My Obsy Project - Roll Away Shed.

[Rols]

Expected to start soon-

The plan

To incorporate into the garden as inconspicuous as possible a small roll of shed to house my scope.

This will include a from scratch plan of installing a concrete block to support a pier tech 2 or equivalent, a standing platform that is separate from the base of the shed, a counter sunk rail system for the shed to roll on. I will post pictures of my plans (nothing special) with some detail for you guys to critique or help with if you so wish.

My intention is to use the scope eyes on, and to incorporate the required electrical and data cabling as to automate the scope with TheSkyPro and Orchestrate from my conservatory. The shed serves no more purpose than to house the scope, although i will do my best to make it capable of being load baring but tihs is not a primary concern as suggested i intend to remote the scope.

Looking at sheds i am faced with a few options HxWxD i'm looking for something small but sensible, able to house the scope with the dew shield and cameras attached in case i need to close up quickly as were all aware with the English weather.

The way i'm intending to mount the shed is on sleepers sunk into the ground on a concrete leveled base low enough to keep the grass growing on the lawn. After a period i intend to rout the wheel guides into the sleepers in one length making even any issues and lowering the possibility of snags later on.

The walk platform around the scope will also encompass the wheel tracks and the a floating floor will be created so as not to contact the concrete of the pier. most likely the use of 4 met posts and some oil/creasote mix to keep it all sound and looking nice. I will need to skirt the shed slightly to create a clean look but i need to get to a point where this can be measured and not thought about.

my general feeling is that this will morph into more than i'm expecting as i battle with my plans. i expect a long haul with this as i never get much time to play in the garden during daylight hours, my skills are challenged when it comes to this type of project as well but i do tend to get it as i want in the end.

i will picture the area of the garden this is to occupy so the plans relate to the ground it will be seated on just as soon as i get the time.

Lets see how it goes and what i get as an end result.

when is bonfire night??? lol

[barkis]

Good luck with your project. No reason why you should not succeed, it seems a modest endeavour, inasmuch as it is only to house the whole rig when it's not in use.

The remote control sounds OK, and is of course doable. Several members have a system in place.

I take it you are pushed for space, in which case what you propose makes sense. If on the other hand, space is not an issue, I would let your mind address the further ambitions you might be nurturing.

I'm thinking a larger Structure for your rig, and all the extras, and perhaps an adjacent warm room. A roll off roof is by far the most employed method for a garden observatory.

I guess your mind is made up though, and any help or advice you may need is readily available from the members who have constructed their own Obs's.

Best of luck.

Ron.

[Rols]

The outline and position of my now named Stargazers Stow.

Picture 1, shows the basic ouline of the project, and where it will be positioned in the garden

Picture 2 is jst the outline guide i overlayed on the photo without the clutter.

I have a had a chat with the neighbours and they seem fine with cutting back the shrubs/bushes and tree on the fence line so that will give me my E/SE viewing angle, I obviously lose a lot of North because of the house and The Stow, but that was always going to be.

[Rols]

Have spent the whole day trying to source mild steel rails and some rollers, the day has vanished and i have nothing to show for it, not a single builders merchant in Northampton deals with it, and not a single place i ask can find me any rollers that look suitable for long term use and a heavy load.......HELP?

anyone with any clues please comment.

[yesyes]

Rols, have you seen this thread?

http://stargazerslounge.com/diy-observatories/152588-ivans-roll-off-shed.html

These rails and roller look great.

[Rols]

I have and i was the one that asked where they were from but i'm afraid i am unable to locate them with the info Ivan has supplied, I'm hoping Ivan will get back to me with more info, i think i PM'd him again last night (not sure), that's the type of quality i'm after, if not i will be spending a great deal of money just on the linear guide system...i think i'm into the 603.00 mark already, and i'm bored of looking and asking supplires for prices and options. i have decided to move onto the shed for the time being while i wait to see if Ivans Chippy can be of any more help....how he located them i do not know!

[martin_h]

Have you seen this from Helen?>>>>> http://stargazerslounge.com/diy-observatories/156681-observatory-re-work.html

[yesyes]

I have and i was the one that asked where they were from ...

Ah, ok.. Too many names to remember ..

