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Post by Dragon Man on Jun 30, 2014 7:19:20 GMT
Last night I burnt out two power supplies attempting to broadcast. I keep my EQ6 mount permanently outside. I have done for years. It is always covered in plastic, then a towel, then a large sheet of thick plastic. It has always kept it safe and dry. But we have just been through some of the strongest winds in the history of our district and it had torn the covers to shreds allowing the torrential rain in. What I forgot was that I had the power supplies for the Mount and the Telescope Heaters also under the covers (I always leave everything plugged in and ready to go). Well, the rain had gotten inside the power supplies, so that when I plugged into the Mains power one of them fizzled and the other gave off two loud bangs then caught on fire!!! So I could continue with last nights broadcast test I quickly grabbed any 12v power supplies I could find in the house but unfortunately neither of them had the Amps to drive the mount so it played up. They were both below 1 amp each. These are the power supplies that I burnt out last night: The one that Fizzled (Powers the Mount): www.ebay.com.au/itm/3-13-8-Volt-2-5-Amp-Switchmode-AC-DC-Adaptor-MP3036-/140059722527and the one that caught on fire (Powers the scope Heaters): www.globebatteries.com.au/battery/product.php?productid=36134Looks like I'm off to the Electronics store again
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Post by davy on Jun 30, 2014 7:23:26 GMT
Lucky it was just the power supplies
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Post by Dragon Man on Jun 30, 2014 7:37:23 GMT
Lucky it was just the power supplies My thoughts too Davy. The mount won't work properly now, but that is because the power supply I ended up using is a small one that is less than one amp. The Mount needs more than 1.5 amps to run well. I like running it on 2.5 amps to be sure. An EQ6 pulls 2 amps when slewing at high speed.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2014 8:16:28 GMT
Last night I burnt out two power supplies attempting to broadcast. I keep my EQ6 mount permanently outside. I have done for years. It is always covered in plastic, then a towel, then a large sheet of thick plastic. It has always kept it safe and dry. But we have just been through some of the strongest winds in the history of our district and it had torn the covers to shreds allowing the torrential rain in. What I forgot was that I had the power supplies for the Mount and the Telescope Heaters also under the covers (I always leave everything plugged in and ready to go). Well, the rain had gotten inside the power supplies, so that when I plugged into the Mains power one of them fizzled and the other gave off two loud bangs then caught on fire!!! So I could continue with last nights broadcast test I quickly grabbed any 12v power supplies I could find in the house but unfortunately neither of them had the Amps to drive the mount so it played up. They were both below 1 amp each. These are the power supplies that I burnt out last night: The one that Fizzled (Powers the Mount): www.ebay.com.au/itm/3-13-8-Volt-2-5-Amp-Switchmode-AC-DC-Adaptor-MP3036-/140059722527and the one that caught on fire (Powers the scope Heaters): www.globebatteries.com.au/battery/product.php?productid=36134Looks like I'm off to the Electronics store again This is the problem with no observatory! I am trying to convince the boss that our garden is plenty big enough to build one but no chance! I use a fairly good cover for mine but it's not ideal and I still have to part dismantle to get it on. The problem with our setups is they take too bloody long to setup and just when your finished the clouds roll in!!!!!! I've had a few mishaps with rain or heavy dew but generally find a good couple of days in the heat of the house does wonders!
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Post by davy on Jun 30, 2014 16:45:03 GMT
good luck karl I had a shed,,now she has an aviary...didn't know she done magic tricks..maybe one day a nice obs
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2014 16:59:23 GMT
I would never think to leave my setup outside. The thieves would walk off with it after 5 hours. That and the high heat/cold/humidity would take its toll on the electronics over time. Thats why my setup is on wheels. Everything rolls out in 2 pieces the scope is one piece, and a rolling computer desk is the other. Takes me about 5 min total to setup.
One day I will do a full observatory, if I move to a better location. No buildings allowed in my yard, stupid HOA rules.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2014 18:33:28 GMT
I would never think to leave my setup outside. The thieves would walk off with it after 5 hours. That and the high heat/cold/humidity would take its toll on the electronics over time. Thats why my setup is on wheels. Everything rolls out in 2 pieces the scope is one piece, and a rolling computer desk is the other. Takes me about 5 min total to setup. One day I will do a full observatory, if I move to a better location. No buildings allowed in my yard, stupid HOA rules. Yes that was a nice trolley you build Hemmi and I'd love a 5 minute setup! Problem is my garage is opposite my house at the fron and I need to set up at the back so it would not work for me. I need to work on my pitch to the boss as an observatory would be perfect!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2014 18:34:16 GMT
good luck karl I had a shed,,now she has an aviary...didn't know she done magic tricks..maybe one day a nice obs Yeah one day Davy we can but dream
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2014 19:27:26 GMT
Karl, Perhaps you need a botched theft attempt to highlight the obvious advantages of a locked up secure obs.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 30, 2014 19:42:40 GMT
Karl, Perhaps you need a botched theft attempt to highlight the obvious advantages of a locked up secure obs. Allan you are a genius! I'm now hatching a plan. That said I think she'd pay the thief
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Post by Dragon Man on Jul 1, 2014 6:31:51 GMT
I would never think to leave my setup outside. The thieves would walk off with it after 5 hours. That and the high heat/cold/humidity would take its toll on the electronics over time. Thats why my setup is on wheels. Everything rolls out in 2 pieces the scope is one piece, and a rolling computer desk is the other. Takes me about 5 min total to setup. One day I will do a full observatory, if I move to a better location. No buildings allowed in my yard, stupid HOA rules. Yeah, I can understand the Thief bit Lee, but as far as weather goes, my mount has been outside for 5+ years now without a hiccup, until this storm last week tore the plastic cover allowing water into the power supplies It has run faultless in that whole time. I also spray it with Surface Spray about once every 3 months to keep the bugs out of it. We have temps as high as 42c regularly in Summer for days on end (last summer we had 42+ for weeks) and get down around -6c in winter. And all I cover it with is a small plastic bag (to keep water of the head of the mount), then a towel, then a large sheet of plastic. The Towel is to pad the outer plastic so it doesn't tear on any sharp corners. Then I tie a piece of thin rope around it to hold the plastic on. Yeah, it doesn't suit everybody because of their location and burglars. But out here in the country it is fine.
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