. Switch to the "Tables" view and there will be a blue edit button above the table of data. Hit the edit button, then select the points you want to delete. You can select multiple points at a time by control clicking on multiple points, but deleting entire rows or columns will not work. Once you have made your selection, delete points, then refresh your page to see the bad data removed.
Let me know if you have any questions or comments,
Kari
PWSmet
Temperature
Compare the temperature at your station to that of a calibrated thermometer. To calibrate a thermometer you simply do a test in an ice water bath and a boiling water bath. If your thermometer reads 32F (0C) in ice water, and 212F (100C) in boiling water, then you know your thermometer is accurate. Then compare this thermometer to your weather station at various times of the day. If the temperature at your station is incorrect, you have a few different options:
1) You can send back to the manufacturer for calibration.
2) You can often adjust the temperature error in your weather station software.
Also use warm water and soap to remove any dust, cobwebs, or any other debris from the radiation shield.
Humidity
To check your humidity or dew point data, check your data on dewy mornings or in rainy conditions. You should see high humidity in both of these conditions with dew point temperatures very close to the actual temperature. If your data shows very low humidity during these conditions, you again have two options:
1) You can send back to the manufacturer for calibration.
2) You can often adjust the humidity or dew point error in your weather station software.
Pressure
If you suspect your pressure reading is incorrect, compare your data to nearby weather stations as well as the nearby airport. If it is incorrect, you again have two options:
1) You can send back to the manufacturer for calibration.
2) You can often adjust the pressure error in your weather station software. Try to match the pressure at your station to the nearest airport.
Anemometer
Make sure your wind speed and direction measurements are accurate by ensuring your propeller or cup anemometer are able to spin freely. Dirt or dust can get in and disrupt the bearings, so you can fix this by cleaning the sensor with warm water. Actually, ice can freeze the anemometer from spinning freely, so also make sure to check the station after winter storms! If any parts are cracked or broken, or not spinning freely, send to the manufacturer for replacement or new bearings.
Rain bucket
Is your rain gauge reporting 0 inches of rain when it has been raining all day? Your rain gauge may be clogged with leaves or pine needles, or even bird poo! Make sure to rinse it out often with warm water and soap, but then remember to go into your history page later to delete the erroneous data. (See instructions below to delete bad data.)
Solar panel
Your solar panel must be cleaned regularly to maintain highest functionality possible. When the photovoltaics are dirty or dusty, the station is not receiving maximum power available. Warm water and soap will do the trick. Also for highest efficiency the solar panel should face due south in the northern hemisphere (north in the southern hemisphere).
To delete any bad data that may have been reported during your maintenance, follow the steps below:
You can delete your station data if you are logged into wunderground. Go to your PWS dashboard page (or history page) and select the date you are interested in. Switch to the "Tables" view and there will be a blue edit button above the table of data. Hit the edit button, then select the points you want to delete. You can select multiple points at a time by control clicking on multiple points, but deleting entire rows or columns will not work. Once you have made your selection, delete points, then refresh your page to see the bad data removed.
Let me know if you have any questions or comments,
Kari
PWSmet
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