The winter nights have been getting pretty cold and my ed100 refractor hasn't been doing so well with the dew
So I explore my options and after a quick search I decide forking out over $100 to heat my scope isn't worth it.
Next step is to diy!
My first attempt(s) were to make some dew straps using nichrome wire, which to their credit got really hot! The only problem was the wire was burning straight through the support material I had wrapped it around
Trying to find a material that doesn't conduct, has a high heat resistance and is also flexible was beyond me (I was getting too frustrated at this point)
After doing some more searching online for alternatives I found a store on Aliexpress that sells heating elements! At this point I was like jackpot! In my head all I needed was something roughly the right size that was designed for 12v.
I picked the heating element that was closest to what I needed. Just as I was about to checkout I realised they actually make heater elements just for removing dew! They can make them in just about any size, you just need to leave them a message. The dew heater I got is gonna be just like
this one but for a 4" telescope (ed100). I'll let you know on quality once the package gets here
Ok so what about the dew controller? Well making the dew controller was actually super simple. All I used was one of those cheap lm2596 dc-to-dc regulator modules.
You can get them at jaycar. I replaced the small multi turn resistor with a large potentiometer and placed it in a little plastic project case. The lm2596 is good up to 2amps, 3amps with a heatsink.
All I need to do for the dew controller is find a good place to mount it