Keeping the
Meade Autostar
Controller Warm
The Meade Autostar
controller is used on the Meade ETX telescopes
and on other Meade GOTO scopes. My
ETX-90 uses the model 497 Autostar. This
article applies to any of the Meade Autostar
controllers and probably applies to other GOTO
scope controllers, regardless of manufacturer.
The problem
Last winter here in
Central Appalachia I had problems with my Autostar 497 -- it does not like cold
weather. I would put the scope outside to
cool down and go outside to use the scope
after an hour or so. If the temperature was
below 25 deg - 30 deg F, the scope would power
up, beep, and act normal, except, the display
on the Autostar was blank.
I tried heating the
Autostar with a hair dryer and, sure enough,
the display slowly came to life as the
Autostar warmed up.
I figured I needed a more
permanent solution.
The solution
I recently purchased a
Kendrick Standard Controller and
control pad heater for the Autostar.
I have been using this combination for the
past two weeks and it's perfect -- the
Autostar stays toasty warm and I have had no
problems with the display not lighting up due
to cold weather, even with temps down around
20 deg F. Given that the Autostar stays quite
warm, I believe it will withstand much lower
temperatures.
For those who are not
familiar with the Kendrick system, it consists
of a controller and several heater
attachments. The controller connects to a
source of 12 volts DC (I use my 12 VDC power
pack that powers the scope). The controller
has four outlets into which you can plug any
number of several heater strips. For example,
there is a heater strip that wraps around
1.25-inch eyepieces and secures with a Velcro
strip -- when connected to the controller, the
strip keeps the eyepiece warm, thereby chasing
away dew, frost, and other moisture on the
eyepiece. You can set the controller all the
way from very low heat up to high heat.
Here is a link to the
Kendrick astronomy products site that shows
the controller and accessories:
http://www.kendrick-ai.com/astro/dewremover.html
I use the Standard Controller --
part number 2001 and the Control pad heater
for Autostar and Celestron NexStar -- part
number 2019. The
system is not inexpensive -- the standard
controller is $85.00 and the Autostar heater
is $42.00. I also have a couple of
heaters for 1.25-inch eyepieces and they do an
excellent job of keeping the eyepieces warm.
(I found that when the eyepiece was cold, when
I put my warm eye to the eyepiece, after a
minute or two the eyepiece fogged up --
keeping the eyepiece warm stopped that.)
The Autostar heater is a
small pad the same size as the Autostar. A
cord plugs into the controller and there are
two big rubber bands -- put the heating pad on
the BACKSIDE of the Autostar and slip the
rubber bands around the heating pad and the
Autostar at the top and bottom of the Autostar.
Plug the heater into the controller and set
the controller a little below medium heat --
in no time it warms up the Autostar.
I set my scope outside an
hour or so before observing. I plug in the
heater when I put the scope outside and it
keeps the Autostar plenty warm.
Here are some photos.
This photo shows the
Kendrick controller and the Autostar.
The rubber bands around the Autostar hold the
heating pad onto the back of the Autostar.
Note the four outlets on the right side of the
Kendrick heat controller -- the Autostar heat
pad is plugged into one of the outlets leaving
three available for other heaters.

This is a view with the
Autostar lying on edge -- it does not show up
too well but you can see the pad on the back
side of the Autostar.

Pay attention to this: The
heating pad does not heat the same on both
sides -- one side of the heating pad gets
warmer than the other. Plug in the
heating pad, let it warm up, and feel it --
you'll feel the difference -- attach it to the
Autostar with the WARMER OF THE TWO SIDES IN
CONTACT WITH THE BACK OF THE AUTOSTAR.
If you don't like using the rubber bands, you
could use a couple of nylon cable ties, or, a
couple of Velcro strips to attach the heater
pad to the Autostar.
If your hands are getting
cold, you can hold the Autostar and the
heating pad will warm your hands, too!!
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