Post Lembeh Housing Clean Up

[ardy01 0]

Hi I got back from Lembeh in first week of August and all went well.

 

Except:

 

My housing is 8 months old and this was the first muck trip with it. The fine dirt from Lembeh seems to have got into parts of the housing on the exterior of the o'rings. Now the major o rings are easy to remove and clean and replace but the zoom control doesn't run like it used to and I am wondering about the buttons.

 

I am using an Olympus PT-E05 housing for my E-520.

 

Any ideas from you guys? I didn't want to start breaking it down as I don't have any history or experience in that area.

 

BTW there is nothing wrong with it just wondering after reading Andrews (ATJ) issues with his Ike and don't want to go down that route if I can avoid it.

[okuma 64]

After diving Lembeh, we do not do anything special with our Subal housings.

 

At the resort before packing, a long soak in fresh water, working all controls several times while under water.

When we get home, assemble the housing, with a 5 lb weight inside and soak over night again working all controls.

 

Wipe and air dry well before packing away.

[eyu 27]

My housing and strobe maintance is to really soak them, press the buttons and turn your knobs while the housing is soaking in fresh water after my last dive. Then pack and fly home. I don't resoak them when I get home. I do this for my Subal and my wife's Olympus PT-E03. The only potential problems I have found with the sand at Lembeh is with my main o-ring when I change cards &/or battery. I clean it more frequently at Lembeh to ensure the fine sand is removed.

 

Elmer

[ardy01 0]

Thanks guys - I think I will try to soak overnight with a weight in it.

 

Do you use just cold water?

 

regards

[PRC 2]

Myself I would use warm - sort of blood temp - the same as I do for regs & dive computers after every dive (and I dive most days in the summer).

 

FWIW I would stay away from any other additives, such as detergents etc.

 

Paul C

[Bent C 18]

The fine dirt from Lembeh seems to have got into parts of the housing on the exterior of the o'rings.

 

This doesn´t sound like the thing you can clean with a soak no matter how long the duration of the soak is. Maybe if you work the controls a lot, with the opening of the control pointing downwards, you can get it out. If not, personally I would most definitely get the fine dirt (sand?) out from the controls. To me having fine sand on the outside of orings is a disaster waiting to happen, as there would be a significant risk that the sand sooner or later would compromise the o-rings. I would suggest that you either take the controls apart and clean them yourself, or send it in for a service. On Ikelites it is pretty easy to take it apart yourself, but I do not know how Olympus housings are constructed.

 

For what it is worth (never been subjected to the problem yet, but going to Lembeh in February!)

 

Bent C

[james 0]

It sounds like there are fines between the o-rings on the control shafts. That's not good. You should be able to remove the retaining clip on the inside of the shaft, pull the shaft out, and clean and lube the o-rings. Be really careful re-inserting it so you don't cut the o-rings.

 

All of this is at your own risk - better yet would be to send it in for a full service.

 

Cheers

James

[ardy01 0]

For what it is worth (never been subjected to the problem yet, but going to Lembeh in February!)

 

Bent C

 

Cant imagine any U/W photographer not loving the place. The biggest problem is the tap tap on the dive guides tank for the next item on the menu. You barely have time to get a couple of shots off before the next one calls. It's also easy to be left behind and due to the fine black sand, you cant rush to catch up or you stir up the bottom......

 

Think I will do a clean water dive (PNG?) next time though.

 

I won't be breaking the housing down straight away as I always do the simple stuff first.

[ce4jesus 1]

You can try a plastic syringe..the kind you get from the pharmacy for kids medicine and try flushing the buttons. There's a break in the plastic around the button that allows you to direct the water flow. I've also heard of folks who use an air compressor after trying the housing.

[Phil Rudin 454]

Hi Ardy,

 

This is a fairly common problem when diving in muck and sand, as in beach diving. After several hundred trips to the Blue heron bridge I had the problem with the shutter button on my Nikonos RS and I have use the all of the Olympus PT-E housings there as well including the new PT-E06. The controls have not changes much and I have found the best way to keep them working smoothly is a good fresh water soaking and lots of movement of the ALL controls while they are being soaked. Both main o-rings along with the port o-ring should be removed and cleaned along with the o-ring well. The button controls are fairly standard on all U/W housings and I have made hundreds of dives with the Olympus housings without problems using these simply cleaning methods.

 

 

Phil Rudin

 

http://www.sfups.org/Galleries/PhilRudin/index.html

[ardy01 0]

Hi Ardy,

 

This is a fairly common problem when diving in muck and sand, as in beach diving. After several hundred trips to the Blue heron bridge I had the problem with the shutter button on my Nikonos RS and I have use the all of the Olympus PT-E housings there as well including the new PT-E06. The controls have not changes much and I have found the best way to keep them working smoothly is a good fresh water soaking and lots of movement of the ALL controls while they are being soaked. Both main o-rings along with the port o-ring should be removed and cleaned along with the o-ring well. The button controls are fairly standard on all U/W housings and I have made hundreds of dives with the Olympus housings without problems using these simply cleaning methods.

 

 

Phil Rudin

 

http://www.sfups.org/Galleries/PhilRudin/index.html

 

Thanks Phil - today it is quite warm so I plan to take my housing out to the watering trough in the paddocks to let it soak for a couple of hours and move al the contols and buttons.

 

regards

[ardy01 0]

Thanks to everyone.

 

I soaked it in the cattle trough overnight and worked all the controls several times and all is well.

 

The sand in the zoom control is only on an outside wheel that runs outside of the housing and even that is better though not like it was.

 

BTW - I didn't realise that the Main O ring is not a ring but a House shaped lump of plastic.

Edited September 18, 2009 by ardy01