[Elecraft] What minimum temperature should the K station be kept at during a hard freeze

[Doug Hensley]

Thanks for the response jack.  i'm in Baton Rouge so worrying too about the temperature.
Louisiana homes are not designed nor built for cold weather so, like you, it will be a challenge
to keep the pets warm and the pipes flowing 😉 ....

Doug W5JV





Visit https://www.qrz.com/db/W5JV for some great vacuum tube finds.


________________________________
From: Jack Brindle <jackbrindle at me.com>
Sent: Saturday, January 13, 2024 1:58 PM
To: Doug Hensley <w5jv at hotmail.com>
Cc: Elecraft List <elecraft at mailman.qth.net>
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] What minimum temperature should the K station be kept at during a hard freeze

Usually the limiting factor for low temperature in modern equipment is the LCD. They have a problem crystalizing much below freezing and thus are not usable in very cold temperatures.

I hope thing don’t get too cold in your area - we are forecast to see 19F here in SW LA on Tuesday morning. Yuck!

73,
Jack, W6FB


On Jan 13, 2024, at 1:13 PM, William Hammond via Elecraft <elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote:

Doug, You didn’t specify which “K” radio you were inquiring about.  My K4D manual page 45 says:  0 C to 50 C  or 32 F  to 122 F.  The K3s manual specifics 0-50 C for frequency stability.   The K2 manual does not mention operating temperatures. The KX3 manual does not specify.  I checked the non “K”,  IC-7300 manual and  operating range is stated as: -10 C to +60 C or +14 F to +140 F just for a sanity check.   To be safe, keeping the radio above freezing is a good idea.  I would think that condensation or moisture of any kind is the enemy in the cold.  Storing and operating are different things.

That said, I worked on a military radio that mounted in the 47 section of the B-52D, F  with no environmental controls. It was subjected to 50,000‘ altitude and  -50 C, F .  The failure rate of that radio was much greater than the same radio that was in the pressurized and air-conditioned in a forward section of the aircraft.  I might add that these radios were electrically tuned to a frequency using DC motors and heterodyned crystals (the AN/ARC-34) and it was almost always the tuning that failed.  These radios were in tropical conditions in Guam or Thailand when not flying.  They used sub-miniature tubes about a third the size of a miniature tube.

73, Bill-AK5X

On Jan 13, 2024, at 9:22 AM, Doug Hensley <w5jv at hotmail.com<mailto:w5jv at hotmail.com>> wrote:

What minimum temperature should a K station be kept at during a hard freeze
and is there a cold temperature point at which it should not be powered up?

Please reply to the list and as always do not reply to a digest.  Thanks in advance
for any information.

73, Doug W5JV





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