My Temporary(Ish) Obs

[Mav359]

Hi Guys

Like many of you i love the idea of having an Obs & having recentley watched Malcolms build & Gina's & Aorkia's take place on the forum, the bug was biting, However i had some obsticles...

Firstly living in south london the sky isnt great, theres plenty to see and do but the sky quality is poor so £1500+ on an obs was never going to be good value for money.

Secondly i didn't have permission to build anything permanent so a pier is out of the question at the moment and lastly i'm moving out (planning anyway) next year so there would be no point.

but Gina & Aorkai kept teasing me with what might be so i started to look into the idea of a temporary obs, theres a big slab of flat level conreate in the garden marked for decking next year and with a little gentle nagging i was given permission to use the area on the promise that it could be removed during the summer.

The brain kicked into high gear and i quickly ruled out a shed conversion because i'd be paying for a) a floor i wasn't going to use (remember no peir on a timber floor eqauls vibration) & they don't like to be taken apart and put back together again. There are various tents out there but they aren't great and quite frankly i wanted a warm room.

So after much planning & a weeks hard graft ive come up with this.....

Its completely flat packable, each section is held together with 3xM8 bolts with 2x large washers and each section is covered in 300gsm Waterpoof PVC Canvas, the seams of each section are lined with 3mm waterproof foam creating a water tight seal between sections. The sections themseleves are relativly light but once bolted together form a very strong structure, each section is 150cm in WxLxH meaning my C.925 can rotate fully around scope room on its tripod. I also laid a 5mm rubber mats down on top of the concreate.

Its the bare minimum size for my scope and an ample sized warm room, the doors still need making up along with some other bits and the warm roof needs kitting out but the bulk of the work is done.

What do you guys think? is there anything i can do to improve it etc? I'd like some opinions.

:D

[Aoraki]

That, Alan is one fine solution, hat's off to you!

[Gina]

I agree, great solution for a temporary obsy, well done

If you wanted the warm room to be warmer you could put polystyrene insulation in the walls and ceiling, it's very light and would add little to the weight of the whole thing.

[deebster]

Nice work mate.

How much has this cost you so far?

[carastro]

Looks great, you'll be able to take it with you when you move.

Carole

[Mav359]

Thanks

I agree, great solution for a temporary obsy, well done :)

If you wanted the warm room to be warmer you could put polystyrene insulation in the walls and ceiling, it's very light and would add little to the weight of the whole thing.

Not a bad idea that, i only reached this stage last night and with no doors on it was very cold, i'll get the doors on first but either way i see a little heater being bought.

Deebster the whole thing has come to approx £450 so far but over £50 was delivery charges alone so if i reckon a square £400 is more accurate.A decent sized shed would have cost that and as i said they aren't designed to be taken apart. The tents i looked up were about £300 upwards but i never liked that idea anyway.

I justify the spend by the amount of money i have spent on my equipment so far, this will help keep that investment going longer, & keep me going longer by not being in the cold

[deebster]

A small price to pay, I agree. Especially as when you leave it's going with you.

And any mod you want to do to it can be added when you rebuild it at your next location, so this time round it's like a full dress rehearsal.

I want one.

[Mav359]

This is by far the biggest DIY project i have ever done, I have basic plans for a bigger more permanent Obs for when i have the space so if nothing else its been a good exercise to prove to myself that i can do a bigger project and that it wouldn't be a waste of money. I'm just not quick, as my Dad always said "Measure twice cut once", i usually measure four times then pray before cutting lol

As for this Obs because of the modular design i can enlarge the sections with great ease and minimal cost.

[Telrad]

Alan, it's a very good solution to an otherwise difficult situation, especially around planning issues. Very well done. I like the fact that it's temporary and you can take it with you, like you say, it can be easily extended as your needs require. Fantastic job!

Beautifully constructed too.

[Mav359]

The other thing that occured to me was that if i did want to make it permanent later i could, if i get to a position where i could build a floor aroun a pier it can be assembled on that floor and secured to it. Its built to spec not the concreate so as long as its a level floor the Obs will be level.

It also occurs that ship lap panels could be secured to it over the canvas. Converting to permanent isn't really in my plans, it lacks the hieght and room of something more permanent.

[Telrad]

That's an excellent idea. Just attaching ship lap panels to make it permanent, it would be relatively simple adjusting the height by the looks of things. I like the fact that it's in a state of 'flux' and there are so many permutations for it.

[Mav359]

Right now i'll be happy just to get the doors on. I also have some L shaped channels to keep the roof track straight, it runs well now but you have to watch it, once the channels are on it will be a matter of just putting your hand to it. I need to add a stop on this end as well to prevent the roof from just carrying on off the end, loads of little bits to do....

I am looking forward to kitting out the warm room and giving it a go

[Telrad]

Alan, I look forward to seeing more photos. Clear Skies!

[Gina]

Great stuff We like lots of lovely photos

[Mav359]

Well it will be a few days before i can do anymore but rest assured more photo's you will have....

[steppenwolf]

I think this is a brilliant solution complete with future proofing. I also think that filling in the 'stud-work' with polystyrene foam (can you still buy polystyrene ceiling tiles?) would be a good idea but I'd be tempted to do it all round to help cut down on the formation of dew on the inside of the canvas.

Well done for thinking outside the square.

[Mav359]

Cheers Steve

I want to get the doors on first and let it settle to see how bad the condensation is, i like the idea of tiles because i can hold them in a fixed position for when the Obs is dismantled.

As Gina said earlier it adds to keeping the warm room warm.

[Black Knight]

I really like this. It's a really neat idea, well done

[malc-c]

Have to agree with the others, fantastic solution to the problem where a permanent observatory is out of the question, and it looks so neat and tidy too.

[Mav359]

Thanks guys

On the subject of insulation, would foam do the same job as polysterene? I was thinking egg foam roll because the tiles have a tendancy to break and baring in mind this is to be flat packed and to be moved....

thoughts

[Pug]

I've used this SuperQuilt Insulation 1.5 x 10m | Screwfix.com to insulate loft conversions, not cheap, but excellent stuff. Not itchy like the fibreglass stuff!

Obs is excellent btw.

[Mav359]

I've used this SuperQuilt Insulation 1.5 x 10m | Screwfix.com to insulate loft conversions, not cheap, but excellent stuff. Not itchy like the fibreglass stuff!

Obs is excellent btw.

Yeah i saw this, its just too expensive. If this were a main permanant build this is what i'd use no doubts but part of the reason for this was keep costs down.

[Mav359]

anybody ever use these before?

Polystyrene Sheet - Polystyrene Insulation - Insulation -Building Materials - Wickes

[Pug]

It breaks up into little polystyrene balls over time, however, if its just temporary I reckon it'll work well.

My advice comes from a builders perspective, I've never built an obsy!

[Gina]

I got 8'x4'x1" polystyrene sheets for my warm room walls and same but 2" thick for under the floor and in the ceiling. Bought from B&Q, not sure if the still do them.

Edit - yes, same as Wickes but at the time B&Q were cheaper (Strange I know ). And yes, they are actually 2400x600x25mm, bit under 8x4 ft.