Homemade Rain Gauge

The rain gauge has been developed across the world in different ways, but its purpose still remains the same, a simple tool that we use to measure the amount of rainfall the area receives in a certain amount of time. Teach your children how to make a rain gauge to measure rainfall in your home first hand. 

What You’ll Need:

  • Empty 2L bottle (washed, dried, with labels removed)

  • Utility Knife

  • Permanent marker

  • Ruler

  • Several small stones for weighting the bottom

To Make:

  1. Using the utility knife, cut the top section off of the bottle just below the top bulge, where the sides start to go straight (at the top of where the label used to be). 

  2. Use a ruler to mark measuring increments starting about 2" from the bottom, where the bulge of the bottle stops.

  3. Place several small rocks in the bottom (for weight), then fill the bottle with water to the 0 mark. This will calibrate your gauge.

  4. Now turn the bottle top that you cut off, upside-down and place it inside the top of the bottle so it acts like a funnel.

  5. Place the gauge on a flat surface outside and wait for the next rain to observe and record rainfall amounts.

Napp Network