South Side Observatory

[SkyHiker]

As of today, I had a storage shed for items that I have not cared to look at for 15 years. Having seen it decomposing, the time is right to replace it with a modest observatory before I start decomposing.

The shed is built on a 10x10 foot concrete pad crammed in between the house and a fence. The plan is to replace it with a cheap metal lean-to shed that I will modify to make the roof slide on/off easily. While I don't have a pier, the G11 HD tripod is just as good. All I need is some screws in the concrete to keep the feet in place. Should be easy, right?

All week I have been chipping away. First taking everything out and salvaging what I can, then taking the workbench apart from the previous owner, disassembling the electrical lines, making clearance for the sprinkler water line that the previous owner decided to route through the shed. Today I took the shed down in about 4 hours, not too bad. Here is the carnage:

The concrete pad is now visible, very nice:

Before I continue, I need to clean the wall, fix the stucco if needed and put primer on it. In fact this project started when I realized I have to paint the house (and fix the stucco first). Nice to be retired, but to be honest I'd rather work instead.

The 6x8 shed arrived last week.

It is pretty heavy, made of galvanized steel. I was able to get it in the backyard with a dolly.

The plan is to first remove the sprinkler waterline, paint the wall, put the shed in place with a hole for the electric line, then see how I can turn the roof into a flip on/off roof. Should be fun and not too hard, really. I'll keep you posted.

[Razz]

Looking forward to how this turns out. I love observatory build threads...

[jrkirkham]

I am also looking forward to seeing how it comes along. I agree about liking observatory threads. They give me new ideas and also show how we all approach astronomy differently due to interests and circumstances.

[Juno16]

That looks like a great project Henk.

I know that you are fired up about it!

Best of success with the project and please keep us updated.

To have an observatoy with the scope set up and rea To go sounds like a dream!

[KathyNS]

Sounds like a great plan. Looking forward to the build.

[Gordon]

Looks like a fun project!!

[AstroBee]

Congrats on the project Henk! Following with curiousity as I'm starting the same adventure.

[SkyHiker]

Thanks for the encouragements! The main challenge is the roof modification. I would rather not have a roll off roof because it is ugly, and I don't have enough space. I am thinking about a flip-off roof like so:

This requires two rotation support beams on each side, the green ones on the inside and the red ones on the outside. Then I have to add counterweights on pulleys that can work in both directions to slow the fall during opening and closing. The roof weighs about 30 lbs. so two concrete blocks like the kind used for gardening should be plenty.

On the boxes it shows that the roof is split through the middle in the length direction, parallel to the wall. If I add hinges so the two parts can rotate around the split, there are more options. The simplest way is to push the roof back folded up to the wall,

This looks simpler but I will have to worry about how to keep the split roof watertight. Something to think about.

[Bigzmey]

All of luck on the project Henk! I will be watching with interest since I also got sparsely used shed in the backyard.

[JayTee]

Very interesting Henk.

I can't wait to see how your build progresses. Some alternative ideas given to me by my wife, in case my roll-off garage door didn't work:
1. Configure the roof with high and low (or left and right) bi-fold doors. Like you see installed in innumerable closets.
2. Stackable roof panels that gather on the low side (or right and/or left side). Like you'd see used with a multiple sliding glass door system.

These are just some ideas I thought I'd share.

Cheers,

[SkyHiker]

Very interesting Henk.

I can't wait to see how your build progresses. Some alternative ideas given to me by my wife, in case my roll-off garage door didn't work:
1. Configure the roof with high and low (or left and right) bi-fold doors. Like you see installed in innumerable closets.
2. Stackable roof panels that gather on the low side (or right and/or left side). Like you'd see used with a multiple sliding glass door system.

These are just some ideas I thought I'd share.

Cheers,

Thanks JT. I think the high and low bifold door is my last diagram (although I raise it while you might lower it), and the left/right bifold door would be impossible because of the roof angle that makes the sections run into the wall when lowering them. Meanwhile I came up with something simpler,

This would only require one internal pivot beam, and a wheel or bearing right at the edge of the roof. Easier to implement and tighter to the front wall. I may not need counterweights if I put a stop in half-way so I can first push the roof up from the inside to the stop, then walk outside, lift the stop over the wall and lower it. After all, 30 lbs. is not that much. The SOT kayak that I just sold was about 60 lbs., and I could lift that on top of the car. Simplicity is important.

[helicon]

Nice project and good luck with it Henk.

[Butterfly Maiden]

A lot of work and technical know-how is obviously involved in your project Henk.

I hope it all works out for you.

Good luck with that.

