133 replies to this topic

[MalVeauX]

Hey all,

 

So a little over a year ago I built a permanent concrete pier that my mount lived on 24/7 under a TG365 cover with a lamp & passive dehumidifier unit under the TG365 all the time. Worked great. But, I always wanted an observatory so that I could have walls to help cut down on the wind, and a space to keep more instruments, tools, etc, for visual astronomy & astrophotography right a the mount so that I didn't have to haul things out all the time. Observatories provide that luxury, so that was my next goal after saving up a little recreational cash and planning out what could be done. My goal was to do it inexpensively, effectively, and low mass so that I could do it all on my own without help and without special tools or special experience. I am no contractor, nor have I built any kind of large structure before, so all of this was a new adventure for me. That said, Florida makes it easy to approach these projects because we don't have snow or any of that business which really helps with how to approach the structure. We do have wind though. My area is a dark sky near the West coast of central Florida, where we don't receive any particular problems even from hurricanes, so it gave me a lot of options for a few aspects of the build.

 

So for reference, I had already built a concrete pier and I've had my mount operating from it, outdoors here in Florida 24/7. That build log and progress report can be found here: Link to Concrete Pier Build & Report.

 

Goal:

 

To build an inexpensive, low mass, simple DIY observatory with a roll-off-roof around my pre-existing my concrete pier and with my pier & mount's height in mind for horizon field of view (effects wall height), mount and some instruments and gear for visual astronomy & astrophotography. My budget was around $1500 +/- some more as needed for everything up to this point (I still want to build some shelves and a desk or two, etc, which will add to this cost, but it's very minor so I'm not concerned about it and it can be done over time). I also wanted to be able to pick up the materials and supplies locally, without any special ordering, from any basic hardware store (I happened to use Lowes for all of this). Also, the only tools involved were basic ones and no special tables or advanced stuff, I'm no contractor, I just happen to have a circular saw, power drill and measuring tape. I did not want to have to do any special cutting, no angled cutting, etc, and I wanted to utilize as many standard material sizes to keep that to a minimum (ie, 8 & 12 foot lumber and materials, etc). Everything was kept at 12 foot or less, so that I could easily transport it in my Ranger truck. Another concept I wanted to stick to was that I could disassemble this if needed, and as a floating structure (shed) I wouldn't get hassled (plus its nice to live in the deep country where you can do virtually anything anyways; fair warning, do not just do something without checking out code/permit/etc stuff on your side of things).

 

Budget:

 

$1500 USD +/- a little bit depending on need. I've stayed on budget so far. I have very little scrap or left overs. And that's with everything coming from Lowes, Walmart and Amazon. Some things were more expensive than I anticipated such as wood sealer, overall cost of screws (wow! $90 in screws easy!). Lumber is cheap. Treated wood adds up fast though. Overall my deck was probably 1/4th of the budget, the roofing and siding was 1/3rd of the budget, and the rest filled between that (walls were cheap to make). Granted, this budget was the structure. The pier was separate and previous done, and my budget for that is in my other thread linked above (but it was not expensive either, around $200 for my pier and mounting plates).

 

Tools:

 

Circular Saw (7.25") with standard ripping blade

Power drill with a philips bit, hex bit (comes with the screws I buy free) & 1/4" and 5/8" drill bits

Utility knife (razor blades)

Hammer

Right angle

A couple of long levels

Shovel

Gloves

 

Overall the project took me about a week to complete between my work schedule. I got the bulk of it done in 4 days (the main structure & roof). I got the rest done a few days later with the siding, door, and a few finishing touches. I did the whole project on my own so everything had to be low mass and small enough for me to manage. I made a lot of mistakes and learned a ton. Again, I've never done this sort of thing and have no experience building a structure. I learned virtually everything from this forum and youtube videos.

 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Nearly completed project up to this point (3/15/18):

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next will follow the report & log of what I did to build this with my above stated goals in mind.

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 08:52 PM.

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 2nd, 2018

 

First load of materials in my truck dropping off at my observatory in my 5 acre field.

