RE: [Utah-astronomy] SCT or Newtonian?
Even a mirror that has been to Monte Cristo and Antelope Island many times a year doesn't need to be cleaned very often. I clean mine every two years or so. I might clean them after one year if they were real dirty. To clean my mirrors, I take the mirror still mounted in it's cell out in the back yard. I run a large quantity of water over it. If there are any spots that need soap I use a little Joy detergent in a lot of water. I use a cotton ball to wipe, no pressure, in one direction only. I then rinse the mirror with a lot of tap water again until the soap is all gone. They I rinse with distilled water. Then I rinse with Everclear. Everclear doesn't seem to leave a film and gets the water off immediately. This process allows you to leave the mirror silconed into the mirror cell so you can just put the cell back in the scope and start observing again. I have also heard of people using compressed air to blow the dust off of the mirror. I haven't seen any damage to the mirrors that I have seen where this process was used. -----Original Message----- From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] Sent: Monday, March 24, 2003 10:22 AM To: Astronomy in Utah Subject: RE: [Utah-astronomy] SCT or Newtonian? Words in caps are for emphasis, I'm not shouting. This subject is too lengthy for me to go into detail right now (at work, as usual) but the secret is PATIENCE and NOT wiping right away. Let the mirror soak in warm water for a few hours. This will loosen most of the dirt and it can be rinsed off using only the pressure from the tap. Wiping is best done judiciously, after a soak, and using only the best grade of cotton, only one wipe per cotton wad, one direction only, rotating as you wipe. All rinsing should be done with distilled water, then drip-and-air dry. If you need to use soap, you waited too long to clean, but let the mirror soak in SOAPY water if it's really filthy. This is just a quick description, many nuances remain undescribed. Cleaning requirements are a good reason to avoid mounting mirrors with silicone glue. You won't be observing the same night that you cleaned the optics if you use silicone. Of course, it goes without saying that you need to keep the mirrors COVERED when not in-use. My 6" f/8 is now 4 years old, and the mirror has hardly any dust on it. C. --- Joe Bauman <bau@desnews.com> wrote:
How 'bout a scouring pad? Just kidding, but I think I may have damaged either my corrector plate or the mirror by cleaning with usual photo lens cleaner material, although I was extremely careful. But I think there's really something wrong with my optics now. Thanks, Joe
The next obvious question to me is, what it the right (careful) way to clean a newtonian mirror?
I have read somewhere that using a mild dish soap like Dawn is prefered. Any wiping or rubbing will grind dirt into the mirror. So how do you get the dirt off? How about using an old shaving brush (probably couldn't find one these days) or a photo air brush?
Jim Gibson
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David, What is Everclear, and where can you purchase it? I've never heard of it. --- David Dunn <david.dunn@albertsons.com> wrote:
Even a mirror that has been to Monte Cristo and Antelope Island many times a year doesn't need to be cleaned very often. I clean mine every two years or so. I might clean them after one year if they were real dirty. To clean my mirrors, I take the mirror still mounted in it's cell out in the back yard. I run a large quantity of water over it. If there are any spots that need soap I use a little Joy detergent in a lot of water. I use a cotton ball to wipe, no pressure, in one direction only. I then rinse the mirror with a lot of tap water again until the soap is all gone. They I rinse with distilled water. Then I rinse with Everclear. Everclear doesn't seem to leave a film and gets the water off immediately. This process allows you to leave the mirror silconed into the mirror cell so you can just put the cell back in the scope and start observing again.
I have also heard of people using compressed air to blow the dust off of the mirror. I haven't seen any damage to the mirrors that I have seen where this process was used.
-----Original Message----- From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] Sent: Monday, March 24, 2003 10:22 AM To: Astronomy in Utah Subject: RE: [Utah-astronomy] SCT or Newtonian?
Words in caps are for emphasis, I'm not shouting.
This subject is too lengthy for me to go into detail right now (at work, as usual) but the secret is PATIENCE and NOT wiping right away. Let the mirror soak in warm water for a few hours. This will loosen most of the dirt and it can be rinsed off using only the pressure from the tap. Wiping is best done judiciously, after a soak, and using only the best grade of cotton, only one wipe per cotton wad, one direction only, rotating as you wipe. All rinsing should be done with distilled water, then drip-and-air dry. If you need to use soap, you waited too long to clean, but let the mirror soak in SOAPY water if it's really filthy.
This is just a quick description, many nuances remain undescribed.
Cleaning requirements are a good reason to avoid mounting mirrors with silicone glue. You won't be observing the same night that you cleaned the optics if you use silicone.
Of course, it goes without saying that you need to keep the mirrors COVERED when not in-use. My 6" f/8 is now 4 years old, and the mirror has hardly any dust on it.
C.
