SkyShed POD XL5

SkyShed POD XL5

Starting From: USD $4,645.00

The SkyShed POD XL5 Includes –  1x POD Dome, 5x POD Bays, 1x Door, Assembly Hardware, Assembly USB.

To see more of our colour choices in action, please visit our Owners gallery. Our customers love to send us photos of their POD’s so browse our massive collection of photos to see what colour you’d like best.

Heavier Wall Panels and Bays Option: POD Wall Panels and Bays are plenty strong enough already. But what the heck, we can make a 20+% heavier / thicker version for even more strength, and make it optional. Adds $675.00 to the price of the POD.

PLEASE NOTE:

  • The cost of shipping is not included in the price. POD’s are a large product that require specialized shipping arrangements. To see our shipping prices and more information about how we ship your POD to you, please CLICK HERE and CONTACT US if you have any questions.
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Reviews 23

23 reviews for SkyShed POD XL5

Vince C from Toronto, ON Canada  

Maintenance free and increases your viewing time!

I’ve had my POD for over 6 years.  The only “maintenance” that I do is to give it a wash once a year.  Still looks like new, and leak free.

Best thing about having a POD is that if you only have 15 minutes to do some observing, its not a problem.  Only takes a few minutes to be out and looking out the eye piece! Best investment I’ve made to vastly increase my viewing time.

Michael Sullivan from Tucson, AZ United States  

From The Sullivan Observatory…My Home POD

On November 10, 2007, my wife gave me the go ahead to purchase the ultimate accessory for any astronomer, a Personal Home Observatory…or POD! The key to this purchase of course was the amazingly low price which in no way reflected the quality. Living in Tucson, my initial concern was about the intense heat deforming the material it was made of. However, almost seven years later it’s as good as the day it arrived. It’s amazing how it opened up the door to astrophotography for me  since I now have this permanent setup. When you are sitting in the observatory you are overwhelmed with how fortunate you are to have this unique setting that makes every one of your friends say “how cool is that!” Thank you Wayne for your obsession to make one very cool Personal Observatory Dome (POD)!

Escobedo Felix from Montberon in FRANCE  

POD in FRANCE

After four years I am very happy with my purchase. The POD is in the same state, no change of color, no problem with water.
My only problem is the difficulty of obtaining an extension of an additional bay with having no distributor in FRANCE.
(And no answer by ALTAIR…)
In conclusion I recommend this purchase.
The POD is fantastic!!!

Carol Sabo from San Tan Valley, AZ United States  

My POD is over 3 1/2 years old

I’ve had my POD for more than 3 1/2 years now, and I can’t imagine being without it!  The material it’s made of holds its strength, and looks as good today as it did on the day it arrived.  It was very easy to assemble as well.

The POD has proven to be solid, and protects my gear from even the most ferocious monsoon storms here in the Arizona desert. Support from the company is the “Gold Standard” of service.

I also have the visor, and in my opinion, a “must have” accessory if you’re in a neighborhood situation. It blocks neighbors lights and also keeps me warmer while observing in the Winter. It’s very easy to swing it down into action, and when not needed…just flip it up out of the way.

I highly recommend this wonderful product to anyone considering an observatory option.  It’s been a perfect choice for me.

Dennis Roscoe from Waukesha, WI United States  

RoscoeSkies POD
The POD continues to be an excellent observatory and well suited for my remote operation.  The quality of workmanship is outstanding and the assembly was a dream.  I assembled the dome the first day and then by the end of the second day the POD was fully operational.  The only negative is about 10% of my imaging time is limited as I approach the zenith. The PZT is not a solution in my area because of the amount of snow fall.  The PZT shelf would continually be filled with ice and snow.  I am still investigating a solution to this problem.  Other than the zenith issue, I am extremely happy with the POD solution and would highly recommend it.

Henk Hartogsveld from Netherlands

Best buy ever
 
Since summer 2018 I am the proud owner from a SkyShed POD XL1. By using the assembly video i could put it together with no problems at all. Having now the best POD in my region. he name I gave it is “Castor and Pollux Dome” made by SkyShed.

Richard Huber from Florence, KY United States  

POD

Going into my second year of owning my POD – My first question is why did I wait so long?? My retirement dream always was to have a permanent observatory and Wayne provided me with the fulfillment of that dream by producing the POD – This is the greatest addition to any amateur’s inventory. It is an investment and not an expense item. More eyepiece time, equipment always ready – Perfect..

David Vanderbilt from Paw Paw, IL USA & Rodeo, NM

POD IS AWESOME!
 
