David is right on all counts, from my experience. Anybody with an
unheated workshop here in Maine knows the problem of a mild spell
causing water to condense on a tractor that has been sitting in a 10
degree F. barn. One answer is never to let your equipment get too cold,
hence a heater, maybe even a heating pad under the K3? Another is to use
a vapor barrier to keep the moisture out of the shack? Maybe keep the
equipment in an airtight chest? This can get complicated and depends
very much on local conditions, but deserves attention.
Another david
KC1DNY
On 1/27/2021 12:42 PM, David Olean wrote:
I would worry about condensation. I live in New England. New England
is the only part of the country except for the coastline in WA, where
there is a positive water budget typically. In other words, more rain
falls than is evaporated or used up. My ham shack is 1/2 mile from my
house and was unheated. It was hard on the equipment. Very hot wx was
not a problem but cold temps and then the arrival of warmer and moist
air would produce water droplets all over the gear. Transformers
would stay very cold and the water would drip off of them when the
temps warmed a little bit. Anything that used high voltage was subject
to explosions if you were foolhardy to turn them on. It was all due to
the water.
What I did was install a propane heater with a special thermostat that
allowed operation down to 32 degrees. I set the temp to around 40 F.
That keeps most of the condensation at bay. I also put in a solar
heater on a south facing outside wall, and it pumps warmer air inside
if the Sun is out. On a sunny winter day in January it will be 50
degrees in the room during the day. I have had no trouble with this
setup. I am just about through with my 1st 100 lb propane tank and
January is just about finished, so the cost is not too bad. You must
use a vented propane heater. The unvented ones, or portable K1 space
heaters like Kerosuns etc all produce water vapor and are no good for
what we want. Maybe in a desert climate things will be different,
but that is what works for me.
I have an unheated room as well, but only keep rugged stuff there in
winter. Homebrew KW amps etc seem to do OK. I would never leave a KX
anything there however. Been there. Done that!
K1WHS
On 1/27/2021 10:18 AM, Joseph Shuman via Elecraft wrote:
There is a difference between stupidity and ignorance. I claim
ignorance.
My shack is a room in a barn attic space, separate from the house, no
HVAC so cooling is one window and heating is a space heater (when I
am working the waves). Otherwise storage is ambient temp in the
room. Winter temps typically down to low 20s, summer up to 90s.
Sunny summer temp in the shack gets up to 120. My concerns are
leaving the KX2 (#3007) and KXPA100 (#2802) in the shack and the
effects of daily cycling the temp, especially in winter. My
“internet research” (maybe an oxymoron?) has such varied opinions it
is worthless. What say you, my fellow Elecraft faithful?
Keeping Watch-
shu
Joe Shuman, NZ8P
Unless someone like you
cares a whole awful lot,
nothing is going to get better.
It’s not. -Dr. Seuss
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