Davis recently released AeroCone, a new cone for the rain gauge of the VantagePro2.
This new cone is supposed to increase accuracy in wind conditions thanks to its aerodynamic design. It also includes a new debris screen that stays in place even if you turn the rain collector upside down.
I don’t even know how you could heat it If you wrap much around the outside of the cone it destroys the whole better wind performance concept. Unlike the old style gauge the cone is a single wall molding so there’s no internal cavity :dontknow: You could heat the tipper section but I don’t think that wouldn’t do much for the upper part.
I dont think it would be too bad, not brill, but not too bad if you used the tipper housing, that been said, it would
highly depend on whether or not you can really insulate the tipper area., Heat rises an all that, albeit slower to melt
in this case be it should still work Having said all that, darn glad i got mine before it became the norm, not keen
on the look of it…
I noticed the difference in price from what Davis says they will sell it for vs. what the rest of the planet will sell it for. Quite a difference.
I have it and it looks a bit different out there.
I would recommend that if you have a heater now and wind isn’t a problem , keep the old cone and forget this new one. Just because it is new, it isn’t always the best.
I can’t see why not, heat rises, the only place for the heat to go is through the hole into the come and melt it that way, albeit slower but I can see it working…
Two questions:
First, how much more ‘accurate’ is this device vs. the old one? Remember pictures of the 50s and 60s era 8" or larger Weather Bureau installations with a 4 or 5 foot circle of what looked like a giant Tarzan loin cloth around it to help dissipate the wind effect? I wonder if the effect is minuscule or large?
Second, how many folks are heating their rain gauges? Is this a wide spread practice? Mine isn’t, I don’t log the water received, but looks interesting, especially if I can keep from putting 120v line on the tower or roof, always a danger in my mind even with a GFI on the circuit.
I have a R M Young non-tipping one that runs on capacitance and has a 24 v. heater on it but I haven’t put that into my setup yet.
Some people are running 120 (or even 240) out to a DIY gauge heater (usually using pipe or reptile heating “tape”), but many others are using a 12 or 24 volt heater and only running the low voltage out to the gauge. I certainly wouldn’t run line voltage out there, but I don’t recall that we’ve heard of any unfortunate events.
It will not work. It starts to build up snow/ice at the freezing point of the gauge “wall” what will end in a totally blocked gauge at the end (been there, seen that, even with the old style gauge). Its the gauge “wall” what need the heating, not the “air” inside it.
I run 12V out to the gauge for my heating. The 12V are taken from same PSU what the wx-puter use as it have a lots of spare
I would never run 240/120/whatever high V out to the gauge. 12V are much safer to play with.