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Never underestimate the importance of power

swag72

By swag72
in Imaging - Discussion

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RayD

RayD

Posted
Posted
Just now, swag72 said:

Yes, so now I have a spare!! :) Don't know how long it will remain as a spare!! :D 

Nooooo don't say that :eek:.  Your one now is ideal for all your kit, so just keep this one tucked away as a back-up.

Thing is no matter what supply you have on the mount, if the PC driving it and giving commands is having problems with its own, then it is going to cause issues with it.

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swag72

swag72

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Just now, souls33k3r said:

I guess this is where what SW recommends as well to use 13.8V so good on them to supply with a proper PS then

SW didn't supply the 13.8v power box thingie! It's a Maplins one :)

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swag72

swag72

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4 minutes ago, RayD said:

Nooooo don't say that :eek:.  Your one now is ideal for all your kit, so just keep this one tucked away as a back-up.

Thing is no matter what supply you have on the mount, if the PC driving it and giving commands is having problems with its own, then it is going to cause issues with it.

.... I wasn't suggesting that the new one will fail..... just perhaps that I can find a use for the 'spare' :D With my observatory extension starting soon, there will be some more space for some more things :D 

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RayD

RayD

Posted
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1 minute ago, swag72 said:

.... I wasn't suggesting that the new one will fail..... just perhaps that I can find a use for the 'spare' :D With my observatory extension starting soon, there will be some more space for some more things :D 

More things :icon_biggrin::icon_biggrin: Fair play. 

As I said, I admire your persistence. I would have been on the floor as a snivelling wreck stamping my hands and feet; you're looking at the next challenge :thumbright:

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AKB

AKB

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57 minutes ago, swag72 said:

The power brick (I assume that's the PSU?) was rated at 10v... the input on the Eagle was showing at 12.7 - 12.8v. 

Think you mean 10A? Should be 12V or thereabouts.  That's the one I have from PrimaLuce...

...but I will now consider switching (pardon the pun) to a linear supply (which I do have, but haven't yet deployed!)

 

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  • 4 months later...
ollypenrice

ollypenrice

Posted
Posted
On 27/03/2018 at 16:33, swag72 said:

:laugh2:  :laugh2: :laugh2:  I have literally no idea what you have just said 

You and me both! Those circuit diagrams you learn at O level are pure bunkum, aren't they.

I'd have thought that, given our remoteness and the regularity with which storms interrupt our supply, we'd have bottom grade electricity but, so far, I don't think we've had anything like your situation. Oh gawd, why did I say that???

Olly

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tomato

tomato

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2 hours ago, ollypenrice said:

Oh gawd, why did I say that???

Olly

Olly, you won’t like this, but on Harry Page’s thread regarding the broken encoder on his Mesu, I recklessly declared that your first Mesu must have more hours on it than any other and is still going strong, I have been dreading ever since a post from  you saying it has gone down, sorry....?

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ollypenrice

ollypenrice

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8 minutes ago, tomato said:

Olly, you won’t like this, but on Harry Page’s thread regarding the broken encoder on his Mesu, I recklessly declared that your first Mesu must have more hours on it than any other and is still going strong, I have been dreading ever since a post from  you saying it has gone down, sorry....?

Fear not, it hasn't! Neither has my second one, nor have the other two which live here. And there's a third one sitting on its pier awaiting its first light...

Olly

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ian_bird

ian_bird

Posted
Posted

I have one Maplin 12v power supply per item I need powered.

USB Hubs. One power supply each.

Mount. Own power supply.

Cameras. One power supply each.

Focusers - well actually they share a power supply.

Dew Heaters. Absolutely on their own power supply (shared). Dew Heaters can cause more problems than all the rest due to how they work. I would never share their power supply with anything else.

Oh - and Lynx Astro Silicone Power Cables for the mount and cameras.

Works for me.

Cheers.

Ian

 

  

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Stub Mandrel

Stub Mandrel

Posted
Posted

I use several sources of power too, but here's a thought.

If you lose a key power source, your imaging session is ruined. If you lose a secondary power source (e.g. a dew heater) you can get by.

The more power sources, the greater the chance one will fail.

Assuming reliability is independent of size, then the most reliable option is to have one, big, power supply for everything with a backup.

If that's not practical, just run all your critical stuff off one big PSU.

 

I don't practice this, but it's worth thinking about.

What I will look into is using the same 12V connectors for as much as possible, and having multiple outlets so I can (for example) put my mount onto the leisure battery if its own battery gets low.

 

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Jkulin

Jkulin

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Posted

Hi All,

Power supplies.....here we go, I have spend probably over £600-£700 trying to sort a reliable, efficient and tidy power source for my mounts, I have been through so many alternatives that I could supply the national grid with connectors and sockets ?

