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Flooding damages Afton gauge

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JANESVILLE — The floodwaters aren’t just battering homes and businesses; they’re damaging the equipment used to measure the water level along the Rock River.

Record flooding has forced the United States Geological Survey to raise its gauge in Afton because its electrical components were in danger of being under water, said hydrologist Herb Garn. A temporary gauge has been installed.

“We’ll have to rebuild it when it’s done,” Garn said. “It’s (the gauge) just gone.”

The USGS has gauging stations at thousands of locations along lakes, rivers and streams. From them, they collect data used to make predictions about the water level.

Several are along the Rock River in Jefferson, Fort Atkinson, Newville, Indianford and Afton.

How does the gauge measure the water level?

The water level of the Rock River in Afton is measured with the use of a “bubble system.”

A long, open-ended pipe runs from the gauging station to the river. One end of the pipe is fixed below the surface of the water—as close to the bottom of the river as possible—and pressurized gas is forced through the pipe and out a submerged opening.

The pressure in the pipe is determined by how deep the water is above the pipe, and a change in the water level produces a change in the pressure in the pipe. The pressure change is converted into an electric signal and fed to a data recorder, which records the water level.

Garn said the gauge is accurate to the hundredth of a foot, and it records a new measurement every 15 minutes.