Dew shield

[aussiepeter (Peter)]

G'day folks

I just picked up a celestron 8SE. I presume that almost anywhere except perhaps out in the deserts requires a dew shield at least during winter? I'm based in Canberra which gets a bit of dew, but not super heavy as humidity tends to be low.

What about shield heaters? Would you need one in Canberra?

I only use the scope for viewing, not photography. Just trying to figure out what key things to pick up for the scope.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Peter

[The_bluester (Paul)]

I have a C925.

I would regard a dew shield as handy but a corrector plate heater as essential. You will find that for a lot of the year an SCT will dew up in a flash. A dew shield will extend your observing time by an amount, a heater almost indefinitely.

An eyepiece heater is handy too, nothing more irritating than on a cool night, inadvertently breathing on your eyepiece and fogging it up.

[kon1966 (Kon)]

Hi Peter,
I have 8se as well and bought a Farpoint dewshield. Well worth it as Sydney metro does have alot of dew in winter. It extends your viewing by an hour so well worth it.

Regards
Kon

[Camelopardalis (Dunk)]

Peter, you might be surprised but with altitude and cool winter air it may well stay dew free for longer than you expect, these scopes have an undeserved reputation IMO. I have frequently used my C8 in the Blue Mountains with neither. Other times, and closer to the coast, it needs both

If you buy a heater strap you'll also need a controller / means of controlling the current to the heater strap, otherwise you could be overheating the scope and cause tube currents.

[The_bluester (Paul)]

Interesting that your experience is so different to mine. Even this time of year I set the heater up on the corrector, I don't switch it on unless I actually need it but I always have it there and often do need it. We are pretty well away from the coast here and dry as chips this year.

[Camelopardalis (Dunk)]

Maybe my scope has magic powers my C11 on the other hand, is a dew magnet

I'd recommend a dew shield at least as it also serves to prevent stray light affecting the view. If you're observing from home, you can always melt the dew off your scope with a hair dryer (with care of course)...another tip I learned, admittedly easier to do on an equatorial mount, is to rotate the scope so it is facing the ground for a few minutes.

Another strategy to consider if you don't get a heater strap immediately is to avoid pointing toward the zenith for too long, especially right after sun down when I find the steep temperature drop exacerbates the situation.

Maybe we should call this "dew management"

[aussiepeter (Peter)]

Thanks everyone for your responses, appreciate your feedback. Now I just need to decide which route to take, so many different opinions and options out there on dew heaters, shields and controllers!

Cheers
Peter