Campbell Scientific Hydro-Wiper-C User Manual

Hydro-Wiper

Operation Manual

Hydro-Wiper operation manual

Overview

The Hydro-Wiper is a mechanical wiper system designed to be easily
fitted to optical turbidity sensors. By wiping at regular intervals, the
Hydro-Wiper keeps the optical window of the turbidity sensor clear of
biofouling and deposits such as mud and algae. This reduces the
necessity for costly site visits to manually clean the turbidity sensor,
and prevents on-going data loss due to fouling.

There are 3 models of Hydro-Wiper, for 3 specific turbidity sensors;

Hydro-Wiper model Turbidity sensor

Hydro-Wiper A Seapoint turbidity sensor
Hydro-Wiper B D&A OBS 3
Hydro-Wiper C D&A OBS 3 +
Hydro-Wiper D Aqualogger 200
Hydro-Wiper E Aqualogger 210

The Hydro-Wiper consists of a wiper body that the turbidity sensor is
attached to. The wiper body is connected to a wiper control housing
by a cable. In addition to the batteries, the wiper control housing
contains the control electronics, power switch, wipe interval select
switch, and diagnostic LED.

As the Hydro-Wiper is fully self contained, incorporation into existing
instrument installations is simple. The low power control electronics
enable long deployments to be made, whilst the high precision wipe
interval timer on-board the Hydro-Wipe insures minimal clock drift
during long deployments.

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Hydro-Wiper operation manual

Installation

The turbidity sensor is mounted in the clamp at the front of the wiper.
Ensure that the turbidity sensor is positioned so that the flat face of
the optical window is looking directly away from the wiper, and that
the brush covers the whole face when it sweeps passed.

The brush should lightly sweep across the whole surface of the
optical window. If there is excessive brush pressure, battery life of
the Hydro-Wiper will be reduced and damage to the optical surface
of the turbidity sensor may occur.

If the brush pressure is insufficient, then contact between the brush
and optical window will be lost in the centre of the window.

Brush pressure can be adjusted by loosening the nut at the end of
the wiper arm, and rotating the wiper arm in the desired direction.
The lock nut should be tightened after adjustment.

The wiper control housing should be mounted using the marine
grade (A4,316) stainless steel bracket that is attached to the
housing. Avoid attaching the bracket directly to a metal structure that
is not marine grade stainless steel, as this can cause electrolysis and
deterioration of the metal. Marine grade stainless steel bolts should
be used for fixing.

Once the wiper control housing and wiper housing are mounted,
secure the cable using cable ties to avoid possible snags and fouling
with debris. The cable should not be free to constantly move with the
water currents, as fatigue and eventual failure may result.

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