 

 

Organized some materials, with some "helpers" taking a look. Treated 2x6x8's and 2x6x12's and some 1x6x12 deck boards (treated). Bags of pea gravel. Concrete deck blocks (they form right angles, for 2" lumber and center 4x4 lumber posts). Joist hangers to hold the 2x6x8 frames that will be the base for the deck boards. I'm using 3" deck screws.

 

 

Did some measuring and planning for placement of the floating deck. Tried to center it up on the pier with it's base. I wasn't that precise. Just got pretty close.

 

 

Dug some holes for the gravel & bases. I dug the holes about 2 foot deep or so, and about 2x2 feet. I filled the hole with gravel. The point of this is to have a draining area that can have a floating deck on it, and easier to level things on the gravel base. I opted to not do posts in concrete for this because it would be a "permanent" structure in my area and sheds don't require it in my area.

 

 

Holes filled with pea gravel. The pea gravel is to allow for draining and easier leveling.

 

 

Deck block placed on the gravel. Once the block is on the gravel, you can level it and move it as needed. Very easy plug & play.

 

 

Main 2x6x12's & 2x6x8's (treated lumber) placed for square and leveling on the bases. I joined the boards and continued to check square & level.

 

 

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 01:48 PM.

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 3rd, 2018

 

2x6x8's (treated) runners placed to form the frame and hanged with joists. The joists just add more strength to the boards as they will take the weight of the deck boards that will go on top and all my walking.

 

 

Finished floating deck frame. I could not frame up close to the pier due to my base footer being above ground. I wanted my deck to be nearly at ground level to avoid having to lower my walls below 6 feet for comfortable walking. Thankfully it doesn't matter much to have less runners around my base near the pier, so I didn't have to have to do any complex framing.

 

 

 

1x6x12 (treated) deck boards placed over the frame and secured. This is a floating deck if I stopped at this point.

 

 

 

Cut some of the deck boards to allow room for my pre-existing pier. Was a little off, but the boards don't touch the pier, so I'm good.

 

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 01:51 PM.

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 4th

 

Another load to build walls. These are 2x4x12's and 2x4x8's of standard pine that I will rip down to size (minor cuts, nothing special) for my walls.

 

 

First wall built. Lowered my wall to specifically 76" inches so that my mount & guide scope could polar align at 29 degrees. So I cut the 2x4x8's to 73 inches for the internal frame. Plus the 3" from the 2x4x8's that are the outer frame to make 76". I initially measured this, again, based on field of view from my guidescope so I knew I could polar align with right ascension at 0 (or 45?) degrees on the horizon (like what you'd do with Polemaster or Sharpcap, I use Sharpcap). The internal frame is spaced with standard 16" on square framing that I learned about (in case I ever want to insulate and finish the inside in the future).

 

 

First wall up. It was very light weight, just pushed on there, put some deck screws down and went back to making more walls.

 

 

Second long wall made. This is the biggest and heaviest wall. Again, kept the 16" on square spacing for the frame ribs. Light enough to raise on my own. I braced it up against the first wall and secured it. Then secured it to the deck.

 

 

Second long wall up and secured to the other wall and the deck.

 

 

Third & Fourth walls made at the same time. I wanted to put up my long wall with the door first, so that I could judge spacing for my last short wall, to keep everything square so my roll off roof tracking would be straight for 24 feet on each side.

 

 

All walls up and secured. Everything level and square and holds together nicely.

 

 

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 01:57 PM.

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 4th Continued

 

More of the walls.

 

 

 

 

Very best,

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 4th

 

Roof extension for the roll off section & roof itself materials brought to the site. Treated 2x4x8's and 2x4x12's and some standard 2x4x8 pine along with more gravel and deck blocks.

 

 

More holes, gravel & bases placed and measured/squared for the roof extension. I got these level and square with the rest of the deck so that my roof extension would line up.

 

 

2x4x8's cut & joined to create my own 4x4x8's (treated) and held in place with spare lumber. I made my own 4x4x8's because I didn't have the means to easily cut a solid 4x4x8. So instead, I cut some 2x4x8's and then joined them to make my own custom size 4x4x8 for the stands. Worked great. These fit into the deck blocks. While some may claim this is not secure, that is true for a dedicated roof, but for a temporary place for the roof to sit during sessions, it's perfectly fine for a low mass roof.  I erected everything using 2x4x8's screwed into them to keep them standing in place while I then placed the 2x4x12's for the extensions.

