New home lab setup (in progress ...) - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / projects

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 25, 2017, 01:15:55 am
content: Been working from home the last couple of years but recently my work has become very boring. So being a former Broadcast RF Engineer I decided to re-model part of my home office/hobby room work bench to suite my resurging interest in electronics. Have a few projects planned, mostly just to keep me entertained until the situation at work changes (working on this as well). So one end of the room my computers and home office for work, then behind me my relaoding bench which I have now partitioned off to host an electronics lab. Its a work in progress. Put some selfing in, added some LED lighting, wired plenty of power and just added some proper earth grounding last night (6' ground rod in the ground right next to the bench with low impedance strap to a solid copper bus bar). Some new equipment on the way, picked up a Keysight 34465a last week, Siglent SDS2204X and SDG2082X on the way.Before;Now;My Broadcasting background and need for low impedance earth ground;The grounding really helped with noise when measuring 10M Ohm on my home made standard box, cut the noise level in half or more;Just added a Hobo MX1101 temp/humidity temp logger to the shop today;Just excited to be back in it, been playing with electronics since I was a 7 or so, first Amateur radio license at 9, Extra class at 13, that was almost 30 years ago now. As a kid I had a room full of 1950's and 60's HP gear (all I could afford at the Ham Fests/Swap Meets at the time). Loved the Forrest Mims circuit cook books from Radio Shack back in the day. I had a wonderful elmer, Peter Greisbaum, who has long since passed. I really miss talking electronics with him, my wife and kids just don't care about thermal EMF, tempco or drift, sub ppm precision or the such. So here I am

author: xrunner
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 25, 2017, 01:25:02 am
content: Wow nice DMM.Looking forward to your projects and pic.Can you make me a batch of .45 ACP too?

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 25, 2017, 02:02:25 am
content: Quote from: xrunner on May 25, 2017, 01:25:02 amSorry, not set up for 45ACP at the moment, I load 45-70 govt, 475 Linebaugh, 458 SOCOM, 44 MAG, all for game and 338 Lapua just for fun. When I lived in AZ and shot CCML at Ben Avery I would go though 300-500 rounds of 45 ACP a week and used a Dillon 650XL, but that stayed in AZ at a buddy's house.

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 25, 2017, 02:37:43 am
content: Quote from: blueskull on May 25, 2017, 02:14:05 amThis room is an extra room accessed through the garage, not part of the main living space. The room is insulated but still gets quite warm and cold. So I mounted a window A/C unit in the wall, the temp logging is showing the A/C cycle in and out, this also affects the humidity. Notice the temp is not changing much, it's just a very sensitive recording device.

author: jpb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 27, 2017, 09:50:04 am
content: Nice setup. I was thinking of fitting room (shed perhaps) in one half of a double garage. It allows the garage to be restored later if the house is sold and the new owners are not sensible enough to want a lab!You should link this to the "show me your workbench" thread if you've not done so already.

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 27, 2017, 12:48:37 pm
content: Quote from: jpb on May 27, 2017, 09:50:04 amI didn't know about that thread, otherwise I would have put this there. I sold the old Tektronix scope and have a new Siglent SDS2204X on the way with an SDG2082X. Once the near hardware comes in Ill update the photos and post something on the other thread.

author: jpb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 27, 2017, 09:12:44 pm
content: Quote from: kj7e on May 27, 2017, 12:48:37 pmI got the name slightly (completely!) wrong - it is " Topic: Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab."https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/whats-your-work-benchlab-look-like-post-some-pictures-of-your-lab/msg1744/#msg1744

author: Johncanfield
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 27, 2017, 09:41:26 pm
content: Ah, I spy a GWS Slow Stick RC plane. That's another hobby I gave up, too many crashes.

