Friday 28 May 2010 9am

Low cloud lifting - can't see the top of Pukekaroro at this moment, but at least I can see the lower part of it which was obscured earlier this morning. Some sunshine breaking through. Forecast is for "rain easing to showers".

ORG - 35mm / 219mm month-to-date
ERG - 299.2mm = 39.1mm / 249.3mm month-to-date

Tuesday 25 May 2010 10:30am

Sunny with a lot of fast-moving cloud this morning. A good breeze blowing from the north. 17ºC outside at the moment. Forecast is for "showers, some heavy; strong or gale northwesterlies".

ORG - 26.5mm at 8:45am yesterday, 5mm at 5:30pm yesterday, a trace just now = 31.5mm / 184mm month-to-date
ERG - 260.1mm = 34.7mm / 210.2mm month-to-date

Sunday 23 May 2010 4:00pm

Yesterday was a lovely sunny day, but today is overcast and showers are imminent.

ORG - 17mm at 2pm Friday, nothing since / 152.5mm month-to-date
ERG - 225.4mm = 17.5mm / 175.5mm month-to-date

Friday 21 May 2010 8:00am

Skies are heavily overcast and raining steadily. Forecast is for showers today, mainly fine tomorrow.

ORG - 17mm at 9:00 last night, plus a further 60mm since = 77mm / 135.5mm month-to-date
ERG - 207.9mm = 87.8mm since last reading / 158mm month-to-date

Our pond, which has been empty for months, is full and overflowing. I think the tank is full, but I'm not certain.

Tuesday 18 May 2010 9:00am

Another still, sunny morning with a little cloud. It was 6°C outside an hour ago, now 10°C. Forecast is for "Showers, some heavy and thundery. Northwesterlies." (Metservice.co.nz)

ORG - 4mm / 58.5mm month-to-date
ERG - 120.1mm - 4mm since last reading / 70.2mm month-to-date

Rain Update 17 May 2010 8am

Still, sunny morning with a little cloud. 6°C outside.

ORG - 4mm / 54.5mm month-to-date
ERG - 116.1mm = 4.1mm since last reading / 66.2mm month-to-date

Rain Update 16 May 2010 1:30pm

Well, it WAS a nice sunny day this morning, but now clouded over and starting to rain heavily (since taking readings below).

ORG - trace / 50.5mm month-to-date
ERG - 112.0mm = 0.4mm since last reading / 62.1mm month-to-date

Rain Update 15 May 2010 2:00pm

Sunny with a gentle breeze right now, but has been dull and wet earlier.

ORG - 4.5mm / 50.5mm month-to-date
ERG - 111.6mm = 5.9mm since last reading / 61.7mm month-to-date

Plumbing to water tank was repaired yesterday, tank is now 3-rungs full.

Rain Update 13 May 8:00am

A fine, sunny, still morning today, though cloud has started coming over at 8:30am.

ORG - 30mm / 46mm month-to-date
ERG - 105.7mm total = 36mm since reading on 10 May / 55.8mm month-to-date

Rain or showers are forecast right through to next Tuesday.

Rain Update 12 May 2010 12:15pm

Some very light showers yesterday. Squally showers and some heavier rain today. High winds have continued.

ORG - can't see it right now, and it's too wet to go out to it.
ERG - 99.9mm total = 30.2mm since last reading / 26.5mm in the past 24 hours

Rain Update 10 May 2010 7:00pm

OFG - no change
ERG - 69.7mm total - don't know when the extra 0.4mm fell!

No rain today, but very strong winds all day. Rain forecast for tomorrow (again!) - let's hope this lot gets here.

Rain Update 9 May 2010 5:00pm

The rain has stopped for now. More is forecast the entire coming week.

Gauges read:

OFG - 10mm / 16mm month-to-date
ERG - 69.3mm total / 11.7mm today / 19.4mm month-to-date

The tank is pretty much at the same level as this morning.

Interesting that the ERG is reading higher than the ORG. I started the dual readings 'cos I thought it was missing rain.

Rain Update 9 May 2010 10:40am

It's raining, it's pouring, and the old man was snoring earlier, but we won't go there. ;-)

The forecast rain has arrived. I heard water trickling through the guttering during the night, but the rain was too light to hear at that stage.

At the moment, the gauges read...

ORG - a bit above 9mm
ERG - 68.8mm = 11.2mm since the last report

Since it's still raining, I won't bother with totals for the month at this stage.

The bad news is that most of the rain hitting our roofs isn't making it to the tank. We can hear it trickling in the downpipes on the house, but it isn't coming out the other end. We suspect a break in the pipes, rather than a blockage. This means that we're only gathering rain from half of the sleepout roof and one side of the garage (which reach the tank through separate feeds), and missing out on the other half of the sleepout and the house entirely. Will have to call in a plumber to investigate.

The level in the tank, when I checked it about an hour ago, was the same as when I checked it on Friday, about two and a half rungs up the side of the tank. Highly scientific measuring! I don't know the tank's capacity, but there are 12 "rungs" in the tank and it bulges a bit in the middle (so the middle rungs contain more than the upper and lower ones).

Rain Update

Friday 7 May 2010 5:30pm

ORG - nothing since last report / month-to-date = 6mm
ERG - 57.6mm total / month-to-date = 7.7mm

I guess the ERG measures tiny amounts that the ORG can't. Don't know when this 0.5mm has fallen, I haven't been checking it 'cos there hasn't been any rain!

There is rain forecast for the weekend, and it can't come soon enough. Our water tank is down to about a foot of water in it, and that's not going to last long. If we don't get the rain, we'll have to buy some water in on Monday. Hate to think what it will cost, but I know people who have had to buy water four times during this drought so I can't complain too loudly.

Kaipara District Council lifted its rain ban on 30 April. Rodney District still has one, I understand.

Rain Update

Sunday 2 May 2010 9am

ORG - trace / month-to-date = 6mm
ERG - 57.1mm total / month-to-date = 7.2mm

After yesterday's rain, this morning is full of sunshine. I can't see any clouds in the sky from where I'm sitting, with views to the north and east. A gentle breeze blowing.

We're still in drought, officially, and still have a fire ban. But now that the days are cooling the moisture is lingering longer, and it isn't drying out so quickly after a bit of rain.

Rain Update

Saturday 1 May 2010 2:30pm

(no rain since last blog until today)

ORG - 6mm
ERG - 56.7mm total - less 49.9mm previously = 6.8mm