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Old 03-05-2021, 09:41 PM
langman78 (Ben)
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Dew heater

Hi all,

Something I’ve been meaning to purchase for quite sometime and now I’m finally looking into pulling the trigger I’m a little overwhelmed by the selections available. Looking to use for basic wide field AP but I guess something I can utilize with not only my DSLR lens’s but perhaps a smallish refractor if I ever choose to buy eventually.
Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

Ben
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Old 04-05-2021, 06:37 PM
langman78 (Ben)
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Mmmmm maybe stick with my old method yrs ago with using a small heated wheat bag
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Old 05-05-2021, 07:16 AM
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Ben check out Bintel as I think they may be of help...you may find you end up needing multiple heating strips and a control unit...I have been using a product to put on my legs...little bags that heat up when you unwrap them..neat..you stick these on the inside of your clothes..."HOTHANDS"...from the chemist which I recon would be great for a dew heater...they say they last ten hours and they do...an excellent product
But..I dont know how much they cost as I did not buy them and did not ask the price...but if they save an imaging session why worry about the money.

And a couple inside your shirt and pants will warm you on those cold nights...
Good luck with all of it.
Alex
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Old 05-05-2021, 08:13 AM
langman78 (Ben)
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Appreciate that Alex. I’ll definitely look into that. Yeah I only come across the Bintel ones last night. Little pricy for what they are but I guess what isn’t in this hobby. Quite a few options available on Amazon which why I was left a little overwhelmed by what to get. Good reviews on most but left wondering if reviewed by noobs who are yet to define a good product from a bad one within this craft. As I’m super inexperienced imagining I thought I’d ask folks here to potentially buy right first time.
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Old 05-05-2021, 08:19 AM
Zuts
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Quote:
Originally Posted by langman78 View Post
Mmmmm maybe stick with my old method yrs ago with using a small heated wheat bag
Hi,

How would you keep the bags hot over a lengthy 8 hour imaging session?

There are many not too expensive dew heater solutions available from various retailers and some come up for sale regularly on IceTrades.

You can also make your own from quite simple ones to more complex ones like this one from Jaycar

https://www.jaycar.com.au/diy-telescope-dew-heater

Cheers
Paul
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Old 05-05-2021, 08:27 AM
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Well I splashed out and bought one strip from Bintel and it was so expensive my brain wont tell me what I paid for it...I just could not put my hand in my pocket for the controller then worried that without it I could fry my scope...but I think these little heat bags could be real handy...and the key to astrophotography is to just keep trying and although you will find things you can do better to simply enjoy and be proud of your results...one of my shots was rather poor but I was so happy and proud of it because I bagged it in spite of multiple problems each of which one could have thrown in the towel ... It seemed everything went wrong but I did not give up and so although the result was not flash it reminded me how I did not give up.
I look forward to logging on at some point in the future to see some of your efforts.
Alex
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Old 05-05-2021, 09:33 AM
Spidy (Phil)
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For me the cheapest option is to buy a Pegasus Power Box Advanced for Controller (has two outputs not to mention all the other benefits it gives you) and a cheap dew heater strip.


And if you want to save more money, buy both items from overseas.
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Old 05-05-2021, 10:46 AM
Dave882 (David)
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Loving the ASIAIR pro. You can plug the strap into the hub and in power settings change to “heater” and then it gives you a 0-100% power control over your strap.

On a side note I’ve noticed virtually no difference between a $50 strap or a $150 strap in heating.
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Old 06-05-2021, 07:24 AM
DamienB (Damien)
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Timely post as I was about to post a question on do we need a Dew heater? It makes sense to me for those in really cold environments, a lot of the youtubers do it in the snow etc. But I'm in Adelaide.... the coldest it's got is down to 11 degrees so far and I sure as heck won't be out there imaging.

I do alot of imaging in the summer/spring etc and I question if I really need a dew heater?

Damien
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Old 06-05-2021, 10:07 AM
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You will know if you need one thats for sure..
But Astronomy is not about buying only what you need for goodness sake so I recommend you get the Power Box controller at $550 and say 3 heater straps at $150 each just in case you find the weather changes...be prepared.
Alex
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Old 06-05-2021, 10:36 AM
Dave882 (David)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DamienB View Post
Timely post as I was about to post a question on do we need a Dew heater? It makes sense to me for those in really cold environments, a lot of the youtubers do it in the snow etc. But I'm in Adelaide.... the coldest it's got is down to 11 degrees so far and I sure as heck won't be out there imaging.

I do alot of imaging in the summer/spring etc and I question if I really need a dew heater?