[Rols]

I appreciate the input Chris, and thanks to Martin aswell but i think i shoudl wait for Ivan as he has used what i consider to be the best option for me and it would be great to find them...i'm all google'd out today though...spent 6 hours last night and 6 hours today and all i can confirm as priced ready to order is the shed and the sleepers, i wanted to get this list occupied and ready to order.

Sleepers - 27.00 each x 4 confirmed

Shed- 375.00 5x4 side entrance confirmed

Guide rails- unconfirmed

Rollers/Wheels- unconfirmed

Pier- unconfirmed

decking- unconfirmed

[gary1968]

Rols, those rails and runners can be bought from most electrical factors, e.g. R&M Electrical Wholesalers, RS, City Electrical, Holland House etc.

I am aware of 2 makes, Uni-Strut and Uni-Trunk, the latter being a bit cheaper. What you want is 42x42mm plain channel and the runners to suit, you can get stainless or nylon runners, nylon would make less noise in the dead of night IMO.

HTH,

Gary

[Aoraki]

I wouldn't use Unistrut etc, it's not designed for that application but something that would be up to the job. Have a look here, this is sliding door gear which when used upside down becomes the rail system that Ivan used. It ranges from 75kg to 500kg capacity.

I can price and supply you with anything from FH Brundle's online catalogues, but I think carrage would be a killer (unless of course I could persuade them to deliver direct).

Alternatively, if you can find a friendly gate manufacturer in your local area, they will probably have an account with Brundle's and may help you out.

[gary1968]

To me the track recomended above by Aorraki looks the same as Uni-Strut, possibly Uni-Strut is made of thicker material but that it difficult to judge fromt he pics.

Anyway, we have several sliding doors and various tooling jigs supported at my place of work using Uni-Strut and the roller carriers. They are plenty strong enough for the job and are designed for that purpose, else why would they make the carriers??

http://www.unistrut.co.uk/# have a look in there, you will find the rails, the roller carriers and all sort of fixings and brackets. There is even some very nice bearing sliders..... mmmm, plans floating about in my head for my RORO Roof.

Gaz

[Aoraki]

To me the track recomended above by Aorraki looks the same as Uni-Strut, possibly Uni-Strut is made of thicker material but that it difficult to judge fromt he pics.

Anyway, we have several sliding doors and various tooling jigs supported at my place of work using Uni-Strut and the roller carriers. They are plenty strong enough for the job and are designed for that purpose, else why would they make the carriers??

It's actually the other way around, Unistrut is LIGHT duty, I have just looked at the loadings of the rails and carrying capacity of the trolleys, best I could see was 2.7kN. The items I linked to are made for the job, have high capacities from 75kg to 500kg. You pays ya money and ya takes ya choice! I may be looking at it differently to Gary, I have to use equipment/parts designed for the job in my line of work, I can't just use the "cheaper" non approved alternatives, my public liability insurance wouldn't cover it.

[gary1968]

I dont have the specs for the rails recomended by Aoraki so cant compare..... If Rols 'device' was to be hung form the rails then perhaps the heavier duty stuff might be the way forward..... but, on looking at the original design again it appears that Rols design uses a similar design to that of Ivan's. In that guise the rails are not carrying any weight, they are only actling like tracks, so, to me, the heavy duty rails are a bit overkill...... or am I missing something?

Gaz

[Rols]

i think both of you had fair comment, no point missed that i could see.

i suppose the heavier guide is more suited for the fact that if the sleepers were to try and move they would have to make a serous effort.

i have also been guided to a place in town that may be able to help me with the guides, to be honest some of those advertised bearing guide systems look fantastic Gaz, but when i priced that baby it was more expensive than the shed, maybe you get better prices than me. i'm looking hard at differnet options at this point with the intention of still finding something close or the same as what Ivan used as they look the business to me, but if not i will find a guide and make do. updates will come as final decisions are made and the cash gets spent..

good to here your thoughts though and i appreciate the input, i'm off to follow your links and see what else is on offer.

[Rols]

I think i have now found my Pier and Rollers.

Alpha electric column

i obtained some excellent information from these Guys in Ireland, they also said they would come and build it for me if we could meet at a mutually beneficial figure.

this is also the place i have ordered my rollers from-

stairs northern ireland

Thanks to Ivan as well great help and appreciated.

