Storing a Newtonian in the garage

[lnlarxg]

Hi, does anyone here store their Newtonian in the garage? My 12” is just bit too big to leave around the house. Thinking about storing it in the garage but worried about the damp, as my garage although totally rain proof, it is detached from my house and therefore gets no heating 

 

[PeterCPC]

If you want to prevent mould then I suggest that you devise some sort of background heating by running power from the house. Don't use a parrafin heater whatever you do. My garage is attached to the house and has power but I still would not store my scopes in it.

Peter

[Geoff Lister]

The OTA of my 10" Skyliner 250PX is stored in a cupboard at the end of my garage. As extra protection, I have covered it with an old sheet. This seems to work.

Geoff

[almcl]

My Skywatcher 200p has lived in my unheated garage for the last 5 years.  I did build a plywood box for it and the eyepieces and stuff.  Apart from condensation leading to the odd bit of dust, it has suffered no ill effects.

[tooth_dr]

My SW250px lived in my unheated garage for 7 years. All the screw heads have turned rusty and the mirror became very dusty but otherwise unscathed.  

[Moonshane]

Mine are all in my garage. It gets cold but not damp and all seems well since February this year.

[rockystar]

Mine's in the garage too. The OTA is in a bag,  so that will help to protect it.

[Geoff Lister]

I think the main aim is to store it in an area where steel tools do not go rusty and spiders do not wish to catch passing insects.

Geoff

[pjsmith_6198]

As long as it's covered, an unheated garage is a great place to store your scope.    You get the added benefit that your optics will be very close to the outside temperature and you will have very little if any cool down time before observing.   I have a Z10 I keep in my garage sitting on a dolly.   All I have to do is open the garage door and wheel it out.  I am observing in minutes.   You can do the same thing and have a 12" grab and go scope.      Not having to drag a big telescope out of the house and set up makes short observing sessions of an hour or less worthwhile.    Which means more time out with the scope

Phil

[AlanK]

My 12 inch dob has been kept in an unheated garage with an old duvet cover thrown over it (the telescope) for 12 years with no ill effects. I have to drag it through the house to get to a dark site, so if it is covered in dew after a session I tend to leave it in the house for a few hours to dry out before putting it back in the garage. Must get a shed in the back garden sometime.

[Carbon Brush]

A garage is surely a similar environment to the observatory shed that many are using.
My scopes have had (up to) 10 years of shed storage without issue.

A thought for the chemists and biologists in SGL to comment on.
From what I remember from school in the previous century, as a general rule chemical reactions and living things go faster in the warmth.

This means that rusting (or other corrosion is going to be slower in a cold garage.
Similarly, fungus growth is going to be slower in a cold garage.

Then consider bringing a cold scope into a warm humid house and everything gets covered in condensation.
There will be less condensation (and temperature difference) dryong off a scope in an unheated garage.
Yes you might go around with a hair dryer - but do you get into every nook and cranny?

I'm trying to think of an argument for house storage in terms of scope life. But I'm struggling.
Unless you think you might drive over the scope, or it might be nicked from a garage.

David.