--- Joe Bauman <bau@desnews.com> wrote:
How 'bout a scouring pad? Just kidding, but I think I may have damaged either my corrector plate or the mirror by cleaning with usual photo lens cleaner material, although I was extremely careful. But I think there's really something wrong with my optics now. Thanks, Joe
The next obvious question to me is, what it the right (careful) way to clean a newtonian mirror?
I have read somewhere that using a mild dish soap like Dawn is prefered. Any wiping or rubbing will grind dirt into the mirror. So how do you get the dirt off? How about using an old shaving brush (probably couldn't find one these days) or a photo air brush?
Jim Gibson
__________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Platinum - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, live on your desktop! http://platinum.yahoo.com
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Rich, Everclear is liquor, 200 proof alcohol. You purchase it at the liquor store! Less aggressive solvents can be used; 90% isopropyl alcohol works well. C. --- Richard Tenney <retenney@yahoo.com> wrote:
David,
What is Everclear, and where can you purchase it? I've never heard of it.
--- David Dunn <david.dunn@albertsons.com> wrote:
Even a mirror that has been to Monte Cristo and Antelope Island many times a year doesn't need to be cleaned very often. I clean mine every two years or so. I might clean them after one year if they were real dirty. To clean my mirrors, I take the mirror still mounted in it's cell out in the back yard. I run a large quantity of water over it. If there are any spots that need soap I use a little Joy detergent in a lot of water. I use a cotton ball to wipe, no pressure, in one direction only. I then rinse the mirror with a lot of tap water again until the soap is all gone. They I rinse with distilled water. Then I rinse with Everclear. Everclear doesn't seem to leave a film and gets the water off immediately. This process allows you to leave the mirror silconed into the mirror cell so you can just put the cell back in the scope and start observing again.
I have also heard of people using compressed air to blow the dust off of the mirror. I haven't seen any damage to the mirrors that I have seen where this process was used.
-----Original Message----- From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] Sent: Monday, March 24, 2003 10:22 AM To: Astronomy in Utah Subject: RE: [Utah-astronomy] SCT or Newtonian?
Words in caps are for emphasis, I'm not shouting.
This subject is too lengthy for me to go into detail right now (at work, as usual) but the secret is PATIENCE and NOT wiping right away. Let the mirror soak in warm water for a few hours. This will loosen most of the dirt and it can be rinsed off using only the pressure from the tap. Wiping is best done judiciously, after a soak, and using only the best grade of cotton, only one wipe per cotton wad, one direction only, rotating as you wipe. All rinsing should be done with distilled water, then drip-and-air dry. If you need to use soap, you waited too long to clean, but let the mirror soak in SOAPY water if it's really filthy.
This is just a quick description, many nuances remain undescribed.
Cleaning requirements are a good reason to avoid mounting mirrors with silicone glue. You won't be observing the same night that you cleaned the optics if you use silicone.
Of course, it goes without saying that you need to keep the mirrors COVERED when not in-use. My 6" f/8 is now 4 years old, and the mirror has hardly any dust on it.
C.
--- Joe Bauman <bau@desnews.com> wrote:
How 'bout a scouring pad? Just kidding, but I think I may have damaged either my corrector plate or the mirror by cleaning with usual photo lens cleaner material, although I was extremely careful. But I think there's really something wrong with my optics now. Thanks, Joe
The next obvious question to me is, what it the right (careful) way to clean a newtonian mirror?
I have read somewhere that using a mild dish soap like Dawn is prefered. Any wiping or rubbing will grind dirt into the mirror. So how do you get the dirt off? How about using an old shaving brush (probably couldn't find one these days) or a photo air brush?
Jim Gibson
__________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Platinum - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, live on your desktop! http://platinum.yahoo.com
_______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com
http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy
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__________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Platinum - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, live on your desktop! http://platinum.yahoo.com
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Everclear is as pure as alcohol as it is possible to distill. For non-drinkers, that 200 proof means it is 100 percent alcohol. I think it evaporates without leaving a trace, but of course it's highly explosive. I have used it to clean antique daguerreotype plates. That is, once I have gently rinsed off the dust with water, then distilled water, I flow Everclear over it so that it evaporates without leaving water spots on the beautiful, highly polished silvered plates. -- Joe Joe Bauman science & military reporter Deseret News bau@desnews.com (801) 237-2169
Distilled water costs a lot less than grain alcohol and leaves no water spots. It is also not flammable and you don't need to worry about the Home Teachers seeing it. ;) I wash and do a first rinse with tap water. The final rinse is with distilled water. C. --- Joe Bauman <bau@desnews.com> wrote:
Everclear is as pure as alcohol as it is possible to distill. For non-drinkers, that 200 proof means it is 100 percent alcohol. I think it evaporates without leaving a trace, but of course it's highly explosive. I have used it to clean antique daguerreotype plates. That is, once I have gently rinsed off the dust with water, then distilled water, I flow Everclear over it so that it evaporates without leaving water spots on the beautiful, highly polished silvered plates. -- Joe
Joe Bauman science & military reporter Deseret News bau@desnews.com (801) 237-2169
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I use tap water and dried, filtered compressed air to finish the job. BTW, the Al surface is surprisingly resilient. It will take a fair amount of rubbing before you have any significant damage. Still, the best rule for cleaning telescopes is - DON'T. Keep them clean and and covered and you won't need to clean them. Deb - yes, the central obstruction in a SCT will also foil the detail. The rule says that anything less than 15% is as good as you can get, but I prefer even less. This is one reason why long focus reflectors are great. The best images I have seen are through doublet refractors. The APO designs I have seen are not as sharp, although they are still very good. My 10" f10 newt with a .875" secondary and no spider gives really nice images too. Some of the nicest planetary views I have seen have been through this scope. Brent --- Chuck Hards <chuckhards@yahoo.com> wrote:
Distilled water costs a lot less than grain alcohol and leaves no water spots. It is also not flammable and you don't need to worry about the Home Teachers seeing it. ;)
I wash and do a first rinse with tap water.
