| June 1, 2010 | No. 30 |
I posted the May 2010 weather data for the Palmira Weather Station. We recorded 20.87 inches of rain for the month and a total of 46.89 inches so far this year. Compared with the previous years for this station we had a fairly routine month of May. May rain quantity varies from year to year, but it can be a very rainy month. Since I put the station up in 2007, we have had 11.65, 40.94, 14.85, 20.87 inches of rain in May 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 respectively. You can see from these numbers that the years vary and we are not having particularly excessive rain this year.
The average Humidity was 69.1 percent. Someone asked me if I thought this year was more humid than the previous years? I didn't know the answer until I looked at the data (We humans are not very accurate data sensors and comparison makers without methodical methods!). The data reveals, we had 91.46, 79.95, 63.1 percent relative humidity in May 2007, 2008, 2009 respectively. The data says that our 69.1 percent average humidity is not particularly high although it is of course an increase since the dry season months of January, February, March and April of 2010. There will be variations of the humidity depending upon where you live in the District, but I don't have any reliable data to make comparisons other than the Palmira Station.
I want to share something important to know:
Question: At what percent of relative humidity does mildew grow?
Answer: 70 percent and up. It also does best with temperatures 65 degrees F and up. Therefore, if you set your dehumidifiers at 65% you will keep the mildew away in that area and use the minimum about of energy necessary. You don't have to set the dehumidifier lower than this. If you do, you will burn up a lot of electricity unnecessarily. We have 2 dehumidifiers in our home. One is in our closet (belt protection) and the other in our library (book protection - a good reason to have a Kindle). They are set at 65% and cycle on and off every 2 hours. We don't have a problem with mildew in these ares. In other parts of the house we have floor fans running to move the air (particularly in the botton floor of our 3 story house) and this helps.
Last night at 10:28pm we felt a mild earthquake. I reported it this morning. Last month, I posted some thoughts on Monitoring and Reporting Earthquakes and an Earthquake Report Form at the web site. If you haven't read these thoughts, please read them and seriously consider reporting your earthquake experiences. It is valueable information to those researching quakes in our area. Make sure when you report the quake that you fill-in all the information. It is very important that you report your location using coordinates.
June is upon us. Often, June delivers less rain and more sunshine than May. But as you know nothing in certain in life. Just north of us the hurricane season begins. You can follow the details of the hurricanes at Weather Underground Tropical section and Dr. Jeff Master's Blog. Also, don't become complacent about the rain in June. We are plunging into the rainy season and you will need those umbrellas even if there isn't a lot mildew on them!
Lloyd Cripe