Fred Henchell
Since 2008, I have maintained a “manual gauge” that meets weather bureau standards. (Prior to that I used an electronic gauge that seemed to always fail part way through the year.) I also use a big pot to collect and melt snow.
Some qualifications:
- High winds make measurement difficult. Rain and snow often come sideways.
- There is a lot of variability across our area. Squalls and storm cells can be very localized.
- The annual pattern is variable: wet vs. dry, warm vs. cold. When precipitation arrives—fall, winter, spring and summer.
All this makes our weather interesting and unpredictable.

