2023 Rain Thread

[YGIFS 19450]

Hate---Glad to hear you've been medically cleared to get back on the bourbon train.

We had an eerily porland-esque consistent light rain from about 12-6pm today.  Added up to just under an inch, but was evenly spread.  Lawn's making a decent comebac, but there's some shit patches still.  I imagine dormancy is one or two more cold fronts away so every little bit is borderline critical at this point.  

Edited November 10, 2023 by YGIFS

[Storm the Field 5294]

Started raining around 2:00 in Houston today, and current forecast indicates that, apart from some brief pauses, it won't really stop until Tuesday afternoon. ~100 hours of anywhere from "light drizzle" to "showers."

[troph 24805]

.7 inches over 12 hours still raining. Amazing. 

[troph 24805]

ATX proper may up next …

[royiv 9319]

3 minutes ago, troph said:

.7 inches over 12 hours still raining. Amazing. 

What does that translate into for your rainwater collection system? How did it fare through the summer drought?

[YGIFS 19450]

Rain started in earnest again here in near-south Austin.  Supposed to go until about 3am.  Between the midday/afternoon light rain and this heavier pour, we should easily clear one inch before sunrise, likely more.  Selfishly, would like a no-rain Saturday between Veteran's Day parade and Texas Book Festival but you just look over there at TCU and wonder how you can throw the ball in the Fort Worth Monsoon?

[troph 24805]

15 minutes ago, royiv said:

What does that translate into for your rainwater collection system? How did it fare through the summer drought?

Added over 2000 gallons today so far.

We had to add water this summer. About $1800 worth that suuucked. That’s probably still less than a water bill for our water company for the year. We had to add it because we started way too low. January when we moved in, we had maybe 2000 gallons and the spring rains really missed us. A few close calls for 4+ inch events instead close to nothing. We ended up about 9000-10000 gallons going into the summer. Just not enough. But we’ve bounced back. We scraped back down in September to less than 2000 and now it’s pushing 10,000 tonight. Excluding irrigation and pool evaporation we use 3000-3500 per month. So we’ve added probably 15,000+ since the beginning of September.  If we can have some normalcy to the rain we should be able to go into the spring with 20,000+ gallons and then a surge in late April and May could add 10,000-15,000 alone. That would be more than enough to get us through.  Tank holds 55,000-60,000. 

Edited November 10, 2023 by troph

[UT_OB1 2223]

@troph - remind me - do you have uv or something like that for disenfecting it? Also do you pre-heat your hot water with a solar heat exchanger?  That’s so simple I’m tempted to try that, but not sure how the hoa would react

[troph 24805]

3 hours ago, UT_OB1 said:

@troph - remind me - do you have uv or something like that for disenfecting it? Also do you pre-heat your hot water with a solar heat exchanger?  That’s so simple I’m tempted to try that, but not sure how the hoa would react

Pretty basic solid filter (not really needed as you’d maybe think just for silt mostly), then carbon filter, then UV. That’s the standard. It’s really simple.

here’s the set up:

 

 

top left is one of 3 rainwater first line filters for leaves and sticks. Clean out once a year. 
 

bottom left is our pressure tank and pump. 
 

middle canisters are from left to right two carbon filters the second one more fine and the right metal one is the UV filter. 
 

Tankless hot water top right with a circulator pump below that that is connected to our smart home system so when we want to use hot water we can turn it on. So it doesn’t run 24/7 wasting propane. 
 

far right pipe down comes back on the bottom of the pic to drop condensation from the heater back into the cistern. We have AC condensation lines back into it too.
 

excuse the wires and disorganization. Wife isn’t much on mechanical systems looking OCD pretty. 
 

the information screen is simple (home assistant) 

 

Edited November 10, 2023 by troph

[jimmyjazz 45957]

I was watching the neighborhood LCRA Hydromet station like a hawk . . .we got to 0.99 inches in one day.  Really, God?  Not another 0.01 inch in there somewhere?  (That's what she said.)

[Hate 20108]

There could be some severe weather Thursday for SE Texas.  It's something to keep n eye on as I'm hearing there may need to be an upgrade the "moderate" potential.

 

[Biff Tannen 45688]

Isn't El Nino supposed to make it a wetter winter?  Dry as fuck out there.

[Hate 20108]

Things appear to be escalating.