 

 

Finishing the extensions.

 

 

Completed extensions & joists. I dropped the beams between the stands with joist hangers so that I had room in case I put any kind of overhang on the siding in the future.

 

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 02:01 PM.

[SeymoreStars]

Looks great Marty!!

 

I am jealous. We still have a foot of snow on the ground and the zoning board must grant me a variance....Geez.

Edited by sink45ny, 15 March 2018 - 01:25 PM.

[starcanoe]

Looks great !

 

One point for somebody using corrugated sheet.  They make (or at at least used to) wood strips that have a wavy side that is the same size as your standard corrugations...and flat on the other side. so you can mount it much more firmly to so a stud/2x4/whatever and it will be much better sealed to start with. Throw in  a thin bead (it won't take much) of construction adhesive and it will be even better.

 

Roughly where in Florida are you?

 

Again, looks great.

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 5th

 

Created my guide track for the caster wheels out of some 8 foot 1x1" right angle metal track (8 foot lengths, so I bought 6 total and drilled holes for securing them myself). They were cheap, found at Lowes. I was originally looking at v-groove track and v-casters, but that expense was too much for my goals. Instead, with a low mass roof, I don't need all that extra hardware to make this work and keep it in place. The metal tracking was used to simply guide the casters from leaving the top of the roof boarding. It doesn't need internal guiding because it's width won't allow it to drop internal without going external on the opposing side. Very simple crude track. But it's inexpensive, metal and works. I drilled with 1/4" standard bit, the material is either tin or aluminum. I secured these to the outer side of the top boards. The casters will be on the inside relative to the track.

 

 

Guide track secured. This track keeps the wheels internal to the structure and nothing more. The wheels, once internal, do not move out of place due to the track and its own mass and placement of wheels (centered on the boards).

 

 

Roof & Siding material (asphalt & fiber corrugated panels that I found at Lowes, cheaper than plywood/OSB, light weight, weather proof, durable, can be cut with a utility knife). I really struggled with the idea of using polycarb, wood, metal, etc. Cost was a big factor. Then I found this stuff and it was cheaper than polycarb and cheaper than plywood/OSB, yet it's weather proof and light weight and I can cut it without any special tools. Plus it's light weight and I can lift it up and secure it myself. That's a huge benefit. It also helps keep my goal of a low mass roof. The corrugation is also what I wanted because it changes surface area of the roof with respect to water holding. More on this in a moment.

 

 

First roof section made (I built it in two sections to be joined once both on top of the structure). I built the roof the same as I built my walls, but at different measurements. They're 6 foot total length each by the width of the frame of the structure. Fits exactly. I aligned & secured the casters in place. I pre-measured everything so the casters would be internal to the guide track but centered on the board of the top of the walls.

 

 

First roof section raised. This was fairly light weight still as a single section. I raised it up by using one corner of the roof as a fulcrum, then balanced it on the edge, and got a portion of the frame over the wall. Then I simply lift the fulcrum end and the frame now balances on the wall. I pushed it up from there, still not too heavy, didn't take a lot of effort (this was a main goal and huge part of why I built this style roof). I then simply angled things to get the casters in place. Then it was done and rolled great, and didn't come off the guide track even with hard pushing. Bingo.

 

 

 

Second roof piece made and put in place. Using the same method to get it up there. They both glided along and were secure in the tracking great. Enough mass to keep it in place, but light enough to still freely move without much effort.

 

 

Both roof pieces joined together as one now, and tested. I married the two together with deck screws. They are still aligned and the whole unit tracks nicely. Pushing and pulling at different angles, it doesn't come off the track or slip anywhere.

 

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 02:11 PM.

