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Hi there,

I have a question regarding dew heaters and power.

I have this on a SW 150PDS:
https://www.astroshop.eu/heater-bands/omegon-heater-strap-secondary-mirror-heating-strip-small/p,56529

Specs:

Heating power 2,2
Amperage (A) 0,18
Power supply 12
Cable length (m) 2

 

 

I have this on an orion 50mm guidescope:
https://www.astroshop.eu/heater-bands/omegon-dew-heater-20cm-50mm-finderscope-/p,53511

Specs:

Heating power 4
Amperage (A) 0,3
Power supply 12
Cable length (m) 1

 

And i have this Dewheater controller:
https://www.astroshop.eu/controls/hitec-astro-4-channel-dew-controller/p,57478#tab_bar_0_select

Specs:
12v
2A per channel.


Truth is my thoughts have been on other equipment and AP setup since im still a newbie in AP, so I've only used the secondary-mirror heater a couple of sessions.
My question is since there is adjustable power on the controller- How much do i turn the switches? Will full power affect seeing for example because of heated air? Is half a turn enough? Some general info on this? 
 

Edited by masjstovel
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The required settings for effective dew control will only come with experience and prevailing conditions. 4 watts on the guide scope will not affect its performance and 2.2 watts spread over the area of the 150PDS tube is unlikely to be noticed. Try them at full power at first and reduce the power if dewing is unlikely.

Low power settings will extend the battery discharge time if you are using a battery.

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I think everyone's experience is going to be different, the amount of power needed (i.e. how far to turn the knobs) will differ depending on the typical amount of dew at your location, the temperature, the equipment used, and your intended use of the scope.  It's probably best to have 'just enough' to prevent the dew from forming, and only personal experience can really help there.  I tend to start in the middle and go from there.  It's unlikely that you'll be able to feel much heat coming from the tapes, they are designed to only provide a gentle warming effect.

If you have 2 channels running and each channel can draw 2A (at maximum power), then I'd say you need to be able to provide 4A to the controller.  I have that same controller, I run it from a big leisure battery so I'm never going to run out of amps in a single session, probably not even several (typical session for me is up to four hours). 

Dew will likely increase as the night goes on, then it will decrease, so it's something you'd probably have to monitor if you intended to do long imaging sessions or whatever.

Edited by jonathan
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