I have a STT8300M which has now been in for repair three times. I have been using it with a self-guiding 8 filter, filter wheel and an AO-8T , so that guiding is placed in front of the filters and with an AO-8T. If I want to move on from the superseded line of STT cameras, what model line should I look at to maintain the guiding advantage?
The STT series has been replaced by the Aluma models. The AO-8T can be upgraded to AO-8A simply by replacing the cable (the connector is different).
Greg, I had a chat w Bill Lynch our service wizard, and he shared some photos of the corrosion on the boards. Can you tell me a bit about the environment the camera was in ? Did you leave it on or power it off when not in use? The Aluma might be a better way to go, as the boards aren't in the "open air" as much as the prior generations of SBIG cameras.
Since you're a good customer, maybe we can do something special for you. The FW8G Aluma is actually very similar to the FW8G-STT; perhaps we can work out some upgrade pricing and rebuild your wheel to work with Aluma. And certainly the AO-8 is trivially converted by replacing the cable. To echo Colin's comment about corrosion, my design philosophy is to minimize the exposure of electronics to the atmosphere. Especially in salt environments (i.e. within 30 miles of the ocean), salt gets gradually deposited on exposed surfaces and it can eventually corrode the circuit boards. Aluma's cooling is via a separate channel that contains the forced air within the heat sink. The fans do not circulate air around the circuit boards. Also a recommendation: if you have your camera permanently installed in an observatory, it's a good idea to leave it powered up with the cooler off when not in use. This helps prevent condensation within the camera.
I like this thread. I also had my STT8300M camera back to Bill, and he expressed that some components were corroded. I have always carefully covered my camera, telescope and mount controller with several layers of polybag, you know the type. Then I have a large PVC/canvas cover over all. that is pulled tight around the pier. No water gets directly onto the OTA or the electronics. After painfully buying a new board from Bill I put more thought into what I was doing. I think that dew got trapped was getting trapped inside. Then as the temperature dropped the moisture would condense on different components. My current solution is to improve the polybag sealing with 2 pcs 50 gram bags of silica gel. When the weight gets to 66 grams I know it is time to dry out again at home. I bought my camera/filter/AO used. So maybe it was not pristine when I bought it. It is easy to say, why leave >$5,000 astronomy electronics outside, and not disassemble and take inside after each use. I say, why would a company design a >$5,000 system and fail to protect the PCB with a simple to do lacquer conformal coating that will not corrode in the known high humidity environment of astrophotography. Dew shields are used to fight the humidity near the lens. Electronics need something too, IMO. Yes, I would love a permanently housed observatory or roll off. But alas it is not allowed on top the building where I live. Roger
Conformal coating has several issues, including (a) it makes it very difficult or impossible to repair the board and thus increases repair costs significantly, (b) it can have pinholes that allow corrosion to proceed, and (c) it does absolutely nothing to protect the internal connectors. At best it slows down the problem. The only real solution is to avoid getting moisture on the hardware. Even in an observatory moisture can be an issue. We have terrible humidity here year-round. My approach is to leave all the equipment powered up but with the CCD cooler off. This allows the electronics to self-heat slightly. As long as the hardware is a few degrees above ambient dew will not form on it. We do not recommend leaving cameras outdoors, even in a bag.
The other trick is to park the scope in an orientation such that the camera and electronics aren't at the lowest point. Condensation that runs will find the lowest spot.
I have wondered about leaving the camera on all the time. It is what I do with my observatory computer and my telescope mount, and they have both rewarded me with long years of service. If the camera is left turned on, should the fans be left running, or will that lead to them burning out early?
If the cooler is OFF, fans can be OFF too. There is going to be some wear-and-tear on the fan bearings if left running.
Hi Colin, Great idea for parking the scope. Currently I have a little different method to keep low moisture inside the scope and camera. I park the scope, CWD, add several 50g SiO2 desiccant bags in the scope (RC-10 so it is open) seal a plastic bag over the dew shield end of the scope with a velcro strap around that end of scope. At STT camera end I remove all cables, put 2 desiccant bags in a plastic bag and then seal it to the outside diameter of the back plate with another velcro strap. I think the sealing is pretty good because if I try squeeze the air out of the plastic bag it is tight. After those 2 bags are installed I cover the entire scope in a big polybag plus a custom canvas cover. I like this system with the desiccant because any dew on anything will not get locked into the scope or the electronics. It is sucked into the desiccant. No water will condense on the mirrors or electronics with the daily night/day temperature fluctuations. Roger
I have a STT-3200 and have just set up a permanent observatory in the past few weeks. I have added to my procedure the following: Startup Connect Turn the fans on for ~15 seconds Turn on cooler Shutdown Warm up Turn fans off Disconnect The camera is on a remote power switch, with which I can disconnect power; however, I have left the camera powered up for convenience. First, I'm glad to read that this can be considered good standard operating procedure. Now to my question: To turn fans on/off, I am doing this with the "Enable fan" checkbox on the "Setup" tab on the "SBIG AO Control" popup in Maxim DL. Is there a way to script fan on/off control, either with ACP or another way?
I recommend using the Auto fan speed mode. That way when the coolers off the fans do continue running, but at a very slow speed. It automatically raises the speed as required to maintain cooling.
OK, that is the setting I'm already using and will keep doing so; I was just wondering about powering the fans all the way off.