[utee94 15823]

It's never going to rain again

[YGIFS 19450]

Da fuh?  We went from 60% chance of moderate rain on Thursday to now Thunderstorm Warnings and a Tornado Watch?  Into December 1st?  What the fuck?  

I spread corn gluten meal to help with the weeds and dead spots from the draught.  Was gonna lightly mow and handpull weeds before seasonal dormancy between tomorrow and Sunday.  But apparently I'll be swept up in a fucking tornado instead.  This year has been an absolute hoot.

But yes, we could use some precip.  Was at my SiL's place right on the Trinity in Fort Worth for Thanksgiving.  Most miserable I've ever seen that River.  I let my oldest walk across it (albeit on medium-sized rocks) multiple times because even if she fell in, she'd be cold as hell for an hour, but no chance of getting swept away as it was basically stillwater and maybe 2' deep in some spots.  Depressing.  

[utee94 15823]

I've got 3 pallets of shingles and other roofing supplies in my driveway right now, with install scheduled for tomorrow, so of course that's when it will rain.

You are all welcome.

[zman13 180]

[Paper_jam 831]

4 hours ago, YGIFS said:

 

It can happen. I remember flying out of ABIA early one morning just before Christmas (about 20 years ago) and there were tornado warnings and torrential rain. We went into the bathrooms to get away from the terminal windows.

 

[YGIFS 19450]

I know it can happen, it's just fucked up to think about.  I swear we're gonna go from another prolonged draught to  David Yeomans popping up on TV saying, "Welp, for the first time in 3 months...it's raining and Mount Bonnell has experienced a mudslide and fallen into Lake Austin.  Here's what that means for you tsunami victims at Hornsby's Bend.  Ice storm dissidents in Marble Falls can expect electricity to flow again next month.  Be sure to check for lower water crossings at the new 183/Mopac flyover.  A Mule Deer Tauntaun is your best sleeping option at the homeless encampments for those on St. Ed's hilltop dryland enclave.  120 degrees for a high tomorrow so watch out for brushfires in the deep end of Barton Springs.  Though those in the eastside lowlands are asked not to burn mesquite or oak for warmth as it only angers the typhoon gods.  Back to Mark with UT Sports..."  

Edited November 29, 2023 by YGIFS

[Hate 20108]

For SE Texas today:

Further south from the middle Texas Coast into Southeast Texas, the
environment will become favorable for supercells by around midday.
As surface dewpoints and low-level shear increase, Significant
Tornado Parameter is forecast to peak in the 4 to 5 range by early
to mid afternoon. RAP forecast soundings just west of Houston at 21Z
have 0-3 km storm-relative helicity reaching about 325 m2/s2. This
will likely support a tornado threat associated with supercells that
form and move into the Houston area this afternoon. A small cluster
of tornadoes is expected across southeast Texas. Although damaging
wind gusts will also be possible, this threat will be associated
with supercell downdrafts and should remain isolated. There could
also be a localized large hail threat with supercells. The potential
for severe storms could continue into the evening as a convective
cluster moves from southeast Texas into southwest Louisiana.

[jimmyjazz 45957]

0.1 inches since midnight here in the neighborhood.  Woo!  The drought is over!

[gsoda3 3262]

17 hours ago, YGIFS said:

I know it can happen, it's just fucked up to think about.  I swear we're gonna go from another prolonged draught to  David Yeomans popping up on TV saying, "Welp, for the first time in 3 months...it's raining and Mount Bonnell has experienced a mudslide and fallen into Lake Austin.  Here's what that means for you tsunami victims at Hornsby's Bend.  Ice storm dissidents in Marble Falls can expect electricity to flow again next month.  Be sure to check for lower water crossings at the new 183/Mopac flyover.  A Mule Deer Tauntaun is your best sleeping option at the homeless encampments for those on St. Ed's hilltop dryland enclave.  120 degrees for a high tomorrow so watch out for brushfires in the deep end of Barton Springs.  Though those in the eastside lowlands are asked not to burn mesquite or oak for warmth as it only angers the typhoon gods.  Back to Mark with UT Sports..."  

the cherry on top -  it will be sean kelly.

[UT_OB1 2223]

Almost to 3” here. It’s never going to be sunny again. 

[Biff Tannen 45688]

4 hours ago, UT_OB1 said:

Almost to 3” here. It’s never going to be sunny again. 

Where?

[UT_OB1 2223]

9 minutes ago, Biff Tannen said:

Where?