This POD was heaven sent, a terrific asset in my longing for an effective yet inexpensive domed observatory that meets my every need. I followed the online assembly video and all turned out perfectly. Thanks Wayne and all for conceiving the idea and fulfilling my dream.

Dan Brown from Vidalia, GA United States  

LOVE MY POD!

This is a great product! The design is very well thought out, the components and hardware are high quality, and the assembly process is very easy (the included DVD was a huge help).

Jack Steenbarger from Sarasota Fl..

my Pod
 
At 80 years old my question was can I put this together..I confess I did have some help..5 hours and it was done..I did have to wait some time for it orders ahead and all that.you will not be unhappy with the product or the service you get..

Robert Bates from Belleville, ON Canada

Excellent Value
 
I’ve had my SkyShed Pod for 6 years.  It’s a wonderful observatory for astrophotography.  Weathered the elements well.  Highly recommended.

Stephan Lalonde from Orleans, ON Canada

POD has renewed my Astronomy Hobby
 
After years of carefully dragging in and out all my expensive equipment, setting up and aligning, (not to mention tearing down and putting away) I would start to dread observing.  The only times I would observe is if I had a three day weekend WITH clear skies all three days AND I was not tired or busy with other chores.  That meant Very Few times!  The POD has changed all that.  Now I am observing within 5 minutes and shutdown is the same.  Whether I am tired, or only have an hour or so, I can go out and use my equipment more often, and as an added bonus, I don’t wake up my wife at 3am when I am dragging in all my stuff.

Wayne, I thank you and my wife thanks you for this brilliant invention that serves its purpose so well!!

Anonymous from Iuka, MS United States

My best “astro” purchase
 
Have been involved in the hobby of astronomy for almost 10 years now, and of all of the related equipment I have purchased, my SkyShed POD has provided the most “bang for the buck.”  It is exceptionally durable and is well designed.  My equipment is completely protected from the elements and it takes mere minutes to have it open and ready for observing or imaging.  

And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Wayne Parker.  It is seldom that you will see an owner (and designer, and distributor) so personally involved with support to the owners of his products, both as a community and as individuals.

Don Bouc from Castle Rock, Colorado  

You get more than a POD

I recently got/assembled my XL3 and love it so far.  In the Photos section of the website are some snapshots I took of the assembly and final product.  What you can’t see is the customer support.  Wayne is great.  As busy as he is, he takes time to answer questions, emails, phone calls, etc with incredibly fast turnaround.  He REALLY cares about his products and customers.  Refreshing.

Larry Wilson from Illinois  

POD Brings New Excitement to the Hobby

I have been doing astrophotography as a hobby since my retirement 8 years ago. I love it but as I got older I was having more difficulty in convincing myself to drag everything out, set it up, do the alignments and then reverse the process at 1 or 2 am. Plus, in the winter time while traveling with our camper in NM and AZ I had many nights lost to imaging due to wind. No more! The POD XL3 has cured all of that and is easy enough to assemble and disassemble that I can take it traveling with me to the Southwest for winter photography. Thanks to the POD, new life and interest has been injected into my hobby and I am looking forward to many more years of astrophotography!

Brian Renaud from Winnipeg, MB Canada  

I love my SkyShed POD!

Hi everyone.  I’ve had my POD XL3 since 2007, 7 years, and have not looked back since then.  It looks and performs today just like the day it was brand new.   Tough, durable, and provides fantastic protection for my 12 inch scope and accessories that stay in the POD year round.  I absolutely do more astronomy now than before I owned the POD.   Use to take a lot of time and effort to move everything outside, set up, align and eventually put my eye up to the eyepiece.  With my POD XL3, I just open the dome and start using my equipment in minutes.  If something comes up or the weather goes bad I can put it all away and close up the dome in minutes too!  Less time fiddling and more time observing.  Thanks Wayne and all the crew at SkyShed POD.  I love my POD and you will too.  Cheers!

DOUGLAS DUNCAN from WEST GLOVER, VT United States  

I love my Pod in Vermont

I have had my Pod since 2010.  It is on a deck about 3ft off the ground.  Concrete Center pier and corner support columns all go below frost line to five feet below grade which I do recommend.  Also installed copper surge protection ring 2 ft below grade, also recommended.  Eventually I found I needed more headroom so I used pipe jacks under the joists to raise the entire deck and Pod about 4 inches.  Cannot do that with a concrete pad/slab.  (If you use a slab I suggest using footer below frost line.)  My wood deck and POD dome come to ambient temp with POD dome open.  I have a Celestron C11HD on a 12″ concrete pier that was poured into a black plastic culvert pipe which allows me to mount cables and devices onto the pier column with screws or Velcro.  Cables run from house underground the a riser into the deck at the POD perimeter.  One bay houses electronics and the other two house accessories and dew shield items.  Happy to communicate with anyone about my experience!!!