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 5th

 

The roof is a controversial subject, for many, because it's flat. I struggled with considering a pitched roof, trusses, etc. I ultimately went flat. I don't get snow and stuff, so I can get away with some freedoms that someone up north cannot. I also went with corrugated panels because this effectively reduces the surface area that will hold water (if it ever does) by half. The crests of the corrugation do not hold the water, the water only can fall and collect in the trough of the corrugation. So the real surface area is actually only half what my 12x8 roof actually is, in terms of the load it would take. A 4x6 flat panel is smaller than a single sheet of ply for reference. With 16" spacing ribs, the weight it can take is significant. So my roof is overkill for load in terms of water over surface area as the crests can only hold about an inch of water (but that cannot physically even happen as it will spread the length of the trough first). The material is water proof. The material also does not radiate significant heat so it doesn't mess with my seeing over it and cools rapidly. The flat roof is common in Florida, even with houses. But again, we don't have snow and other things. Just rain & wind. My area is not subject to major hurricane winds, ever. Hurricane Irma directly hit my house, and my garbage cans didn't even fall over (even though we evacuated) and no significant tornadoes or storms for multiple decades. 

 

Roof material being placed (used 3" deck screws & washers in the crests of the corrugation). The washers are to keep the screws from ripping through the material while holding it because I didn't want to flatten the corrugation. Plenty of overhang on the sides.

 

 

 

 

Putting up a side to test things out. The siding is 79 inches so it fits perfectly from my deck base to the top of my 76" walls, and then covering my casters and that space so there's a very small gap between the roof and the sides. The 79" is still low enough to not interfere with my polar alignment needs at 29 degrees.

 

 

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 02:19 PM.

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 9th

 

Finished putting up more of the siding & corner covers. The corner covers are typically used for gaps on roofs. I used them to simply cover my corners instead. This gave me more control over how I overlapped and joined things and to cover up the wood (even though its treated).

 

 

Had to cut a piece for the door (used a utility knife, easy to do the cuts) to frame it out. I also added another piece of wood to the door frame for the securement of the future door. I went for a wide door space so I could easily move material in and out. This also means I have to do a custom door (which is cheaper than buying one anyways!).

 

 

Overhang, supports and track entry. I minimized spacing and gaps to prevent rain coming in and also to discourage animals (bats!).

 

 

Finished siding. The only lumber exposed is treated wood. At this point, I had also went and used some weater sealer on the non-treated and some of the treated lumber to simply help in areas where water could accumulate or drip onto, just in case.

 

 

Roof rolls off effortlessly still, still low mass, but secure and tracks great, door framed out.

 

 

Top of door panel cut with utility knife to conceal the track & casters.

 

 

The field of view so far.

 

 

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 02:23 PM.

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 11th

 

Filled in more pea gravel on all bases. Mostly to fill gaps, looks a little nicer, less holes to twist an ankle or drop something into.

 

 

Treated lumber (2x4x12 & 2x4x10's, cut) secured to side of roof panels. I extended out the edge of the roof, over the corrugated panels, plus the overhand of the roof. The result is very good at keeping rain from getting inside.

 

 

4x8 pine panel and some 2x6x8 deck boards (treated) for a custom door.

 

 

Framed with deck boards and cut to size.

 

 

Door mounted.

 

 

 

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 02:25 PM.

[Real14]

Hi,

 

You have done a great Job.

 

Just one Observation in regard to the angles for guiding the wheels.

 

Your wheels are rolling inside the angle and when it rains you have the water inside the Observatory.

 

If you have the opportunity I would recommend to turn them around into the inside and let the wheels roll on the outside of the angle, so the water can flow to the outside of the wall.

 

regards Rainer

Edited by Real14, 15 March 2018 - 03:01 PM.

[MalVeauX]

Build Log & Report :: March 15th

 

T-Handle Bar installed in the door. I had to order this off-line, no one had one in a store (Lowes, Ace, Walmart, etc). This can be fit to a custom width easily so it handles any sort of door project. I used a 5/8th drill bit for the bar to go through the door. Holds great. Locks if I want to. Also I put water sealer on the door just to help it weather better.

 

 

 

Expanding foam (generic stuff from Walmart, was around $3 a can) to fill in corrugation (this was way, way, way, way cheaper than using the forms you can buy for corrugation panels). I use this to stop critters from entering at these points easily (I have lots of mice & bats in my field and area). All the corrugation options have pre-made things to fill the trough gaps. They're expensive when you consider how many you need. Foam may not look glamorous or finished, but it does the job, seals it up, keeps things out and I can cut it if I want. Much cheaper! Primarily I'm using this to simply keep out bats. Yes, bats.

