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Methods of Estimating Evaporation

Evaporation occurs when the sun heats up water so much that the water turns into a vapor or steam. This concept can apply to anything from the ocean to a swimming pool to a cup of water. There are different reasons for measuring water evaporation, and therefore there are various measurement methods.
  1. Water in a Pan

    • You can measure evaporation by observing water evaporating from a pan. Put the pan in the sun, where it will begin to heat up and eventually start to evaporate. Measure the original height of the water and then check the height measurement every day. Start the experiment over if it rains. By tracking how much the height goes down every day, you can see how much water is evaporating from the pan.

    Swimming Pool Evaporation

    • To measure the amount of water evaporating from a swimming pool, mark the level of the water on the wall of the pool. Each day, mark the water level again. The difference between the two marks multiplied by the area of the pool is the amount that evaporated. Make sure the pool's auto-filling feature is turned off. For example, if the pool is 10 feet by 20 feet, or 120 inches by 240 inches (28,800 square inches), and the pool lost 1 inch in depth, 28,800 cubic inches of water evaporated (28,000 x 1).

    Evaporation

    • You can also estimate evaporation by rate, or by the amount of time it takes for a certain amount of water to evaporate. This requires timing precision, so measure 1/4 cup of water and pour it in a bowl. Place the bowl in the sun and check to see if water remains every hour. When it is running low, watch to see when it fully disappears. If it took 10 hours, then the evaporation rate is a cup every 40 hours (1/4 (original measurement) x 4 (quarters in a cup) x 10 (hours)).

    Using A Laser Pointer

    • A more complicated but precise way to measure evaporation involves putting a laser pointer on a float in a bucket of water. Mark the level of the laser pointer on the side of the bucket every hour while the bucket is in the sun. You can then calculate evaporation amount and rate based on the changing height of the laser.


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