Steve from London, England  

My POD

After years of lugging the ‘scope and mount out of the garage, setting it up, looking around then putting it all away, I was at a stage of giving up. I then heard about the POD so gave it a try – I haven’t looked back.
It’s solid, well made, easy to assemble (my daughter and I assembled it and got it up and running in an afternoon) and just does what it does.
Living in England and it being made in Canada did make me wonder about delivery times, importation etc. but it was all handled by third parties so I had to do nothing but wait. For the record, Wayne and crew at Skyshed give the best customer service and backup both before and after purchase that I’ve ever experienced.
Ranking this purchase in terms of how it has helped me with my hobby of astronomy, it’s alongside that of buying a telescope.

Pierre Lachambre from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, Canada

Only the best from Sky Shed.
 
I’m the proud owner of a XL5 POD with a Visor. I live in a heavy light polluted area and I get up at 4:00 in the morning to go to work. Before I had my POD, I could only go out on Friday’s and Saturday’s to do some astronomy. Now, I get out any night, open the dome and get running in five minutes. No set up, no packing, five to 10 minutes and I’m ready to go back in the house. It is the best investment I did for my Hobby. Assembly is so easy and the product is of top engineering and quality. Good work Wayne and all at Sky Shed POD.

WES from Lebanon, TN  

Love the Pod

I have been using the sky shed pod with 5 bays for well over a year now. I thoroughly enjoy it! Assembly was easy and I put expandable water seal tape on the bottom to make it water tight.  It does not take long to fill up the bays with stuff such as seats, laptop and equipment shelves and dew shields, etc.. I built my own pzt to slid the dome onto so I would have better zenith access with my Celestron Edge HD 14″ telescope. It clears the dome so I don’t have to reposition it to a different park position each time I close it up for the night. The dome rotates easily on the wheels and is easy to slide onto the zenith table. The pod allows me to leave the scope setup and ready for my next observing session. Previously had to assemble the telescope in the driveway and it took an hour to setup and then would have to tear it all back down when finished. Was a real pain in the neck. The pod locks and I feel it is very secure when closed up.

Tim99 from Western New York  

Here’s my POD experience so far

I am enjoying my POD very much.It has plenty of room for me with five bays.  It is dry and I feel like my equipment is housed in a good place.  The dome rolls very easily and I like the 4ft high side walls.  I can stand or sit in there and feel like I am outside under the stars.(I didn’t want an observatory where I felt like I was trapped in a box.) If you are into observing the cosmos, this little observatory is your answer to a relatively inexpensive and quick  set-up. My only concern so far:  I am into Astrophotography and my only concern with the POD is the dome blocks targets at zenith.  I built my own PZT (Pod Zenith Table) which enables me to push the dome completely off the POD but then if I want to change targets in that direction the dome is in the way again.  I am working on a PZT design that will allow 360 degree open access to the sky which is what I like. There is no perfect observatory but this one comes close!  It really is awesome for the backyard  astronomer.

John Pierre from Othello, WA United States

Such a deal
 
I shopped and researched for hours before I bought my POD. I am glad I did. It was the best buy and virtually indestructible. I had a large windstorm that took out a 50 year old tree but did not even bother the POD on a floating deck.

I’m so happy I got the extra bays. You fill them up so fast it’s not funny. The support is great here. Sometimes parts may take a little time but I remember an old saying ” Do you want Quality or Quantity? “. Existing POD owners are on Yahoo and chatting all the time about their experiences.

BUY IT YOU’LL LIIKE IT

Richard Coggins from North Zulch, TX United States  

Awesome product.

I have been using my Pod for several months now and don’t know how I did astronomy without it. No more making eighteen trips to and from the backyard hauling all my gear in and out of the house every time I want to do some viewing or astrophotography. Now I simply open up the Pod, turn on the scope and computers and start viewing or imaging. It only takes about 5 minutes as every thing is already setup and well protected from the elements and theft. I have gone through some pretty severe weather with it and had only a very minor leak at one of the hinge points ( about a 1/4 cup got inside ) but that was with driving rain and wind around 60 mph.

I would highly recommend this product to any serious observer as you will find that it greatly increases your viewing time and opportunities because of the convenience of no more setup.

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