 

 

 

Some base treated end pieces added just to stop the track of the roll off roof, in case for some weird reason it just went rolling off on its own.

 

 

Turn-buckles (one in each corner) installed. Holds everything in place great in case it gets windy and stormy.

 

 

Current state of project (and went through my first raining storm already too, everything stayed dry).

 

 

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 02:28 PM.

[starcanoe]

Ahhhh. I see you used foam. For anybody ever using that stuff. It can be messy. Don't touch it or try to wipe it down. You'll be like Briar Rabbit fighting with the Tar Baby before you know it

[George Bailey]

Ahhhh. I see you used foam. For anybody ever using that stuff. It can be messy. Don't touch it or try to wipe it down. You'll be like Briar Rabbit fighting with the Tar Baby before you know it

Ain't THAT the truth !   (I learned that the hard way.   )

 

Great job, Marty !!!  

[MalVeauX]

@sink45ny:

 

I don't know what I would do in snow, and having to deal with stuff like zoning and home owner stuff, etc. Ugh!

 

 

@starcanoe:

 

 

Good point, the strips you refer to were available both as wood, polycarb and foam. However, they're quite expensive! The expanding foam does the same job, for a fraction of the cost. That's why I opted to go foam.

 

I'm in the Chiefland/Trenton area near the West coast, on the way to Cedar Key.

 

@Real14:

 

Thanks, very good point. I'll watch for it. I've had it rain already and so far, water didn't come in at all, between the roof over hand and the wood overhang over the siding, water never got on the track in the first place. But if I notice that happen, and I'll watch for it, I will swap the track to the opposite side. Everything can be undone/redone on this as I used screws and there's room to undo literally anything (except foam, that stuff cannot be undone haha!).

 

 

@starcanoe:

 

I was foaming the top of the roof edges and a big clop of it fell, naturally I caught it to avoid it getting on the deck. And so I had a handful of the stuff. Totally bad news. And I definitely dragged in through some sand to see if I could rub some off. And for a few hours I had a pretty dark of adhesive residue and dirt mixture. I got it all off later with a lot of goo-gone and scrubbing. The one time I wasn't wearing gloves!

 

 

@George Bailey:

 

Me too! Will always wear gloves next time (disposable gloves).

 

(Sorry, I did multi-quote, then it gives me a message saying I had more than the allowed number of quoted blocks of text. What a total weird limitation for 2018.... sigh)

 

 

Very best,

[starcanoe]

Chiefland/Cedar Key....one of the nicer places for Florida observing.

 

As an aside....Gorilla glue....it foams up a bit and is almost as nasty. And when they say it will STAIN your hands...they mean it.

[MalVeauX]

Yea, the Chiefland Astronomy Village is only a few miles away. Good dark skies still, for Florida, at least. I may eventually get to the West coast itself, I'd like to eventually settle on the north end of Cedar Key, but that'll take a while.

 

Gorilla glue is great stuff! I really constantly have to remind myself, wear gloves, always wear gloves, I always regret clean up when I could have just worn gloves!

 

Very best,

[CCD-Freak]

Hi Marty

 

Great looking observatory but you need to improve your hold down bolts.  I used the same setup and my 8' x 12' roof ended up 300 feet down wind after a severe thunderstorm.  All six of the bolts were ripped out of the wood.   I was lucky that I had the scope with me at TSP at the time. 

 

"NEVER underestimate the power of moving air" !!!!!!

 

John

CCD-Freak

WD5IKX

Edited by CCD-Freak, 15 March 2018 - 09:27 PM.

[MalVeauX]

So here's some information regrading how I keep my mount/scope/camera dew free through the night here in Florida. Day time isn't the problem. It's night time. During the night, Florida hits 100% humidity all the time. Everything dews over fast in the night and is wet. This leads to all kinds of bad stuff with machines.

 

I keep my mount/scope/camera under a TG365 cover when not in use. But, I have to cinch it shut because of bats. Seriously, bats! So this can lead to issues with temperatures and how they effect humidity and dew points, etc, at different times. So I have to manage temperature and humidity under there. Even though now I'm in an observatory, I still do this, just to be safe, as I don't want to deal with messed up mounts and stuff from dew turning to rust and other bad growths. I want to keep it dry and warm! I keep it warm because if I'm warmer than ambient temperature, then I'm dew free. And I still use a passive dehumidifier, just in case when I'm going to be at work a few days at a time.