For me and hopefully in this order you need the following: -

1. Safety, running a 240v supply out into wet grass to feed a 12v supply will only get you to join the star dust a little quicker than most.
2. Mounts especially SW need a very minimum of 12v when slewing or they will make horrible noises that sounds like chewbacca swallowing a fly.
3. I have been through Anderson distribution boards like the Windcamp (https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WINDCAMP-AP-8-8port-40A-ANDERSON-POWERPOLE-CONNECTOR-POWER-SPLITTER-DISTRIBUTOR-/382034067529?var=&hash=item0) worked superbly and were safe, I have made my own distribution boxes up with Bus Bars, there have been so many combinations that I have lost count.
4. In my experience, buy a very good ham radio power supply that shoves out a constant 13.8v and can handle 10-15A, you may never need it but it is there, I went over board and bought two of these, one to power every thing apart from my laptop and the other for my laptop: - https://www.nevadaradio.co.uk/amateur-radio/amateur-radio-power-supplies/nevada-psw-30 I did originally buy this version https://www.nevadaradio.co.uk/amateur-radio/amateur-radio-power-supplies/nevada-ps-08
but it struggled to handle my laptop as well and I feared when you had everything on and were slewing that it just wasn't enough.
5. As the PSU are 240v powered I have them mounted high on a shelf in a lean to shed at the side of my home, the 240v plugs and the feed are housed in waterpoof cases just in case.
6. I have made up using two 30/40 metres cable similar to this https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Round-Twin-2-Core-Cable-12V-24V-Thin-Wall-Wire-For-11A-14A-16-5A-21A-25A-29A/201979639092?hash=item2f06ecb534:m:mQ6fH0fleLB570ZM5B5Px7A
which I run one length each out into the garden with the female end of the waterproof connectors on, I originally ran thinner cable but it lost too much voltage, so went thicker and have had no problems since.
7. All 12v connectors out to the pier use these waterproof connectors https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10x-Super-Seal-Waterproof-Connector-Plug-2-Pin-Way-Car-Motorcycle-Boat/132735853644?_trksid=p2485497.m4902.l9144 effectively I need two now, one to power my laptop PSU and the other to power my Pegasus box (Previously a windcamp distribution unit and USB hub)
8. I had to change my configuration when I changed to the iOptron mount as both the RS232 feed and the 12v feed are fixed in the base so you have to leave room to allow for slewing.
9. The only cables to the mount now are a single 12v feed into the Pegasus power unit and a 5m USB lead from my laptop into the Pegasus, all cables are enshrouded in mesh, with the USB feeds on one side and the 12v feeds on the other. The power cable is a short 2m affair with a male waterproof connector and an inline 10A fuse again in a waterproof housing.
10 As I can't fit an Obsy into the garden, I put my laptop on a portable table with the 12v-18v PSU mounted behind my laptop and then use a portable pop up shower tent that I erect in less than 5 secs to protect my laptop from the dew.
11. The only other cable is a Cat 5 cable which comes again from my lean to shed that is wired into my network hub and then into my server.

IMG_5628.thumb.jpg.228ecacc04eb9388149f01a6ed156cea.jpg

It's been a lot of work to get this right, but in my first year I used to run a 240v feed straight into the garden and I always said to my wife that if she saw my lying on the ground in the morning, don't touch me but switch the feed in the shed off first, I was that paranoid about getting a shock.

If anyone needs any extra help then would be only too glad to help, I am no electrics expert who does not know anything about which way round to put a resistor and how to use a capacitor, but I do know that water and electrics don't mix and I very much want to see my Kids (well they are 30 and 33 now but still my kids) and grandchildren grow up, so don't do compromises, it isn't worth it.

Oh one final thing, you all need to come with a government health warning to my bank balance as it is now empty but my mind is full of all the new things I have experienced ?

Clear nights!

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RayD

RayD

Posted
Posted
35 minutes ago, Jkulin said:

Hi All,

Power supplies.....here we go, I have spend probably over £600-£700 trying to sort a reliable, efficient and tidy power source for my mounts, I have been through so many alternatives that I could supply the national grid with connectors and sockets ?

For me and hopefully in this order you need the following: -

 

Clear nights!

Nice post John (I didn't quote it all).  Thanks for taking the time to share your solutions, concerns and supply choices.

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AstroPhil

AstroPhil

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Posted

This story resonates with me as well! Glad the OP got everything sorted in the end. I find USB can be especially finicky (and I'm sure I'm not the only one). It's a shame that firewire (or IEEE1394) went out of fashion, as it's far more robust for data transfer and has lower CPU overhead. My power solution was one of these:

https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/desktop-power-supply/2243990/

And these, to smooth the supply and boost the 12v to around 13.8v for imaging, and to 15v for USB hub and mount power, with the advantage that when battery powered, they accept a range of voltage input: https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/isolated-dc-dc-converters/7702283/ & https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/isolated-dc-dc-converters/1666432/ . Heaters are supplied separately.

Like @Jkulin I shudder as to what I have spent making all these connector boxes! It works flawlessly though, so a case of mission successful.

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Alan White

Alan White

Posted
Posted
On 27/03/2018 at 15:46, drjolo said:

"perfect system is system where you removed as many components as you could, and it still works properly" :)

That made me smile, yes indeed it does as long as the components are all reliable in themselves.

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