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maxmolson
journeyman
Reged: 07/19/06
Posts: 5
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can anyone tell me a link to instructions for cleaning my mirror on my 12 in. Meade Lightbridge?
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Snaproll
Post Laureate
Reged: 02/20/04
Posts: 3434
Loc: Wisconsin
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Hi and welcome to CN.
In one of the thumbtacked threads at the top of the forum is a beginner's "best of" and "how to" threat and you'll probably find a wealth of infomation there.
Generally I clean my mirrors only with distilled water that has been filtered through a coffee filter. I use a spray bottle and set it on wide mist (not a direct stream) and spray down the mirror while it is near vertical. Then I use a large camera airbulb to blow off the water drops. I rarely if ever touch the mirror surface with anything.
There are a million different approaches and opinions on what is safe to do. I'd suggest reading posts and suggestions in the beginner threads here and select a method you feel most comfortable with.
Use the search option near the top of the page, select the beginners forum and use the key word "cleaning" and select "subject" rather than "subject and body", set the time frame for 1 year to pick up the most recent posts. I just did it and hit many threads that look pretty good.
This is a question that gets frequently asked. It's a good question and I'm sure you will get plenty of good replies, but it also a good idea to search the archives as well to pick up more information.
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-Jim-
Happiness is a clear sky and a Denk II
old AP images and some new C14 Hyperstar images
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stevek
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 04/16/06
Posts: 1210
Loc: west michigan
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I cleaned my 8" primary for the first time last month. It is ~ 1.5-2 yrs old. I used De-ionized water (ultra pure - available thru local water treatment seller - and at my laboratory  ) and a pure cotton swab to free the stuff that was stuck. I really flooded & rinsed the surface, GENTLY wiped the obvious surface solids where the water showed them. Then I tilted the mirror vertical and rinsed the heck out of it again. I have an advantage of ultra high purity, 0.2 micron-filtered oxygen access. I used this to blow down the mirror and blow all of the water off. Worked very well and I did no physical damage to my mirror surface (I checked under my microscope).
Something worth mentioning - aluminum surfaces are easily damaged by alkaline chemicals. This is a qual test used to see how long they last! So hard water & its deposits and alkaline cleaners will dissolve the stuff pretty rapidly. Avoid them....
Good Luck
Steve
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DSO 8" f6 DOB w/ 8x50 RACI & 2"Crayford
1958 Sears Discoverer 76mm Refractor
GSO SV 30mm 2",21mm Hyp,13mm Strat,BO/TMB ver2-6mm & 4mm
1.25"Filters: DGM-NPB, 25%ND
1.25" plossls: 25mm,20mm,15mm,9mm
Orion 2X Shorty Barlow
Garrett Gemini LW 11x56mm binocs
BTG-10 4.0mW green laser pointer
"What is that burning in the sky? Tell me y'all..." Jeff Beck/Jan Hammer
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stacpa17
member
Reged: 08/28/07
Posts: 22
Loc: Long Island, NY
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The obsession website has a section on cleaning the mirrors. I remove my mirror and follow Kriege's method and have had positive results.
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Scott
Orion XT10
Orion 80ED
CG5 Mount
Argo Navis
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