geez paul. You've really got into it in the past few days. Not too far off by the look of things. Is the bottom room going to be insulated? Have you ran any conduits yet?
Is the bottom room going to be insulated? Have you ran any conduits yet?
I'm planning on insulating the whole thing eventually Alex along with whirly gigs in the roof and floor/wall vents to get to the cooler air under the building. I've run conduit for the main power in and power out to the pier along with a 50mm pvc pipe to carry assorted data cables.
I've also just finished going around the studs and noggins with my hole saw and siliconing in some short pieces of flex conduit so I can run power where ever I want through the walls. At this stage the only walls I'm going to line are where the desk will be in the corner, that way I can take my time and work out just where powerpoints will be the most useful.
Y'know I gave up the building trade years ago cos it was killing me (then I took up landscaping ) but it's good to know some of the skills are still there.
Certainly the last two are Peter I keep getting responses from people when I tell the I'm cutting them down.
"Oh but they are lovely trees..... You have to keep them.....don't you like trees."
What most people don't realize is that they are wattles (Acacia melanoxylon) and they only live for 10 - 15 years before they die. Long before that though they start getting borer in them (The black cockatoos love them ). These ones are just at that point where they are starting to deteriorate, so its time for them to go. But they will be replace by more height suitable Grevilleas, Callistemon, Leptospermum and Melaleuca.
Cladding is underway, wiring is in, along with an Ethernet cable back to the house. I'll hopefully be picking up the rollers early next week so by end of the weekend the top roof should be rockin' and rollin' . Then I can finish the rest of the cladding.
Excellent work Paul, but insulation?, umm, no. Fans to keep the temp down in the summer yes, but insulation just means scope equalisation takes longer when you open up for imaging winter or summer. Wouldnt bother.
Do you think so Fred? I would have thought during summer it would be better to keep the temp down a bit inside. These are after all just tin sheds and will get very hot. Wouldn't it be of benefit to keep the scope closer to the average night temp during the day (or as close as feasible without using AirCon)so the equalization process would be quicker?
You have a point there, sounds logical, but my remote scope in the SA desert is on 24/7 (and its PC), often over 45deg C in a tin shed and it seems OK. Off during the day would be less of a worry. I dont know if insulation is going to do much for the bother, it could actually make it hotter in summer. And in the winter it would take longer to warm up once opened too. Unless your willing to wait an hr or more for warm up in winter (or regular refocus). My home rig is in a tin shed too, and it equalises pretty quickly, althogh the max is not that bad. QLD might be a different world of pain tho, if the temp gets above 45 deg, then carefull insulation might be required just to stop stuff melting. The fan would be a must then methinks ( I have a "whirly bird" passive roof cooler, seems to work).
Insulation will help to keep the peak temp down, but will slow the rate of cooling as well (at least until you open up the obs). It's definitely the way to go if you planned on AC, Paul.
The whirly bird ventilator is definitely a good idea if you opt not to go with the insulation. I'm not sure about its merits with insulation though.
Just as food for thought...
What about double skinning the obs, Paul? A second layer of cladding over the roof and around the walls with ventilation openings at the eaves... The outer skin acts as radiation shield so the heat getting to the obs from the sun will be 50% of a single skin shed...
Another option might be to insulate the roof only... stop the heat coming in the hottest part of the day, but still allow heat to escape through the walls as it cools... or maybe just double skin the roof?
How are you for water, Paul? You could always turn it into a giant Coolgardie Safe!
![[1ponders]'s Avatar](../vbiis/customavatars/avatar45_9.gif){kind=avatar}
) And Square!!!! 
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) but it's good to know some of the skills are still there. 
Some more piccies.
