Sensor cleaning

311

I rang around to see where i could get the sensor on my 350D cleaned ,
no one seems to do it.
Are the kits available in dublin ,anyone know ??

Had a look at the sensor and it's full of bits ,can only see them at f18 or above in photographs,but if i don't clean them soon I'm afraid they stay forever.

Roen

Canon provide one free clean afaik, there was also a fairly hefty thread on cleaning here a while back but I can't find the damn thing. Kits are available from most of the retailers in the sticky above. I'm actually doing mine today in a few minutes, I have access to a clean room in work though so I'm pretty sure that I won't be picking up any crap while I clean.
Linky Here for the one I'm using.

440Hz

Copperhill is the way to go, available from lots of sites, I bought here, very good price and super fast delivery.

I started a thread a while back about this as well, and went copperhill following all the advice on here. I got the kit and then was too scared to use it, so like the big girl that I am I waited for help and expert guidance on my first go, cheers rymus
Once you see it done once tis grand.... or else just read the instructions, practice on somthing safe and take it handy. You will be very happy with the results... best of luck!

Cameraman

If the dust is loose and not stuck to the sensor, a blower may work just fine.

I've had a Digital SLR since February, and so far, 2 sessions with the blower have kept the sensor clean. BTW, use one of the manual ones, not the compressed air cans. I bought a huge Hama one in Dublin for about €9.

I also bought the copperhill method cleaning stuff - but haven't needed to use it yet.

311

thanks for the replies ,I read through the original thread about it and had a look at the link valentia gave. It does look very easy to use and seems to be the safest way of dealing with dust.
I was hoping to get it done in dublin somewhere ,I can see the dust on the sensor when i set the camera to clean sensor, my hama blower won't budge it.Actually got more dust in than before.

I think maybe if I leave the camera off ,without the batteries in for 24 hours or so ,maybe the dust will let go of the sensor and the blower will work.


I'll have to order the copper hill kit ,I wreckon it's a good thing.

Thanks.

leinsterman

Yep I use copper hill too ... works fine on my 20d ...

I also asked the guys in Gunns of Wexford Street to get some sensor cleaning kits in from photographic solutions including eclipse fluid, pec pads, sesor swabs etc ... I think they still have some of the stuff in stock ... ask for Cathy if you are ringing to find out.

The coppper hill kits comprise their stuff see - http://www.photosol.com/ and http://www.cameraclean.co.uk/

sionnach

Conn's in the city centre have the proper dry sensor cleanermajigger machine, i think it's about €50 for a clean if you didn't buy your camera there, it's free if you did.

CrowdedHouse

What is the wiping 'stick' like ?

I.E. is it stiff or bendy,would it be possible to make/use something to do the job as I already have Eclipse and Pec pads.

leinsterman

CrowdedHouse wrote:

What is the wiping 'stick' like ?

I.E. is it stiff or bendy,would it be possible to make/use something to do the job as I already have Eclipse and Pec pads.

I have tried two types of wiping stick - The Copper Hill kit and Sensor Swab from Photographic Solutions (makers of pec pad and eclipse).

Both have similarities in that they are made of a plastic material and there is a bit of give ... i.e. they are not rigid. This is important as otherwise it would be easier to scratch your ccd.

However there are differences -

The Sensor Swab from photographic solutions is exactly the same width as your ccd. There are at least 3 types depending on your camera make/model.

The copper hill kit one is slightly smaller than your ccd meaning you have to make two passes (one each side of the swab and thats it, bin it and get another) to cover the entire ccd.

The copper hill kit uses a folded pec pad to make a swab for the wipe stick. The kit contains instructions how to make it.

It is interesting to note that photographic solutions, makers of pec pad, do not recommend using pec pads for ccd cleaning (see their web site). Personally I think this is bulls**t put there to get more money out of you and cover their own ass... the sensor swab is about 20 times the price of pec pads and the copper hill wipe stick.

All of the above you do at your own risk so it is very important to take all precautions possible. When I swab my CCD -

1. I clean the living room thoroughly hours or even a day before and let the dust settle.
2. I cut out all draughts in the area to ensure the air is still as possible.
3. I wear a face mask (one of the ones used for decorating form B&Q) and a hair coving.
4. I keep my pec pads in a zip loc bag to mimimise the possibility of foreign object contamination. I also use a different pec pad pack for ccd compared to all other purposes.
5. I only take the pec pad out of the package with a clean tweezers, just before using.
6. I never touch the pec pad at the point where it will be in contact with the CCD and handle the rest of it as little as possible (you have to touch it to attach it properly to the copper hill wipe stick).
7. I follow the instructions in the copper hill kit to the letter and read it several times before starting the job.
8. I keep the camera open and in sensor clean mode for as little time as possible.
9. I use a magnifier and head lamp to improve my ability to see what I am doing.


OK .. scarily anal I know but I aint takin no chances!!

CrowdedHouse

That's great info,thanks leinsterman.

Luckily the couple of spots I've had so far shifted with air,but I know it's only a matter of time........

311

I got the starter kit from cathy in gunns ,
Got stuck in and used it ,a few times to be honest ,but I think my camera interior is contaminated with attracted dust .
So what I'm going to try in future is open the shutter use the Swab and chemical ,turn off the camera and close the shutter ,open it again and use the electronically charged brush to attract all the dust .

Unless someone can say this is sh**e ,I'm going to get one of those brushes that plug in ,sounds ok to me.

I really thought the image sensor was exposed ,I didn't realise there was glass covering it ,so you'r not actually working on silicone ,your working on glass.

Thanks for the info.