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 27, 2017, 10:51:26 pm
content: Quote from: Johncanfield on May 27, 2017, 09:41:26 pmOne of many, also have a few giant scale gassers in the garage. Here is my 35% Edge 540v3, 112" wingspan, 116cc twin makes 14HP, spins a 30" Carbon Fiber prop at 7,000 RPM, the tips go super sonic and it rips the air. Plane comes in at 29lbs but makes 54lbs of thrust.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 27, 2017, 11:05:29 pm
content: Pleased with your Chargemaster kj7e ?Got one a few months back and I'm very pleased with mine after the dispensing tube mod.

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2017, 12:55:42 am
content: Quote from: tautech on May 27, 2017, 11:05:29 pmThe old McDonald's straw trick. Love mine.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2017, 08:45:40 am
content: Quote from: kj7e on May 28, 2017, 12:55:42 amMcD's straws in NZ are too small so I went with a turned insert made from Ali that I spun up to the perfect fit.I first learnt of turned inserts for Chargemasters here:http://forum.accurateshooter.com/threads/charge-master-inserts.3919235/Follow the link in the 2nd post.

author: daveyk
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2017, 11:19:37 am
content: The guy in the apartment below you must love the copper rod sticking down from his ceiling -arr arr arr. No this looks real nice; I think I will add one like that too. My concrete floor has is probably only three inches thick or so; it should be an easy drill.Question: is this a basement? That is were I am setting up shop and finding I need to add a de-humidifier to keep stuff from corroding. I hate the idea of another compressor running just for that; but there's little choice. At least it stays around 60 degrees F year around; a little chilly, but I'm used to it and rarely turn the heat on. Humidity is my enemy. I have a spectrum environmental data logger and will be monitoring that closely soon.DaveSent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2017, 02:49:17 pm
content: Quote from: daveyk on May 28, 2017, 11:19:37 amNot a basement but a 2 story house with the living space on the second story and the garage/hobby room/washroom/cellar below. In the garage there is a door to the "extra" room. Its 90% finished with recessed LED lighting and insulated with painted drywall. It does not get A/C or Heating from the central air, so I put a window A/C in the wall between the cellar and this room, works well for the 3 months a year I need it. For heating I just use an electric oil filled radiator. The concrete floor in this room was 6" thick for some reason, I also put in another 6' rod for the Ham Radio gear on the other end of the room and have 4x 5/8" wedge anchor bolts drilled for my gun safe. Burned up one Porter Cable 120v Hammer drill in the process. Kitchen is above the "Hobby" room, cellar to one side, the insulated garage to the other and the earth below, the room stays fairly consistent in temp year round, but will get warm and cold with out a little help. No issues with humidity, but I'm in So-Cal, so its a drier climate than many other areas. We are in the mountains about 4,000' ele, so it can get cold out side.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2017, 06:34:16 pm
content: 6 inch concrete because it is a floating slab holding the whole house together, you must be either on thick soil, in an earthquake area, or have a high ground water table, so that the whole house has to move as a unit on the soil. The architect did the job right there at least, or there is an outer lip only and the rest is 3in in the middle of the slab.I am so glad I got the 350mm SDS drill bit I did, as most common long length masonry bits are 300mm overall, and the 350mm one is 350mm usable bit before you run the chuck into the work. Helps in drilling slabs, as the typical concrete slab plus floor screed is 330mm, on a nominal 300mm (1 foot) thick slab. Before it was drill down with the 300m bit, then get out the 4 pound hammer and the steel rod, and spall off a cone underneath to get the hole, and fill it again afterwards. I did borrow a 110mm hole bit for a few holes, to feed network cabling through, as I really was not going to like drilling 20 plus 25mm holes there. 2 holes took 10 minutes, drilling up a ladder for one, and using a vacuum cleaner to keep the dust down.Another was drilling for a new mains cable, 4 core 32mm, which was done with a rental 70mm bit and a massive 30kg Hitachi drill from the hire place. Funny how they never have the 50mm bit in stock, but the 70 was brand new, and 10 years old. I just had to get a second drill after a half hour, first one stopped turning in the one hole. Easy to drill, just let the drill weight do the work, only control torque. I did hit rebar near the end, but that half inch bar only was polished a bit, the smaller ones just came out in the slug. Other cores I contracted out, it was easier, plus the slab there was nearly a meter thick, they broke a diamond thin wall core bit in there and took an hour extra to get the shattered chunks out.

