Looks like it might rain!” – we sometimes jokingly quote the phrase of the famous cartoon character. But you want to know for sure what awaits us – a shower or a cloudless sky, and the testimony of numerous online weather services, often does not coincide. Will home weather stations help us? We’ll try to understand, and to get benefit from the last rain by saving water.
To be a meteorologist yourself
Is it possible to know the forecast, for example, for tomorrow, without looking at a weather report? It is possible, and very easy. No dancing with a tambourine, only science and tech! Glass thermometers and grandfather’s wall barometers were long time ago replaced by modern high-tech gadgets.
Personal weather station is a compact but extremely functional device. It lets you know almost everything about the current weather conditions – temperature and humidity, pressure, wind speed and direction, rainfall, as well as the forecast for all of the above for a period from 12 hours to a day. Some instances even report about the approaching storm and measure the intensity of ultraviolet radiation.
Some are equipped with a projector and can highlight details on the walls or ceiling. Other “illustrate” the weather with the help of crystals: the golden glow is the sun, blue one is the rain. By the type of power supply home weather station can be divided into three categories – a battery-powered, the one with recharged batteries and another one with the power supply from a home wiring. Decide yourself, what to choose.
The first variant, a budget unit. A simple instrument for measuring and predicting the temperature, humidity and pressure. There are not many settings, but they’re enough to have a general idea about the weather. The size of the device is like an average smartphone.
Significant drawback is that the data collecting sensor in such gadgets often has a wire. So the unit will be likely installed on the window sill and we’ll need to make a hole in the wall to fix the sensor on the outside of the home.
The second variant, advanced. The size of this weather station is like a tablet, but functionality is significantly higher. In addition to the three basic parameters, the gadget also determines wind direction and speed, which allows to make a more accurate forecast. And most importantly – no wires! A set of sensors is fixed in any convenient location within a hundred meters from the base.
This weather station will make you feel like a real meteorologist: by connecting it to a computer, via Bluetooth for example, you can make weather reports and analyze the data, accumulated over a long time.
If you need only basic weather data, you can use the revolutionary simple unit, consisting of two cylinders. One should be placed outside the window, and the second one in the room.
Data is transmitted via Wi-Fi, so you can find out what the weather is in your home, even while away on business: using a computer or smart phone, with the preinstalled appropriate application.
In conclusion, we note: meteorologists consider home stations rather educational toys for researchers and do not recommend to completely rely on them. The fact is that indications of such devices are relative, and depend on where and how you can install the sensors. For example, if a man lives on the twentieth floor, his weather station shows one pressure, and if he lives on the first floor – the other, and that’s fine by the laws of physics, because the difference in height is about 60 meters. And at the Hydrometeorological stations measurements are carried out, focusing on the sea level, that is why they are considered representative. But nobody will forbid you to defy the weather forecasters. They also may be wrong.
We collect and purify rainwater
We already know will it be a little rain on Thursday, or any other day of the week. Now we look at how to profit from it for ourselves and for the environment. The holiday season is just around the corner, but not all vacation homes are equipped with running water. To drag the full cans from the city or to buy bottled water in the shop to wash the dishes are not the best options. And then, as they say, rain to help you. By the way, even if the house is already connected to the water system, the use of the “gift of heaven” will help to save up to 50 percent of Earth’s priceless resource.
Technologies. There is, of course, the simplest method of “from the roof – into a tank,” but now there exist more modern ways. Some systems have a pump, whereby the treated rainwater enters from the tank through the pipes into the house.
If you are not yet ready to invest in such equipment, at least install a mechanical cleaning device into a drain pipe, which is easy to filter out particles of dirt and leaves. The reservoir for treated water is best to keep in a cool place – under the ground or in the basement. An important point: the roof must have a slope angle more than 10 degrees, otherwise the water will stagnate and deteriorate.
Safety. Remember that if the roof of the house is covered with asbestos slate or copper tiles, the rainwater harvesting should be abandoned. This also applies to all materials containing lead. The water from the roof covered with metal tile can be used in everyday life, but it’s better not to water the plants with it. Ceramics is ideal, eco-friendly and harmless to all living organisms. The material of drains and pipes is equally important. It is better if it is PVC or galvanized iron. Also, do not use water without subsequent thorough cleaning if the house is located in the city or near industrial plants: falling from a height, raindrop absorbs harmful substances from the air pollution emissions. If you still have decided to collect rainwater, for example, for watering potted plants in a city apartment, wait at least for half an hour. The first drops of water gather all the dirt from the air, and more rain will be cleaner.
Application. Rain water does not contain chlorine, moreover, in the absence of pollution its pH is 5.6 – almost as much as of our skin (5,5). For watering plants is ideal. Also it can be used safely at home for washing, cleaning or washing dishes. However, it is still not recommended to drink this water or to cook food on it. After all, alas, there are not much places with great environment. If you happen to have a summer residence in such territories – try to wash by rain water: because of the softness it is more useful for skin and hair than tap water. In addition, the aquarium fish will also be grateful if you share with them with a pre-stocked rain.
Source: http://www.da-voda.com/
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