The final rinse is with distilled water.
C.
--- Joe Bauman <bau@desnews.com> wrote:
Everclear is as pure as alcohol as it is possible to distill. For non-drinkers, that 200 proof means it is 100 percent alcohol. I think it evaporates without leaving a trace, but of course it's highly explosive. I have used it to clean antique daguerreotype plates. That is, once I have gently rinsed off the dust with water, then distilled water, I flow Everclear over it so that it evaporates without leaving water spots on the beautiful, highly polished silvered plates. -- Joe
Joe Bauman science & military reporter Deseret News bau@desnews.com (801) 237-2169
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It is grain alcohol available at Utah State Liquor Stores. It can be purchased as 100 proof or 190 proof. Get the 190 proof. That's the stuff that leaves no residue. Brent --- Richard Tenney <retenney@yahoo.com> wrote:
David,
What is Everclear, and where can you purchase it? I've never heard of it.
--- David Dunn <david.dunn@albertsons.com> wrote:
Even a mirror that has been to Monte Cristo and Antelope Island many times a year doesn't need to be cleaned very often. I clean mine every two years or so. I might clean them after one year if they were real dirty. To clean my mirrors, I take the mirror still mounted in it's cell out in the back yard. I run a large quantity of water over it. If there are any spots that need soap I use a little Joy detergent in a lot of water. I use a cotton ball to wipe, no pressure, in one direction only. I then rinse the mirror with a lot of tap water again until the soap is all gone. They I rinse with distilled water. Then I rinse with Everclear. Everclear doesn't seem to leave a film and gets the water off immediately. This process allows you to leave the mirror silconed into the mirror cell so you can just put the cell back in the scope and start observing again.
I have also heard of people using compressed air to blow the dust off of the mirror. I haven't seen any damage to the mirrors that I have seen where this process was used.
-----Original Message----- From: Chuck Hards [mailto:chuckhards@yahoo.com] Sent: Monday, March 24, 2003 10:22 AM To: Astronomy in Utah Subject: RE: [Utah-astronomy] SCT or Newtonian?
Words in caps are for emphasis, I'm not shouting.
This subject is too lengthy for me to go into detail right now (at work, as usual) but the secret is PATIENCE and NOT wiping right away. Let the mirror soak in warm water for a few hours. This will loosen most of the dirt and it can be rinsed off using only the pressure from the tap. Wiping is best done judiciously, after a soak, and using only the best grade of cotton, only one wipe per cotton wad, one direction only, rotating as you wipe. All rinsing should be done with distilled water, then drip-and-air dry. If you need to use soap, you waited too long to clean, but let the mirror soak in SOAPY water if it's really filthy.
This is just a quick description, many nuances remain undescribed.
Cleaning requirements are a good reason to avoid mounting mirrors with silicone glue. You won't be observing the same night that you cleaned the optics if you use silicone.
Of course, it goes without saying that you need to keep the mirrors COVERED when not in-use. My 6" f/8 is now 4 years old, and the mirror has hardly any dust on it.
C.
--- Joe Bauman <bau@desnews.com> wrote:
How 'bout a scouring pad? Just kidding, but I think I may have damaged either my corrector plate or the mirror by cleaning with usual photo lens cleaner material, although I was extremely careful. But I think there's really something wrong with my optics now. Thanks, Joe
The next obvious question to me is, what it the right (careful) way to clean a newtonian mirror?
I have read somewhere that using a mild dish soap like Dawn is prefered. Any wiping or rubbing will grind dirt into the mirror. So how do you get the dirt off? How about using an old shaving brush (probably couldn't find one these days) or a photo air brush?
Jim Gibson
__________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Platinum - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, live on your desktop! http://platinum.yahoo.com
_______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com
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__________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Platinum - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, live on your desktop! http://platinum.yahoo.com
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participants (5)
-
Brent Watson -
Chuck Hards -
David Dunn -
Joe Bauman -
Richard Tenney