Seabrook area

[Biff Tannen 45688]

So we went from 90% rain all morning to fuck all in a matter of hours

[texasdago 7573]

40 minutes ago, Biff Tannen said:

So we went from 90% rain all morning to fuck all in a matter of hours

Apparently what is screwing up is what caused it to dump snow in Taos.  

[BehoId, The Underminer! 11669]

20 minutes ago, texasdago said:

Apparently what is screwing up is what caused it to dump snow in Taos.  

[texasdago 7573]

2 minutes ago, BehoId, The Underminer! said:

Its like... yeah, I want rain buuuutttt....

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Biff Tannen said:

So we went from 90% rain all morning to fuck all in a matter of hours

I think it will still rain, but way less than what was predicted. 

Wunderground shows several days coming up:

 

El Nino has been a dud.

Edited December 15, 2023 by FirstTimeCaller

[texasdago 7573]

I thought I read that it was suddenly collapsing or something or other because the climate is all F'ed up

[Biff Tannen 45688]

Finally showed up

[Wilcox Cummingtonite 2948]

Spent 2 hours washing my car yesterday.

[Biff Tannen 45688]

Nice December weather out there today and the next few days apparently.  Not a ton, but we gotta take anything we can get.

[cmontexas 3271]

Been raining like fuck in LA

[Guest]

On 12/15/2023 at 2:18 PM, texasdago said:

I thought I read that it was suddenly collapsing or something or other because the climate is all F'ed up

I read it was being predicted to be historically strong.

I used the trademarked phrase "Austin rain" for stuff like today.

It's raining, but it's such a fine light rain that it goes for 8 hours and we get 0.12"

[Biff Tannen 45688]

52 minutes ago, FirstTimeCaller said:

I used the trademarked phrase "Austin rain" for stuff like today.

It's raining, but it's such a fine light rain that it goes for 8 hours and we get 0.12"

AKA Seattle rain

[Guest]

Looks like we'll end the year around 10 inches of rain below average, or about 70-75% of normal rainfall. That stretch in the summer with no rain was ridiculous, but the stretch for the past month has been brutal as well. 

[Left Coast 863]

19 hours ago, cmontexas said:

Been raining like fuck in LA

 

14 hours ago, FirstTimeCaller said:

Looks like we'll end the year around 10 inches of rain below average, or about 70-75% of normal rainfall. That stretch in the summer with no rain was ridiculous, but the stretch for the past month has been brutal as well. 

As of today downtown LA has had more rain (28.13 inches) than Austin this year and will likely finish the year with a higher total. You really can’t say that very often.

[Trey3216 15346]

5 hours ago, Left Coast said:

 

As of today downtown LA has had more rain (28.13 inches) than Austin this year and will likely finish the year with a higher total. You really can’t say that very often.

[InkaUtexas 25946]

Maybe more Californians will now stay there.

[boknowstecmo 216]

10 hours ago, Left Coast said:

 

As of today downtown LA has had more rain (28.13 inches) than Austin this year and will likely finish the year with a higher total. You really can’t say that very often.

How often can you say that?

[Guest]

26 minutes ago, boknowstecmo said:

How often can you say that?

Average rainfall is about 15 inches.

Damn, I knew it was desert near there but didn't realize how dry it was usually. In my mind, it's dry but kinda lush (palm trees, etc.) That's millions of people living in a desert next to the ocean.

[Biff Tannen 45688]

2 minutes ago, FirstTimeCaller said:

Average rainfall is about 15 inches.

Damn, I knew it was desert near there but didn't realize how dry it was usually. In my mind, it's dry but kinda lush (palm trees, etc.) That's millions of people living in a desert next to the ocean.

There’s a huge pipeline that comes down from the Sierra that feeds LA their water. 

[YGIFS 19450]

But if you can't bring the water to L.A., Mr. Geddes.  You bring L.A. to the water.  You see?  

 

the water tables of New York City and Los Angeles are really incredible feats of geography, topography, freshwater supplies, engineering, and just plain good luck.  I kinda got hooked on the topic while living in Spain and listened to some lecture on the roman aqueducts in Segovia and other nearby cities.  Some class in geography I took in undergrad talked about the upstate water table in New York where it all starts and how it keeps the tri-state area down south flush with water.  And then this little, humble Lake Itasca---not even the size of one of our Highland Lakes on a good day---begins the Mississippi River down to the Delta all the way from upstate Minnesota.  Southern California has a similar story.  