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2017, 07:38:11 pm
content: @SeanBAll of the above, I live 250' from our lake on the San Andreas fault.

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2017, 09:06:23 pm
content: A bare concrete floor is a potential hazard if you do any mains or high voltage work. Depending on moisture levels, rebar content etc, it may be a sufficiently good ground to drastically increase the risk of a shock through the chest. If you *EVER* work with more than 50V, you should put down a heavy strip of Vinyl flooring or other insulating matting extending at least 18" under the bench and 4'6" away from its edge. Also make sure the bench frame is not grounded.

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2017, 09:20:35 pm
content: One of these days I'm going to do something with the floor. No HV stuff on the bench, very seldom do I work on any HV anymore, once in a great while with some HF Amplifiers, but the HV involved there will kill you rubber mat or not.

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 28, 2017, 09:46:39 pm
content: Maybe it will kill you, maybe not. If the stored energy is limited, you are on a sufficiently thick insulating mat and keep one hand on your pocket so you don't get shocked through your chest you are likely to get away with no more than localised burns and muscle and nerve damage, with a significant risk of cuts and blunt force trauma if the reaction to the shock smashes your hand into the equipment chassis.

author: ale500
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 30, 2017, 05:25:33 am
content: QuoteI know what you are talking about.Very nice and spacious !My home setup is sadly not larger than a bench.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 30, 2017, 05:36:42 am
content: Quote from: tautech on May 28, 2017, 08:45:40 amHave you read CM's, in fact most electronic scales can be sensitive to electric fields in the vicinity ?I ran a few turns of the LV supply cable through a toroid just to be sure.I guess sharing the bench with your other gear mightn't be too much of a problem as you're unlikely be be reloading and electronics at the same time, or will you ?

author: P90
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 30, 2017, 06:34:51 am
content: Quote from: kj7e on May 28, 2017, 02:49:17 pmA hammer drill is for girls hanging cute mirrors on cmu walls. Get a real Bosch SDS drill and it'll go through that 6" slab like it's nobody's business...

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 30, 2017, 12:59:09 pm
content: Quote from: tautech on May 30, 2017, 05:36:42 amHave to give 100% attention when reloading, no room to make a mistake there.

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: May 30, 2017, 10:42:59 pm
content: 6" slab isn't thick. When we remodeled our master bath and removed the shower for a soaker tub for SWMBO, we found just over 12 inches of concrete where we have to cut out to reroute the drain pipes. The person who did that work had to rent a jack hammer. I am in Florida and not near any fault zone.

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2017, 09:12:10 pm
content: Coming along, the lab supply is on back order, it will fit perfectly next to the scope.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2017, 09:36:30 pm
content: Quote from: kj7e on June 01, 2017, 09:12:10 pmAren't they a little unstable on those wire racks or is some thin hard sheeting yet to be fitted ?

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2017, 09:46:34 pm
content: Not unstable at all. I can even press the top buttons of the scope with out it moving. I may add some firm medium in the future, but it does not seem to be an issue at this point.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2017, 09:56:23 pm
content: Quote from: kj7e on June 01, 2017, 09:46:34 pmOK, you must be lucky with the feet spacing that they land on the wire frame.Then I guess you could ditch the paper (is it ? ) to promote better cooling.

author: kj7e
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2017, 10:38:35 pm
content: Its kind of a thin hard plastic, it helps for sure. A thicker harder sheet would be better.Edit, I did add some safety wire to keep the scope from falling forward (earthquake proof).

author: P90
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2017, 12:56:33 am
content: I've used those wire shelves in the garage...I don't like them, too flimsy... good place for sweaters and towels...