 

I use a standard little clamp on lamp, nothing special, and I clip it onto the scope setup and face it down. It prevents anything from touching the bulb and getting too hot. It stops impact breakage. And it keeps the all important input/output side of the mount warmer (no dew, no rust, just dry and happy). I keep an evadry unit as a passive dehumidifier that I change out now and then. I cover it all with a TG365 cover and cinch it shut at the base with a 24" bungee cable to keep critters (bats!!) out. I use a 45 watt lamp bulb. Enough to warm it up. Lower energy needs to not have a crazy hot or crazy expensive light to run as I leave it going 24/7 when I'm not in there.

 

 

(Though I cinch the bottom shut with a bungee cable, in the following image, the bottom is open as I hadn't closed it up yet)

 

 

Here's how the results are (from my temp/humidity gauge that I keep with the mount to monitor it):

 

Current situation as of 10:15pm tonight (and this is common with Florida) is I will see 100% humidity, every night. This is the primary issue that I have to overcome, every day, to keep things safe. As you can see on the chart (this is for tonight, my time, 3/15/2018, I'm at 63% humidity right now and heading towards 96%, 98%, 99% and finally 100% by 5am. Usually by 11pm, everything is dripping, but we have a cold front right now, so humidity is lower right now. But it will pick up and be back at 100% earlier than this even very soon. Notice it's a bit chilly right now here in Florida, in the 40's F! One last March chill before it gets hot. But still, we stay humid even with that!

 

 

In my observatory, under my TG365 cover, with my heat lamp and dehumidifier, here's what is going on at 10:15pm, on my monitor (67 F and 12% humidity is what's on my scope, the other numbers are in my office. So it's a little warmer under my cover with the mount, and way less humid).

 

 

Warmer. Low humidity. The result? No dew. Ever. And this isn't from the observatory at all (though it helps with ambient temperature). The humidity control is what is vital. The temperature is really irrelevant for me. Keeping humidity low means I never get to dew point. Keeping it hot also means I will never get close to the dew point even when it's 100% humidity. Remember, at 100% humidity the dew point is the ambient temperature (this is why Florida is nasty for leaving things outside). So we have to be warmer than ambient, at some point, every night, to prevent dew. Temperature control is actually just a way to manage humidity, oddly enough, in Florida, just like managing dew on your optics. Heat it up.

 

Very best,

Edited by MalVeauX, 15 March 2018 - 09:30 PM.

[MalVeauX]

Hi Marty

 

Great looking observatory but you need to improve your hold down bolts.  I used the same setup and my roof ended up 300 feet down wind after a severe thunderstorm.  All six of the bolts were ripped out of the wood.   I was lucky that I had the scope with me at TSP at the time. 

 

"NEVER underestimate the power of moving air" !!!!!!

 

John

CCD-Freak

WD5IKX

Thanks John, what do you recommend based on what you see that I have going on?

 

Very best,

[starcanoe]

Good discussion of humidity...in particular southeastern places like Florida.

[CCD-Freak]

Hi Marty

 

I would replace the screw in eye bolts with eye bolts with large washers and lock nuts on each side of the boards.  I would also put at least four on each side and I would reinforce the roof and wall with metal angle brackets around the anchors.  Look at other observatory builds to see what others have done as there may be even better ways to do it.  I moved not too long after my roof went "Frisbee" so I did not get to try a different system.  Texas and Florida are known for some crazy thunderstorms and hurricanes and we won't even mention tornadoes.  Just don't leave too much to  chance.  I would anchor the building to the ground too.

 

I'm not running down your build....I just don't want you to experience coming home to a roofless observatory.  

 

 

John

CCD-Freak

WD5IKX

[CCD-Freak]

Hi Marty

 

Here is a link with ideas...some good and some not so good.

 

https://www.cloudyni...of-blowing-off/

 

 

John

CCD-Freak

WD5IKX

Edited by CCD-Freak, 15 March 2018 - 10:22 PM.