texasam
member
Reged: 02/11/09
Posts: 20
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I accidentally deleted my last post about "roll off's in snow". Thanks for all the replies. My question now is, what is best for a remote observatory setup, I mean very remote, 50-100 miles away. A dome or a rolloff roof??
Thanks
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rodney
Vendor - Explora Dome
Reged: 03/08/05
Posts: 802
Loc: Asbury, NJ
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For ROR's check out:
http://www.fostersystems.com/
And Scott Hortsmans site www.backyardobservatories.com for more info on automating remotely ROR's. With a dome there are quite a few options, IE: Maxdome II.
Clear skies,
--------------------
Explora Dome information can be found here:
www.exploradome.us
Rodney
Meade 10 SCT
AT 8/F4 imaging scope
13 Truss
C8-NGT
Orion 80mm/F11
Canon 300D
Canon XSi
Two AS-GT mounts
Extremely happy Explora Dome home observatory owner
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texasam
member
Reged: 02/11/09
Posts: 20
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Hi Rodney:
Thanks for your response. But, I have the company chosen already that supplies both ror and now domes. My question is what is better for snow, ror or dome? I am leading towards the dome so far. due to wind blowing snow into the observatory, onto the telescope.
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Bob Griffiths
Postmaster
Reged: 10/10/05
Posts: 6566
Loc: Frederick Maryland
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A Dome itself will naturally shed snow and do it rather quickly ... however that snow has to "slide off" somewhere....and this can cause some problems IF the snow does not slide off onto the ground...
I have an Exploradome..(8 foot round traditional dome on a 10x10 foot building)...that means I have roughly a foot of traditional roof (angle on the roof is 15 degrees...kind of shallow) all around the Dome itself...
What happens is that the snow slides off the dome
BUT stays on the roof... and of course it builds up on the roof and can lock the dome itself in place especially if you get a good snowstorm
Not a problem for me as I have learned just to go out and brush the snow off the roof. However if I do not brush the snow off the roof there is a good chance the snow will melt during the day BUT then refreeze at night and lock the dome in place.. Then I have to bust it free bty walking around inside and slamming my hand against the dome..
A Dome like a Home Dome or Sirus or even the Round building Exploradome would not have this problem
Bob G.
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CPC1100
Nexstar 8i + GPS & Rays Brackets
Denk S1 power switch
Orion 100 mm Refractor
Meade LXD 55 ...AR-5 127 mm Refractor
Exploradome Observatory S.I.E. (Smiling Irish Eyes)
Gerbring Heated Motorcycle clothing in the winter
39*21'03" N
77*28'12" W
The sky over my head....
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JAT Observatory
Got Cookies?
Reged: 02/20/05
Posts: 6785
Loc: Eastern PA
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If you are basing your decision solely on snow and wind I would say a dome is the way to go.
But the real truth is a remote controlled dome is much more prone to issues than a ROR is. If your talking about an Ash dome or something in that price range it may be a different story.
I have a remote controlled dome. Even though it sits in my backyard it is setup to be fully remote controlled and it is operated 99% of the time that way. It is not uncommon for it to be operated from the other side of the country. But it requires, more than just causal attention to keep it operational. It is offline as I write this due to a rotation issue.
I suggest you take a look at a presentation I did a while back. Some of it is outdated a bit. There is a ton of other stuff that should be in there such as plate solving but I think it will give you an idea of some of the other things you need to consider (if you haven't already) regardless of if your system is a dome or ROR.
link
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-Marcus
The problem with free speech is even the stupid have a voice.
http://www.jatobservatory.org
Currently a SV102A, WO 66mm & 10" LX200GPS OTA on a Paramount ME
(these OTAs subject to change without notice)
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texasam
member
Reged: 02/11/09
Posts: 20
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Markus:
Currently I am considering Pier-Tech's new all metal domes. They are walk in domes that rotate at the base. Since the dome has a up and over shutter, it looks like the snow on the shutter would be brought to the back of the dome where it wound fall off. See link to thier drawing of the PTD1.
http://www.dome-observatories.com/dome_observatory_drawings.htm
you can see from the multiple drawing views that the snow would fall off a bit to the front and mostly to the back, which should work out well in a remote setup.
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rodney
Vendor - Explora Dome
Reged: 03/08/05
Posts: 802
Loc: Asbury, NJ
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Quote:
Markus:
Currently I am considering Pier-Tech's new all metal domes. They are walk in domes that rotate at the base. Since the dome has a up and over shutter, it looks like the snow on the shutter would be brought to the back of the dome where it wound fall off. See link to thier drawing of the PTD1.
http://www.dome-observatories.com/dome_observatory_drawings.htm
you can see from the multiple drawing views that the snow would fall off a bit to the front and mostly to the back, which should work out well in a remote setup.
A little knowledge on slotted domes. Even though it would appear that the snow will slide off when opening the shutter that is not always the case. The scenario would be while opening the shutter whatever snow is left on the shutter would slide off the back, however at some occasions the snow will slide forward into the observatory and on your equipment. I have a slotted dome and use an extendable paint pole with a shop floor broom head. It extends 14 feet and work like a charm.