Obviously human civilization tended to migrate and gather where there was viable freshwater.  But even in those areas, the substantial growth could never have been foreseen but for those other elements of engineering and good fortune.  The bad news for Central Texas is we don't have much else going for us.  The topography and undulation, the more frequent draughts, and the orientation of the aquifers.  We can engineer ourselves into a lot of amazing shit, but you can't engineer freshwater, especially when it's not falling out of the sky like it used to.  And other than every single political or real estate conference having a panel on "The Future of Water", nobody seems to have any idea how we're gonna pull this off.  

But hey, at least the Colorado River and Rio Grande are almost all dried up.  

[Brisketexan 105143]

But if you can't bring the water to L.A., Mr. Geddes.  You bring L.A. to the water.  You see?  
 
the water tables of New York City and Los Angeles are really incredible feats of geography, topography, freshwater supplies, engineering, and just plain good luck.  I kinda got hooked on the topic while living in Spain and listened to some lecture on the roman aqueducts in Segovia and other nearby cities.  Some class in geography I took in undergrad talked about the upstate water table in New York where it all starts and how it keeps the tri-state area down south flush with water.  And then this little, humble Lake Itasca---not even the size of one of our Highland Lakes on a good day---begins the Mississippi River down to the Delta all the way from upstate Minnesota.  Southern California has a similar story.  
Obviously human civilization tended to migrate and gather where there was viable freshwater.  But even in those areas, the substantial growth could never have been foreseen but for those other elements of engineering and good fortune.  The bad news for Central Texas is we don't have much else going for us.  The topography and undulation, the more frequent draughts, and the orientation of the aquifers.  We can engineer ourselves into a lot of amazing shit, but you can't engineer freshwater, especially when it's not falling out of the sky like it used to.  And other than every single political or real estate conference having a panel on "The Future of Water", nobody seems to have any idea how we're gonna pull this off.  
But hey, at least the Colorado River and Rio Grande are almost all dried up.  

The story on the water systems in Spain is amazing, and ancient.
The oldest continuously operating court in the world? The Tribunal de les Aigües de València - the Water Tribunal of the plain of Valencia. It has convened weekly for the past 1,100 years, and adjudicates disputes about rights to the water distributed in local canals. Pretty cool.

[YGIFS 19450]

11 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

The story on the water systems in Spain is amazing, and ancient.
The oldest continuously operating court in the world? The Tribunal de les Aigües de València - the Water Tribunal of the plain of Valencia. It has convened weekly for the past 1,100 years, and adjudicates disputes about rights to the water distributed in local canals. Pretty cool.

You probably know the water expert/author/frequent court witness in Texas, (PhD, Charles P.).  Goes to my wife's Catholic Church.  He was telling me about Valencia and how it still informs our water laws and development and all this other cool shit.  Fascinating guy.  The King of Spain on some visit to San Antonio years ago called him out to discuss his work, great stories.  Anyway, a lot of again is based on we flocked and settled where the water was.  But then we grew in massive size as a species and how we figured it out was nothing short of a miracle of engineering, law, conservation, and cooperation.  Bad news about that miracle though, its time may be running to an end.  We've been saying that for a hundred years, but this shit 'bout to get fucked.  

[Biff Tannen 45688]

5 hours ago, YGIFS said:

We can engineer ourselves into a lot of amazing shit, but you can't engineer freshwater, especially when it's not falling out of the sky like it used to.  And other than every single political or real estate conference having a panel on "The Future of Water", nobody seems to have any idea how we're gonna pull this off.  

But hey, at least the Colorado River and Rio Grande are almost all dried up.  

Drive out 620 today and the lake looks fucking awful. 

[Zepol87 9186]

On 12/21/2023 at 7:30 AM, cmontexas said:

Been raining like fuck in LA

I heard thunder for the first time here since March, it was weird 

[Larry T. Spider 1746]

5 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

The story on the water systems in Spain is amazing, and ancient.
The oldest continuously operating court in the world? The Tribunal de les Aigües de València - the Water Tribunal of the plain of Valencia. It has convened weekly for the past 1,100 years, and adjudicates disputes about rights to the water distributed in local canals. Pretty cool.

I visited where they meet a couple of months ago but it wasn’t on a Thursday. They usually don’t have any disputes and it’s mostly for tradition. However somebody had an actual issue a year or so ago.