How to Make a Weather Vane
A weather vane, also known as a wind vane, is one of the first and the simplest tools first used to monitor the weather. It picks up the direction where the wind is coming from and going to, which in turn affects the weather and the temperature of your area. Making a weather vane also makes for a great educational activity for kids. Here’s how.
Tools
Wood dowel the size of a broomstick
Aluminum pie plate
Nails
12-inch long piece of wood, no more than two inches across
Metal washer
Wood glue
Hammer
Small saw or serrated knife
Wire, for mounting
Scissors to cut through aluminum
Marker (optional)
Procedure
Take the 12-inch long wood and use the small saw to cut a half-inch deep vertical slit at each tip of the wood.
Find the midpoint of the 12-inch long wood. Position the wood so that the slits are vertical to the ground. Hammer the nail until it reaches the half of the nail. Turn the wood around the nail until the wood can swivel easily.
Take the aluminum pie plate and cut out a 3×5 inch rectangle. Cut out a triangle shape that will form the arrowhead of your weather vane. Cut a 3×3 inch square with the rest of the aluminum plate.
Use wood glue at the middle part of the base of the triangle. Insert the triangle in one slot of the wood, Do the same to the square aluminum by putting glue on the middle section of one side of the square and inserting it in the other slot. Leave overnight to dry completely.
Place the metal washer on the end of the dowel. Place the wooden stick horizontally across the tip of the dower so that nail and washer meet.
Hammer the nail through the stick and into the dowel. You can do this in degrees to make sure that the stick still moves easily around the nail.
Your weather vane is ready. Secure your weather vane in a sturdy base, such as a fence or even your mailbox. Secure with a stout piece of wire. Take note of how your wind vane is situated to the different directions. You can mark the directions on the base of the wood dowel using a permanent marker.
When reading the weather vane, keep in mind that you are looking where the wind is coming from, as indicated by the arrowhead. If the arrowhead points West, the wind is coming from the West.