Just an FYI.
Clear skies,
--------------------
Explora Dome information can be found here:
www.exploradome.us
Rodney
Meade 10 SCT
AT 8/F4 imaging scope
13 Truss
C8-NGT
Orion 80mm/F11
Canon 300D
Canon XSi
Two AS-GT mounts
Extremely happy Explora Dome home observatory owner
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texasam
member
Reged: 02/11/09
Posts: 20
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Hi Rodney:
I have to disagree with that, when it comes to the Pier-Tech dome 1, anyway, from the drawing, it seems that the snow would wall forward first, upon opening the shutter, maybe get some in the doorway of the dome, which I can live with, and then the rest would fall back. I dont see how it would fall to the center of the dome where my pier and scope would be.
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GJJim
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 09/09/06
Posts: 907
Loc: Western CO
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My roll-off has a dark-colored metal roof and snow usually melts or slides off the roof quickly when the sun is out. I suppose a heavy (6"-12" in our area) snow fall could be a problem when opening the roof, but that hasn't caused me any grief yet. If the snow is deep I brush most of it off before opening the roof.
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JAT Observatory
Got Cookies?
Reged: 02/20/05
Posts: 6785
Loc: Eastern PA
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Rodney is right. While their upper shutter seems to extended fairly far down, don't be surprised when you find snow in your observatory.
The issue is when it snows, warms a bit and then freezes. The upper shutter first pulls back to allow the lower shutter to open. What happens (at least on my system and other systems of this type I have seen) is sometimes a snow shelf stays attached to the upper shutter. As the upper shutter moves back it carries that snow shelf with it.
Now either one of 2 things are going to happen depending on much snow is left on top:
- One, when the lower shuttter opens it will contact the snow hanging over the upper shutter an promptly deposit it self on your observatory floor, a good portion of it will remain on the top of you mount and OTA.
- Two, the lower shutter will clear the snow/ice shelf this is the more likely of the 2 scenarios. The snow shelf will now sit above the opening of your observatory blocking your view of the zenith. It will remain there for some unknown amount of time until it decides to break free and deposit itself on your observatory floor, a good portion of it will remain on the top of you mount and OTA.
Also with Pier-techs design I would be concern with snow build up at the base since the walls rotate. What you don't see in the picture below is that the observatory is sitting on a elevated deck. The door handle is about 40" off the ground.
This is another reason if you have a remote system (of any type) you need to be able to view the system remotely. I have snow cover opening routine that sends the open/close command rapidly to the he shutters. This doesn't allow them to open but it helps break the snow/ice shelf if there is one. This helps lower the risk of the above scenarios. After a few cycles of this the normal open command is sent.
The other thing I don;t like about the Pier-Tech design if I understand it is since the walls rotate you can't attach anything electrical to them inside. I use every inch of space of my inside walls.
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-Marcus
The problem with free speech is even the stupid have a voice.
http://www.jatobservatory.org
Currently a SV102A, WO 66mm & 10" LX200GPS OTA on a Paramount ME
(these OTAs subject to change without notice)
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rodney
Vendor - Explora Dome
Reged: 03/08/05
Posts: 802
Loc: Asbury, NJ
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Quote:
Hi Rodney:
I have to disagree with that, when it comes to the Pier-Tech dome 1, anyway, from the drawing, it seems that the snow would wall forward first, upon opening the shutter, maybe get some in the doorway of the dome, which I can live with, and then the rest would fall back. I dont see how it would fall to the center of the dome where my pier and scope would be.
It is wonderful to not agree. However a drawing is not practical experience. The actual usage and conditions will vary greatly upon circumstances. As Marcus pointed out the rotating base would be a concern also.
Also please note that in my post I stated this is not a common occurence but circumstances change by the minute and anything is possible. I only mention it so you are well aware of what "might" happen so when you have whatever you choose you can't come back a year later and say hey there is snow on my equipment when I open my shutter.
Clear skies,
--------------------
Explora Dome information can be found here:
www.exploradome.us
Rodney
Meade 10 SCT
AT 8/F4 imaging scope
13 Truss
C8-NGT
Orion 80mm/F11
Canon 300D
Canon XSi
Two AS-GT mounts
Extremely happy Explora Dome home observatory owner
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texasam
member
Reged: 02/11/09
Posts: 20
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Quote:
The other thing I don;t like about the Pier-Tech design if I understand it is since the walls rotate you can't attach anything electrical to them inside. I use every inch of space of my inside walls.
Markus:
that was a concern that I had, but they have a sytem called "contactor bars" that allow you to power electrical items that you might mount on the wall. This is how they power the upper shutter motor while the dome can be in any position in azimuth.
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JAT Observatory
Got Cookies?
Reged: 02/20/05
Posts: 6785
Loc: Eastern PA
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Let us know how it all works out when you get it, we want pictures too.
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-Marcus
The problem with free speech is even the stupid have a voice.
http://www.jatobservatory.org
Currently a SV102A, WO 66mm & 10" LX200GPS OTA on a Paramount ME
(these OTAs subject to change without notice)
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