Teensy Freeze?

[kor]

Hi All,

I have a Teensy 4.1 running my observatory dome. I tried to start it up today (first time since really cold temperatures) and it seems to be dead--no response on power, Arduino IDE does not see a port for it, devices connected to it do note seem to be initialized.

We had a couple of nights below zero (F) earlier this week. Is there a temperature limit on the 4.1? It was completely powered off and out in an observatory where it stays at ambient temperature.

Thanks - Shane

 

[MarkT]

The datasheet says operating range 0 -- 95C, storage -40C -- 150C, so yes its not expected to function below 32F, but
probably ought to survive them. I'd suspect themal stress has lifted a few solder balls on th BGA devices.

Outdoor electronics needs to be protected from high RH (condensation basically), which in low temperatures is
probably best done by keeping it powered up and in a nearly sealed enclosure with some thermal insulation.

 

[kor]

Thanks for your reply, MarkT. The Teensy is soldered to a header pins, in a socket on a PCB, sitting on a music stand in the observatory, which is definitely not sealed against weather in any way whatsoever. It was powered off, so it there was no residual heat being generated. We had a 48 hour period where we got down to -4 def F and did not get about 3 deg F. And we got 8 inches of snow in the same time period. So the Teensy was in a cold environment that was near the dew point and exposed to high RH. Your suspicion is probably right on!

When I get the last couple of hardware bugs figured out (and get v1.2 of the PCB), it will go into an enclosure that will also contain a stepper controller, which is likely to generate enough heat to keep things warmer--still cold, but warmer.

We don't get those really cold episodes very often and the Teensy has worked fine though many sub-freezing nights (teens and twenties F). It was just a lot colder this time.

Anyway, thanks again for the reply. I'm more of a software guy who is trying to get a handle on the complexities and nuances of the hardware side of things. I'm learning slowly!

- Shane