[SkyHiker]

This would only require one internal pivot beam, and a wheel or bearing right at the edge of the roof. Easier to implement and tighter to the front wall. I may not need counterweights if I put a stop in half-way so I can first push the roof up from the inside to the stop, then walk outside, lift the stop over the wall and lower it. After all, 30 lbs. is not that much. The SOT kayak that I just sold was about 60 lbs., and I could lift that on top of the car. Simplicity is important.

Turns out I have 4 feet clearing to the fence so I don't need that pivot beam that keeps the roof as close to the shed as possible. Just slide it half off (3 feet) and fit myself into 1 foot then flip the roof down. Why am I always overthinking these things. I have some roller skate wheels to make it work.

[SkyHiker]

Question: What is the best way to add a water dam? The shed has no bottom, which is good so I can place the tripod on it, but the old shed had water runoff on the concrete entering inside underneath the walls. My thinking is to make a rectangular frame of varnished pressure treated 2x4s on which I build the walls, then caulk around the outside. Some of you must have built a metal shed, what's the most practical way to add a water dam?

[JayTee]

This is exactly what I'm doing with my observatory. When the weather gets warmer I'll be laying a line of caulk all along the outside and the inside perimeter to prevent water incursion and or seepage. I will also be installing thresholds for each entry door and then caulking those thresholds. I hope it works.

[SkyHiker]

Distracted by house painting related chores, I finally prepped the obsy site bottom to top. It was a test site for painting the rest of the house; power washing and scraping peeled paint in the eves, two coats of primer, removing peeling and bubbling stucco paint layers, priming those spots, then a top coat of cottage white latex. Once you get to the top coat the painting is fun to do, the prepping is the hard part. The rest will be quicker now that I know the drill.

Next up, the water dam of polyurethaned 2x4s. I will reuse the ones from the old shed. The PU will take a few days to fully dry. I think I need to add a 2x4 frame against the wall as well to provide support, and also as an offset for the water line along the wall. The sheet metal looks pretty vulnerable to buckling so for a sliding roof I need to make an external frame to support it and probably an internal frame as well. The material is so flexible that it will only hold up if you assemble it as intended, each structural part supporting the other. For mods you need extra framing.

[JayTee]

I Henk,

Just off the top of my head, have you thought about using fiberglass sheets instead of the sheet metal? Just as flexible and I think a lot more durable. Although the corner you're asking that sheet metal to bend around maybe too much for fiberglass sheeting.

Just throwing that out there.

[SkyHiker]

I Henk,

Just off the top of my head, have you thought about using fiberglass sheets instead of the sheet metal? Just as flexible and I think a lot more durable. Although the corner you're asking that sheet metal to bend around maybe too much for fiberglass sheeting.

Just throwing that out there.

Hmm good point. From my kayak building years, a 4 mm garbage plywood panel fiberglassed on both sides is light and amazingly strong. But still, the triangular side panels will need support I bet. I think I'll stick with the framing idea for now but I really need to build it up and get an idea of what it feels like.

[SkyHiker]

The walls and door posts are up. I decided to go ahead without building a water dam because the shed has them built in (if I can manage to caulk all the cracks). The wall height reaches up to my chin; perfect height for my gear, not for myself. The size of the surface area 6x8' is OK; I think there is enough space to maneuver around, to stash my auxiliary gear in plastic totes and a small chair.

An unexpected time-consuming chore is the removal of the plastic coating of all the exterior panels. I spent a good part of the day doing just that. Once you get the hang of it, a panel can be done in a few minutes; I did 19 of them. The first ones took a lot longer. The smaller parts such as the door posts with 90-degree angles are much more work. I did those inside while watching TV to not completely waste my time.

I quickly learned that installing one panel at a time is inefficient. It is much quicker to do one type of operation on all the panels, due to the large number of screws involved, and sequence the operations instead. I also learned that the metal edges are hazardous. One panel is stained with blood from a profusely bleeding finger; I hardly moved it at all, but I cut something, there you go. I'd better keep my nose away from the top of the panels.

I wondered if it would not have been quicker to build something from 2x4s and 4x8 plywood boards. For the walls, yes, but you still have to add the door and roof materials and be stuck with maintenance of the wooden parts. So, I think this kit has the advantage.

For the roof I decided on building an internal roof support frame of 2x2s and adding 4" wide plywood strips to act as a lid on top of the 2x2s protruding over the walls of the roof (not in the picture). I have those materials from tearing down the old shed. It won't get done today as I will be spending a lot of time removing the plastic coating from the roof panels. Hopefully tomorrow. Once that is done, it is complete aside from polyurethaning the wooden frame parts.