Season Of The Unicorn
The garden is in. Four kinds of tomatoes, three kinds of peppers, squash, pumpkin, zucchini and an assortment of herbs. The rain barrel is installed and working as well. As far as the weather is concerned, things have continued to be Summer like. Temperatures have been above normal for the most part and precipitation has been plentiful as of late. The 8-14 day temp/precip forecast from the CPC suggests seasonal temps and above normal precip for our area through Jun 18. Keep up with the evolution of the prediction by using the links in the OSNW3 WxBrief. Unicorns.
(OSNW3 Weather Brief)
(OSNW3 June Observations)
(OSNW3 June 2010 Summary)
(click on graph for the month summary data - it will open a new tab/window)
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Spring 2010 One of the Warmest Ever
The NWS Green Bay put out a news article mentioning that a few local cities had one of their warmest meteorological Springs ever. Oshkosh is no exception. Similar to Green Bay, Oshkosh experienced it's second warmest Spring of all-time. Records date back to 1893. The average temperature for the months of Mar, Apr, and May was 49.9 degrees here at OSNW3. Only the spring of 1977 was warmer with an average temperature of 51.3 degrees observed at the official Oshkosh observation site. For the all-time rankings, click here.
(Top Five - Oshkosh Warmest Meteorological Springs)
2nd Warmest Spring on Record in Wisconsin
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Rain Barrel
It is certainly not pretty, but the rain barrel is in. The barrel is being fed from the roof on the east side of the garage. On Jun 2, 0.18" of rain fell and to my surprise that exact amount of rain filled up the barrel. After a couple of clicks on the calculator, it makes perfect sense, my barrel is indeed 30 gallons. Below are the calculations.
1. Surface area = length * width
East side of my garage roof:
288 sq. feet = 24 feet x 12 feet
2. Raincatch potential per inch of rain = 0.6 gallons * 288 sq. feet
East side of my garage roof:
172.8 gallons per inch of rain = 0.6 gallons * 288 sq. feet
3. Annual raincatch potential = raincatch potential per inch of rain * annual rainfall
East side of my garage roof:
5443.2 gallons = 172.8 gallons per inch of rainfall * 31.57
The first rainfall for the barrel to catch was a perfect one as it proved the volume of the barrel. 0.18" of rainfall, equaling a 30 gallon raincatch, fills up the barrel nicely with good head pressure standing about 2 feet above the ground. We will not be attaching an irrigation system as using buckets is very simple and works just fine for the time being. As for overfilling of the barrel, it currently just spills out the top. The system will evolve in time.
(OSNW3 Rain Barrel)
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Front Of House
Still on cut number 4. That will change later this week, no doubt. The hanging flower pots are up and the sides of the house have been trimmed. Summer is here.
On a side note... When the rain gauge for OSNW3 was installed back in Oct of 2006 we decided to attach four wooden stakes to the main poll and drive it into the ground instead of digging a hole. After four Winter seasons the stakes finally gave out and it all came tumbling down. Watch the falling and second coming of OSNW3 here.
In the spirit of side notes, see the links below.
1. Memorial Day parade Pelican fly-over video.
2. Funky clouds downtown Jun 5, 2010.
3. Cabela's Masters Walleye Circuit on Lake Winnebago June 5, 2010.
(FOH - Jun 5, 2010)
(OSNW3 Weather Brief)
(OSNW3 June Observations)
(OSNW3 June 2010 Summary)
(click on graph for the month summary data - it will open a new tab/window)
----
Spring 2010 One of the Warmest Ever
The NWS Green Bay put out a news article mentioning that a few local cities had one of their warmest meteorological Springs ever. Oshkosh is no exception. Similar to Green Bay, Oshkosh experienced it's second warmest Spring of all-time. Records date back to 1893. The average temperature for the months of Mar, Apr, and May was 49.9 degrees here at OSNW3. Only the spring of 1977 was warmer with an average temperature of 51.3 degrees observed at the official Oshkosh observation site. For the all-time rankings, click here.
