Gina's Observatory

[yesyes]

... This is turning into the longest thread on the forum!

And the build hasn't even really started yet ...

[Astrokev]

That was my point!

All interesting and useful chat though.

[yesyes]

Yes, of course. Just goes to show how much planning goes into an obsy build...

[Astrokev]

Absolutely. I'm not really being critical (after all I haven't started my obs yet!), just trying to move things along to the bits we all want to see.

[Gina]

Absolutely. I'm not really being critical (after all I haven't started my obs yet!), just trying to move things along to the bits we all want to see.

Hopefully real building will start soon - I'm awaiting a call from Wickes about the delivery of cement and ballast.

As promised - rough drawings with dimensions.

[Astrokev]

Nice sketches Gina. I presume you have left off the warm room walls to aid clarity?

Have you decided how to seal the join between the obsy & WR roof sections ? If not, is it worth considering lengths of thickish expanded foam ? This should squash fairly easily and give a good seal?

Edit: They may absorb water a bit I guess so maybe not such a great idea.

[FairviewSteve]

Gina, this is a great thread! Hope everything goes well with your build. I'm interested in what you're doing to power your mount and accessories (unless it's all manual). I'm plannign on buying an observatory in the future but want to get as much of the equipment as I go along instead of a bigger bill in the future. I want to use mains for the powersupply so will need to smash this down to 12v, but I'm not keen on the cigar lighters from cars as sockets, are there good alternatives?

Steve

[Astrokev]

Steve - just a thought. With all due respect to Gina, your question may reach a broader audience if this was posted as a new thread with appropriate title. There's loads of folks out there who've added electrics to their observatories, and I'm sure you'd be inundated with replies.

Regards

[Gina]

Nice sketches Gina. I presume you have left off the warm room walls to aid clarity?

Yes precisely.

Have you decided how to seal the join between the obsy & WR roof sections ? If not, is it worth considering lengths of thickish expanded foam ? This should squash fairly easily and give a good seal?

Edit: They may absorb water a bit I guess so maybe not such a great idea.

There will be quite a good overlap but I guess a westerly gale could blow rain up under so I was thinking of using nylon brush type draught excluder. I shall probably use it where the roll off section meets the fixed part down the sides too. Obs roof shown in blue, warm room roof in red and draught excluder in black.

[Gina]

Gina, this is a great thread! Hope everything goes well with your build. I'm interested in what you're doing to power your mount and accessories (unless it's all manual). I'm plannign on buying an observatory in the future but want to get as much of the equipment as I go along instead of a bigger bill in the future. I want to use mains for the powersupply so will need to smash this down to 12v, but I'm not keen on the cigar lighters from cars as sockets, are there good alternatives?

Steve

I shall be running mains armoured cable to the warm room, terminated in a dual consumer unit / RCD like this :- Insulated Consumer Unit - Circuit Protection - Electrical -Tools, Electrical & Plumbing - Wickes

There are a number of regulated power supplies available that give 12v. Just make sure you allow for all the current you want. Also, the SW mounts, though rated at 12v seem to prefer more like 13.5v.

[Gina]

Steve - just a thought. With all due respect to Gina, your question may reach a broader audience if this was posted as a new thread with appropriate title. There's loads of folks out there who've added electrics to their observatories, and I'm sure you'd be inundated with replies.

Regards

No problem with me - I agree, this should be in it's own thread.

[Astrokev]

Yes precisely.There will be quite a good overlap but I guess a westerly gale could blow rain up under so I was thinking of using nylon brush type draught excluder. I shall probably use it where the roll off section meets the fixed part down the sides too. Obs roof shown in blue, warm room roof in red and draught excluder in black.

Yes, I'd thought of using brush strip (when I eventually get around to my obsy) to seal the gap between the roll-off section and the base below the rails to stop creepies getting in. I'll be interested to see what you get for this. My limited delvings suggest it's quite pricey for long lengths.

cheers

[Gina]

Yes, I'd thought of using brush strip (when I eventually get around to my obsy) to seal the gap between the roll-off section and the base below the rails to stop creepies getting in. I'll be interested to see what you get for this. My limited delvings suggest it's quite pricey for long lengths.

cheers

I haven't checked prices lately as I already have a couple of long strips of it I got a while back. Mind you, whether I can find it is another matter!

