Do you know the best way to measure rainfall at home? It’s a rain gauge, read on to learn how to make a rain gauge of your own. Measuring the amount of rainfall is an ancient practice, which was first practiced in the 4th century. But the rain gauge was invented only in the 13th century.
The rain gauge has been developed across the world in different ways, but its purpose still remains the same. A rain gauge is an instrument that we use to measure the amount of rainfall the area receives in a certain amount of time. Teach your children how to make a rain gauge to measure rainfall in your home.
Learning how to make a rain gauge at home is one of the best activities for kids at home to learn about the weather. Engage your little meteorologist in a how-to make a rain gauge project and teach them to measure rainfall. But, how do you make a rain gauge at home? Here is a simple way to make a homemade rain gauge.
How To Make A Rain Gauge At Home
Teaching your child how to make a rain gauge is a great way to help children understand the weather. But, what do you need to make a rain gauge at home? A homemade rain gauge needs very few things, most of which are easily available at home.
Here is a list of things you’ll need:
- A clear plastic bottle (one with a straight side is best)
- A few marbles or small rocks or pebbles
- Permanent marker
- Paper and pencil
Step-by-step Guide To Learn How To Make A Rain Gauge At Home
Follow these simple steps to make your rain gauge at home:
- Step 1: Cut the top of your clear, plastic bottle with the scissors.
- Step 2: Use the permanent marker and a ruler to mark increments on the bottle, starting about 2 inches from the bottom.
- Step 3: Place the marbles or pebbles or rocks at the bottle. This weighs the rain gauge down and ensures it won’t be blown away with the wind.
- Step 4: Now add water till the 0 mark on the bottle. This will calibrate your rain gauge.
- Step 5: Invert the top part of the bottle (without the cap) into the rain gauge like a funnel.
- Step 6: Keep the rain gauge outdoors, on a flat surface—in the open area away from any trees. Ensure that there aren’t any obstacles over the homemade rain gauge. This could either block the raindrops from falling into the gauge or drip extra raindrops into the bottle.
- Step 7: Wait for the next time that it rains. In the meanwhile, keep checking that the water in the bottom hasn’t evaporated below the 0 mark. If it has evaporated, refill the gauge.
- Step 8: Your homemade rain gauge is now ready to use. Examine the water level in your rain gauge after it rains. Use the scale on the side to measure the precipitation and make a note of the amount of rain and the date. Check the local newspaper or check online to find out if your measurement is accurate.
Benefits Of Using A DIY Rain Gauge
Now that we’ve learnt how to make a rain gauge, let’s learn the benefits of using one. Once you learn how to make a rain gauge, measuring precipitation becomes easy. But there are several other benefits to making a DIY rain gauge. Here are some ways that measuring rainfall helps us.
- Local weather patterns: Measuring the amount of rainfall using your DIY rain gauge and documenting it helps you identify weather patterns in your area. Imagine if you go on a picnic on a sunny day, a sudden burst of rainfall could ruin your day out. Monitoring rainfall amounts and patterns helps you predict rainfall and this will help you plan your outdoor activities according to the weather.
- Should you water your plants or not? When you have accurate rainfall data and trends, you’ll learn to predict when it rains. This helps you decide if you should turn the sprinklers on or water the plants. So rainfall measuring can help you keep your plants and lawn watered.
- Best time for sowing or planting: Each plant has its own ideal rainfall amount to stay healthy or for seed germination. Knowing the amount of precipitation will help you understand when to sow a particular crop or grow a particular plant. This information is a great asset for farmers, as it helps them manage their crops, fertilizing times etc.
- Potential floods or droughts: A rain gauge is an essential tool for measuring precipitation, which helps us estimate short term rain intensity. If you live in an area prone to flooding, it helps to know and predict weather patterns. Accurate rainfall measurements will help you identify and prepare for flooding. Additionally, rainfall data also helps you understand if your area is facing a drought and prepare for it.
- Understanding our environment: Better rainfall data helps us understand our environment. Meteorologists use rainfall data to predict weather related natural disasters and climate change.
How to make a rain gauge is a great activity to help children learn outdoors. Outdoor learning is very effective and is a great way to educate children. It helps them understand and cherish the world, whether it is a public space or their back garden. A DIY rain gauge project is a simple science activity to teach your child to keep track of the precipitation in your home. Check out science experiments for kids for more fun science activities to do with your child at home.
Frequently Asked Questions on How To Make A Rain Gauge
What are the advantages of making a Rain Gauge?
The advantage of making rain gauges are that they learn about the local weather patterns and the best time to sow a seed. Also, kids learn about droughts and floods. This will give a brief understanding of the environment and weather conditions.
What are the items required for making a rain gauge?
The items required for making a rain gauge are scissors, a plastic bottle, tape, ruler, water, small pebbles or rocks, a permanent marker, and paper.