[fwm891]

Rols, Why make it a roll off. Why not just hinge the back edge of the shed to a sleeper open the front door and tip the shed backwards. Less sky obstruction, quicker too!

Just a thought... (I know they shoot people with ideas like this, or lock them away somewhere!)

[Gina]

Rols, Why make it a roll off. Why not just hinge the back edge of the shed to a sleeper open the front door and tip the shed backwards. Less sky obstruction, quicker too!

Just a thought... (I know they shoot people with ideas like this, or lock them away somewhere!)

That's a brilliant idea The simplest ideas are always the best.

[fwm891]

Came to me in a moment of madness while looking at Rols' garden layout...

[Rols]

Rols, Why make it a roll off. Why not just hinge the back edge of the shed to a sleeper open the front door and tip the shed backwards. Less sky obstruction, quicker too!

Just a thought... (I know they shoot people with ideas like this, or lock them away somewhere!)

Nothing wrong with the concept at all, i like it. all i would have to do now is work out how to design a fold down table and chair with a computer desk. they would have to fold into place once the shed was in place... more hinges i suppose...i may consider this idea...

Spanner in works - Thanks..

[fwm891]

That's what spanners are for

[Rols]

I have looked into this a little more and decided that although it would be easier and more cost effective, it is less practical for me to implement, thanks for the input fwm891 but could you pull that spanner back out now..

Just found some soft wood 3m sleepers, not ideal as i wanted hard wood but they will do for the next 10 years i would have thought.

direct link included for future reference.

New Treated Softwood Sleepers eco-safe 3 meters! XXL! | eBay

Time to pay for the shed and get some concrete on i suppose.

[Rols]

Well a strange thing happened today, i was talking to the guy that was going to be building the shed for me, i mentioned the central cut that would be required and the extra support for the floor to keep things square on the runners and as i finished asking what he would advise for the thickness of the flooring he (confidently) asked what scope i was going to put in the shed. Well, you could have blown me over right their on the spot. obviously the conversation took on a slightly more direct course and we talked about what his interest was and what he had done in the past. (this is a professional out building manufacturer)

i'm not sure i was ready for what was to come next, he blew me away again by telling me he had manufactured a few different types of observatory for many people over the years but lost the time and interest to carry on with astronomy himself. he the asked me why i had decided on a roll away shed, i explained my partner wanted something tidy and not obtrusive in the garden, i had been given 5ft square and that was the whole reason for something small that i could lay a track for and move when in use. he imediatly responded with why dont you just have a split roof and roll open when required, i asked if this was something he had done before and he said it was the simplest way he had seen and done. he was quite confident about it. i asked for more detail and he went on to explain that he could create a shed with a roller system that would spread its wings as it was rolled out and just look like a normal shed when closed, no roof supports or anything sticking out from the sides of the shed, a completely telescopic system. i went on to ask about the security of the roof for both weather and lift and he replied weather is no issue at all, and lift was overcome with the correct tracks and roller system.

well you can imagine i then wanted an idea of cost, funnily it turns out that he is cheaper than me buying all the gear for the roll off shed that i wanted to build, i require a fraction of the parts and i don't need any of the spare time i would have required to fit it all..

Project abandoned - i feel like i betrayed my own build thread.

Some useful Links for anyone that might find this thread useful in the future.

Lifting columns by LINAK (Pier alternative)

after reviewing the others this was the most affordable and certainly not badly priced.

Lifting Columns, Electric Columns, Telescopic Columns

Rollers and tracks at what seemed sensible money to others i had asked.

Rolling Center

Railway Sleepers all sizes and wood types cheep (upto 3000mm long)

New Eco-friendly Treated Railway Sleepers :: New Green Pressure Treated Softwood Sleeper

I will add a link to the company i am using for the Observatory after it has been installed and checked over for a while. i will add to the thread any info i can after a settling period aswell.

All i can do now is take a man at his word and see what he comes up with. I'm confident.

[Gina]

I shall be very interested in what he comes up with and look forward to your report and pics if you can, please And please don't keep us in suspense too long

[gary1968]

I too am interested in his ideas, might save me a bit of 'explaining' when it comes to building mine.

Please post pics as and when the build starts Rols.

Cheers,

Gaz