Leaving Equipment out all night??

[Fluffyllama95 (Della)]

Hi!


I have a nice little setup and just recently got myself a ASI AIR PLUS - Its currently winter where I am and the nights drop to around 5 degrees C (41F). I have noticed every night all outdoor objects become wet/dewy/frosty by morning. When I am capturing I usually leave my scope out for 4 hrs then bring it inside, but I see so many people leaving scopes out on clear nights to get 8+ hrs of data. My question is How?! Is it okay for the equipment to get a dew layer on it? do I need to wait until summer? or will I never be able to leave it running all night? I don't want to damage my equipment but I just don't get how people can leave it out when everything outside is so fresh and wet in the mornings. I have a dew heater for the scope, but that's not going to keep the equipment dry

[Startrek (Martin)]

I image from 2 locations Sydney and Southcoast NSW
In Sydney I leave my mount and scope out most of the year and cover it just with an Orion scope cloak tied down around the base of the tripod legs with Velcro straps. I just throw an old towel over first then the scope cloak. My scope is a 6” newt and mount is an EQ6-R. Been doing this for years. The newt has a few external mould spots which I clean now and again and the mount is fine. I do lubricate all the external parts of the mount and tripod with silicon spray every few months and so far it’s fine , no rust spots anywhere.
On the south coast NSW I have a Dome now but prior to 2021 I use to leave the scope and mount outside just with a scope cloak and I’m only 150m from the beach ( salt air ) It was fine also. I also regularly lubricated the scope ,mount and tripod with silicon spray to prevent rust etc…
Sydney has heavy dew ,torrential rain , temps in Winter down to 6C and Summer up to 40C ( although above 35C during the day I would bring just the scope inside.
South coast NSW has salty air , temps in Winter down to 3C , dew , heavy rain etc….
Obviously at both locations I bring the main imaging camera inside after each session but the guide camera is always left in the guidescope. Any unused cable ports are taped over to prevent moisture

So the answer to your question is yes you can leave your rig outside when not in use provided it’s safe, secure and waterproofed ( and well lubricated externally)
Obviously when in use it’s designed to be outside until morning when observing or imaging

Cheers
Martin

[glend (Glen)]

Many cold night at the dark site at Bretti, I have left my gear outside. In fact everyone else camping there did the same thing. Of course we try to delay the arrival and impact of dew by using scope and camera heaters, sheds etc. But eventually it overcomes all those devices. It helps to be in a low humidity location obviously. Don't worry the sun will evaporate the dew the next morning and you can always dry it off with a towel (not the optics). Even observatory based gear can dew up.

[AdamJL]

So long as the optics aren't covered in dew, you're fine. If your gear has a severe build up, just wipe it off during the day.

[Saturn488]

I have designed my rig in a way that is easy to take down and setup each imaging session.

I have a permanent pier in the backyard with my mount that stays out there 24/7 under a patio heater cover and a heavy duty telegizmos cover. The bottom is opened to allow airflow.

When it's time to image I plonk my telescope on, balance it, plug in the power supply and I am up and running in less than 5 mins.

I have had my mount outside for over 1 year and there is only a touch of rust on the counterweights. Everything else is fine and dandy.

[RugbyRene (Rene)]

It should be fine to leave it out as long as you cover it during the day. I leave my rig running all night when doing an imaging run. I start a sequence, make sure it's running smoothly and then either bring it in if the weather is too hot or too wet, or just cover it with a water proof tarp.