Damien
For Newtonians and smaller refractors it may not be so problematic, but for my 8inch sct I will get dew even in the summer. It’s all about the dew point which depends on humidity- so if it’s humid in summer and there’s a temp droip of more than approx 7-8degrees I get problems. So for example I had my scope up in qld last month and had evenings about 26degrees but things were getting really really wet by about 9pm when the temp dropped to approx 18degrees.

The only time the dew will stay away for sure is if it’s windy... but it’s easier to deal with the dew IMHO!
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Old 06-05-2021, 03:41 PM
Graman (GR)
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FWIW, I use the WW Astro dew heater purchased from Sirius Optics on my SCT. Worked well last week here in Sydney when it got cold at night and humidity levels were high.

Looks like they have the smaller sizes in stock:
http://www.sirius-optics.com.au/tele...telescope.html

I found the WW Astro ones quite generous in length compared to the other brands, which makes it easier to overlap and strap them tight on the tube.

All the best in your search. Clear skies!
GR
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Old 06-05-2021, 06:18 PM
Startrek (Martin)
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Dew can ruin your nights imaging sooner than you think
Be prepared , you may not use your dew control system that often but it’s there as insurance for your imaging sessions
I use newts for imaging and use an Orion 4 channel Dewzapper with 4 Kendrick dew heater straps
1 x strap over the OTA near the primary
1 x strap over the OTA near the secondary
1 x strap around my finder scope
1 x strap around my guide scope
Before each imaging session I check wind speed for the evening and humidity
If there’s not a breath of wind and the night has humidity exceeding 65% the dew control system is switched on
I’ve never had a session ruined by Dew since setting up my dew control nearly 4 years ago
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Old 06-05-2021, 08:00 PM
DamienB (Damien)
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I feel i might be ok. Where I am in seaford rise in Adelaide is pretty damn windy..... most of the time. And humidity? I wouldn't know what that is.. Adelaide is so damn dry.. I can taste the air. LOL!
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Old 12-05-2021, 03:29 AM
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NorthernLight (Max)
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For a camera lens, I can recommend a USB dew heater cable 80mm. Together with a little USB power bank the whole shebang sets you back less than a hundred bugs. The power bank has many applications such as charge your phone when off grid camping. The heater strips can be found here https://www.amazon.com/Dew-Heater/s?k=Dew+Heater and a suitable 20,000mAh LI battery with USB port you may already have.
The heater strip works also on a powered USB port, such as provided at home from your phone charger.
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Old 12-05-2021, 04:35 PM
gb44 (Glenn)
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Have a look at Dewbuster controller for $275 US and the website describes DIY heater strips. I have used the things and it works great.
https://www.dewbuster.com/default.html

GlennB
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Old 13-05-2021, 07:19 PM
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AG Hybrid (Adrian)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NorthernLight View Post
For a camera lens, I can recommend a USB dew heater cable 80mm. Together with a little USB power bank the whole shebang sets you back less than a hundred bugs. The power bank has many applications such as charge your phone when off grid camping. The heater strips can be found here https://www.amazon.com/Dew-Heater/s?k=Dew+Heater and a suitable 20,000mAh LI battery with USB port you may already have.
The heater strip works also on a powered USB port, such as provided at home from your phone charger.

This right here.


I run 2 of them. One for me 120ED and one for its finder scope. They even come with their own controller to turn them down if your have to.
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Old 18-05-2021, 09:10 PM
langman78 (Ben)
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Thanks for all the intel folks.
I’ll hopefully be pulling the trigger on a samyang 14mm at some stage this year and a I’m sure a dew heater will definitely help me during future crisp evenings.
Just wondering if anyone here experiences focus adjustment issues when a dew heater/strap is introduced to a DSLR lens?
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Old 26-05-2021, 10:37 AM
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Wilsil (Wilco)
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I had to stop my session yesterday as my usb heater strip didn't want to stay on.
First I had it connected to the PPBA but it switched off. When the midline connection after the 3 setting "switch" was broken, it worked. When connected it stopped.
Then I connected it straight to the laptop and it worked, for a few minutes then it stopped.
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Old 26-05-2021, 02:53 PM
bluesilver (Peter)
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Hi, I have watching this tread with a bit of interest and sorry to jump in on this with another question as it is pretty well related.

I am looking for a dew heater to fit an eyepiece ( 10mm Tele vue Delos )
I seen the link posted for the ones on Amazon, and noticed that a USB power bank was mentioned to power them.

Just out of interest, what size USB power bank would you recommend looking at?
I will have to measure the eyepiece to find what size to get for that.
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