[Bizibilder]

Have you considered car door seals for the sealing of the obsy roof/warm room? These are available in strip form for either door or tailgates on cars. I only mention it as I am mulling over a few ideas for a new obsy design myself and was thinking of sealing the door on mine by putting a car door seal all the way round for the door to close against.

[Gina]

Have you considered car door seals for the sealing of the obsy roof/warm room? These are available in strip form for either door or tailgates on cars. I only mention it as I am mulling over a few ideas for a new obsy design myself and was thinking of sealing the door on mine by putting a car door seal all the way round for the door to close against.

Sounds a good idea No, I hadn't thought of that.

[malc-c]

I shall be running mains armoured cable to the warm room, terminated in a dual consumer unit / RCD like this :- Insulated Consumer Unit - Circuit Protection - Electrical -Tools, Electrical & Plumbing - Wickes

Gina,

Some alternatives

Square D 2-Way RCD Garage Consumer Unit | Screwfix.com - £38

MK Sentry 4-Way RCD Garage Consumer Unit | Screwfix.com - £40

Or better still,

Volex Garage Unit 40A 30mA RCD with MCBs | Screwfix.com - £37

Every little saving helps

[Gina]

This looks like a possibility if your carpentry is of a good standard :- Tesa Draught Excluder D Profile, Brown, 6 m: Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

Seals gap from 3-7mm.

[Digz]

Thats the kind of stuff I was gonna suggest. It will, however, require a tight fitting when the roof is closed so the rubber is slightly compressed and good seal achieved.

[Gina]

Gina,

Some alternatives

Square D 2-Way RCD Garage Consumer Unit | Screwfix.com - £38

MK Sentry 4-Way RCD Garage Consumer Unit | Screwfix.com - £40

Or better still,

Volex Garage Unit 40A 30mA RCD with MCBs | Screwfix.com - £37

Every little saving helps

Thanks Malcolm A couple of years ago I got one from Wickes when they were the cheapest. Things change.

[Bizibilder]

Believe it or not that "D" section "Tesa Draught Excluder D Profile" (and the "P" they also make) is NOT waterproof!! (I know - I used it between the metal doors of my observatory! It has come "unstuck"!!). It is designed to stop draughts in door and window frames and should be installed inside the frame. "Weatherproof" yes. "Waterproof" NO!!

[Gina]

Believe it or not that "D" section "Tesa Draught Excluder D Profile" (and the "P" they also make) is NOT waterproof!! (I know - I used it between the metal doors of my observatory! It has come "unstuck"!!). It is designed to stop draughts in door and window frames and should be installed inside the frame. "Weatherproof" yes. "Waterproof" NO!!

Oh I see!! That's no good then!

[Digz]

I guess this is a bit of a pain.

Looking at the sketch above if this item was secured at the top of the red timber section I would hazard a guess that it would be suitably protected. There is not going to be any ponding due to the roof slope and the only way any water or moisture would get up there is either wind driven, a leak in a joint in the roof somewhere or maybe heavy snow could fill up the gap, although if you can keep the gaps around the edges tight then this would help. To be honest, if water gets that far up then there is a big problem anyway.

The key with this detail is ensuring that where I have labeled the felt lapping up the face of the edge timber, there is a suitable upstand. Just as a guide the Building regulations calls for a minimum 150mm upstand - if you could achieve this then Im sure you would be ok from a weatherproofing point of view and it should be watertight in most conditions. It also relies on a tight tolerance between the underside of the sliding roof and the gasket to ensure a snug fit.

Just my 2p worth

[Astrokev]

I understand the principle you're describing but, with this design, wouldn't water collect in the "V" of the top roof section?

[Gina]

Since the rainwater run is towards and onto the warm room roof, there is no upstand at the lower end of the obsy roof. Here is a more detailled diagram of the overlap. Obsy roof in blue, warm room roof in red, felt in green and seal in black.

[Gina]

Been chasing up my order for cement and ballast from Wickes and currently awaiting a call back I ordered it two days ago supposedly next day delivery. It didn't come yesterday so I rang Customer Services this morning and they thought it would be delivered from Taunton so they put me through to the Taunton branch. (Taunton is nearest.) They couldn't find it in their records so gave me the Exeter branch number to ring. They couldn't find it either (two people tried). He said he'd contact Customer Services himself and find out what's what, so I'm now waiting for him to ring back. It's already been half an hour. Any further problem and I shall cancel the order and get my money refunded. I shall be thinking twice about ordering anything else from Wickes!!

Disgusted of Devon