Category Archives: Observatory

Progress is still slow whilst I wait for more bits and pieces to arrive. I’ve ordered an HP EliteDesk Mini to try out as a “pier-top” machine and weatherproof boxes for each pier which will contain most of the electrical … Continue reading →

So it comes to that time when I need to think about power. In particular 12V (or 13.8V) power to the piers to supply most of the kit that will be on them. Initially my thoughts were to have a … Continue reading →

An addendum to my previous design post. The builder dropped the motor units off for the stair lifts that he thought might be butchered to make an automated roof mechanism. This first is the lighter weight one for the rack … Continue reading →

Pace has slowed a little of late, but I’ve kept things moving forward even if I haven’t been doing that much. Because it gets quite warm inside the observatory when it’s sunny, I installed a 100mm vent in the northern … Continue reading →

The last week has mostly been one of flooring. I finished off the foam tiles around the last pier, taking a huge amount of time just to make sure I didn’t get things wrong and varnished the floor in the … Continue reading →

A little delayed, the foam floor tiles for the scope room arrived today. I couldn’t just leave them sitting there so I spent a good half hour just playing with arrangements to try to minimise the cuts around the piers. … Continue reading →

Gorgeous day today, though it started a little chilly despite the sunshine. I mowed around the observatory and did some prep work for laying the foam tiles, and as suggested by other observatory builders used some off-cuts of EPDM to … Continue reading →

Allen bolts for fixing down the pier adapters arrived today, so this evening I got on with fitting those to the tops of the piers and putting the mounts back in place. There’s probably no reason why I couldn’t go … Continue reading →

Nothing too exciting today. I swept the observatory floor, then hoovered, then hoovered again, and then worked barefoot to get about 80% of the scope room floor sealed with a coat of varnish this evening. It actually went very quickly. … Continue reading →