Cold Storage

[Kirscovitch]

I live in a small house. The entire upstairs consists of the bedrooms and a small hallway. Downstairs there is a small office that it packed with the computer desk, bookshelf, and stacked with boxes of things that we don't really have room for. (We just moved in in June) Right now this "office" is the home of my scope and tripod. Its hard to even walk around in there now. The gf is kinda miffed that it takes up as much space as it does. Other areas of the house have more room, but with a 5 and 8 year old running around I'm afraid of them having an accident with it. 

I do, however, have a ton of room in the garage. There's too much stuff to park a car, but tons of room to park my scope. I think I might take it out there.

I can think of some pros and cons with this

On the plus side it will free up space in the house which will make a certain someone happy. Also there shouldn't be much of a cool down time on nights when I use the scope.

On the bad side I know that a garage is easier to break into than the house so security would be an issue. Also I'm not to sure how being in the cold day in and day out for the next 3 months will affect the scope. I plan on taking the batteries out when not in use and popping some in when I first setup. 

I'm also thinking that if the scope just stays cold it would probably be better than bringing it into a warm house after viewing. 

I'm probably way off base with my assumptions but I guess that goes with being a noob.

[jambouk]

You want the scope to be in a dryish environment.

You ideally don't want to take it out from. 21 degrees C house and expect to use it straight away.

Only you can make as assessment of security risk. If the garage is internal to the house, do you need to be able to open the large garage door, if not you could probably quite easily do something temporary to the mechanism to stop it being opened.

James

[Kirscovitch]

The garage is not attached to the house. There is the large sliding door that is powered by a motor but there is a manual latch/lock that can be locked from the inside as well as a small "people" door that is on the side. 

Being dry shouldn't be a problem. I haven't noticed any frost on anything yet when I go out in the morning. And we've had some pretty cold nights so far this winter. (-10 F)

[jambouk]

Well it sounds like an ok storage place; but must be cautious about it being too damp. Sounds like it just a question of storage. Will people know the scope is in there? Is it a high risk area? Can you install an alarm?

James

[madsarmy]

The cold won't bother your scope. I put my scope away the other night & it had frost on it. I leave mine uncovered until the morning so condensation etc has gone then put the covers over.

Security wise could you not fix an extra clasp & padlock on the garage door.

[Kirscovitch]

Most likely the security issue is at the bottom of my concerns. Only people that will really know it's in there is close family. I figure I will keep the whole mount setup under a blanket and remove any batteries before I lock it up for the night. I have some power adapters ordered that I will be able to power the GOTO with from a plug in and an extension cord. Batteries will be put in just as a backup to protect alignment.

[Mr Spock]

I'd make the garage more secure. It's a good place for the scope and will be a zillion times better than keeping it in a warm room.

[Kirscovitch]

Think I will do just that. An extra padlock on the sliding door wouldn't hurt and won't be too hard to install some sort of deadbolt or padlock on the people door. 

Plus it will make room in the office and will stop the gf from nagging that it's always in her way 

[Peter Drew]

The +'s outweigh the -'s.  

[Kirscovitch]

I think the stopping of the nagging is worth a +2 

[jambouk]

Keep the gf in the garage; win win

[Kirscovitch]

I have thought about keeping her out there. There is a cot and everything out there. If I give her an extra blanket she should be fine.

[baggywrinkle]

Just putting cold storage into perspective.

How do the high altitude obsy's manage? They must be well below 0 Deg C on many nights. Cannot see them carrying a 1-3m plus 'scope indoors, do they keep the inside of the domes a balmy 23 C at 50% Rh?

I think the main thing is security and keeping the OTA dry.

[Astro Imp]

I have thought about keeping her out there. There is a cot and everything out there. If I give her an extra blanket she should be fine.

The problem with that strategy is she might very quickly become an ex-gf.

[houston]

I have kept mine in the garage for years. Got wireless pir sensor in there which is about 30 metres from main alarm and still works. Disabled the auto door as seen burglars trying to pull it up on cctv as theres a little play in chain that pulls door up. Have it bolted from inside now. Dont park car in there now so its not a problem. Reverse car tight against it at night. Cool down time is great. Thinking of making sealed cupboard in garage to stop the dust getting at scope.

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