(Top Five - Oshkosh Warmest Meteorological Springs)
2nd Warmest Spring on Record in Wisconsin
----
Rain Barrel
It is certainly not pretty, but the rain barrel is in. The barrel is being fed from the roof on the east side of the garage. On Jun 2, 0.18" of rain fell and to my surprise that exact amount of rain filled up the barrel. After a couple of clicks on the calculator, it makes perfect sense, my barrel is indeed 30 gallons. Below are the calculations.
1. Surface area = length * width
East side of my garage roof:
288 sq. feet = 24 feet x 12 feet
2. Raincatch potential per inch of rain = 0.6 gallons * 288 sq. feet
East side of my garage roof:
172.8 gallons per inch of rain = 0.6 gallons * 288 sq. feet
3. Annual raincatch potential = raincatch potential per inch of rain * annual rainfall
East side of my garage roof:
5443.2 gallons = 172.8 gallons per inch of rainfall * 31.57
The first rainfall for the barrel to catch was a perfect one as it proved the volume of the barrel. 0.18" of rainfall, equaling a 30 gallon raincatch, fills up the barrel nicely with good head pressure standing about 2 feet above the ground. We will not be attaching an irrigation system as using buckets is very simple and works just fine for the time being. As for overfilling of the barrel, it currently just spills out the top. The system will evolve in time.
(OSNW3 Rain Barrel)
----
Front Of House
Still on cut number 4. That will change later this week, no doubt. The hanging flower pots are up and the sides of the house have been trimmed. Summer is here.
On a side note... When the rain gauge for OSNW3 was installed back in Oct of 2006 we decided to attach four wooden stakes to the main poll and drive it into the ground instead of digging a hole. After four Winter seasons the stakes finally gave out and it all came tumbling down. Watch the falling and second coming of OSNW3 here.
In the spirit of side notes, see the links below.
1. Memorial Day parade Pelican fly-over video.
2. Funky clouds downtown Jun 5, 2010.
3. Cabela's Masters Walleye Circuit on Lake Winnebago June 5, 2010.
(FOH - Jun 5, 2010)
Love the rain barrel :) Things sure have changed up here in Duluth as of late, it's been a very cool start to June, shouldn't come as too much of a surprise though considering we had our warmest Spring on record! I just hope this isn't going to be a sign of what the entire Summer will be like (cooler than normal)
ReplyDeleteNice use of math to prove how much water can be captured from a roof.
ReplyDeleteRain barrels are nice. They come in handy in periods of little rain.
During our drought in 07 I used one of mine to capture washing machine water to water my fruit trees.
What variety of tomatoes do you have? There is a tomatoe seed company out of FL that has a variety that does well in a cooler climate. They did well here.
Tim, I hope the rain barrel isn't a breeding ground for the mosquito. I've been keeping tabs on your updates and noticed it's been warm up your way as well. At least until now. ¡La Nina!
ReplyDeleteSuzieE, thanks. I like math. I see the usefulness of a rain barrel. What a grand idea to use the washing machine waste water, and probably not to difficult to install if your washing machine waste water is fed directly outdoors. Mine isn't unfortunately. I will get back to you on the tomatoes as I can't remember right now...
LOL good point about the mosquito, you'll have ones that look like birds!
ReplyDeleteTim, I hope not. That thought sends shivers up my spine. AH. If you want a LOL, check out the vid of my rain gauge falling over...
ReplyDeleteOSNW3,
ReplyDeleteFor the mosquitoes, secure a section of window screen over the top of the barrel or once in a while put a couple of TBSP of bably shampoo in the barrel to prevent egg development (or hire a few toads/gold fish)
The washing machine waste water diversion was a temporary redneck engineering design. :)
SuzieE, thanks for the suggestions. I appreciate it. The barrel has a screened top, but it is not seal tight, it's a round piece of plywood with a screened hole that sits on top of where the barrels lid would fit. I will use the drops of baby shampoo too, just in case!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun post, OSNW3! The rain barrel may not happen for me for a couple of years, but you've given me some ideas.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the garden this year. Looks great!
WxWatcher, thanks!
ReplyDelete