It was a great personal challenge building an observatory for the first time. Thankfully Dan and the Crew at ExploraDome provided plenty of support. I automated both the rotation and the shutter on my 8′ ED using the Diffraction Limited MaxDome II control boards. I ordered the dome with all the motors, hardware and wiring for the rotation and shutter automation already installed, which I would highly recommend. It makes completing the automation much easier and you can use a standard DPDT toggle switch to operate the shutter and rotation until you get the rest of the automation package installed.