Brand new Nauticam 550D housing flooded due to rocker button fault

[wtneo 0]

Hey guys,

 

Just want to share about what happened to me. I bought a brand new nauticam housing for my Canon 550D as soon as it was released and went on a 8 day diving trip to Bali. At my last dive of my 4th diving day at Tulamben, to my horror I found my housing flooded with water

trickling in as I was doing my safety stop... and drowned my SLR and tokina as well.

 

The fault appears to be the focus point selection key of the rocker button, which leaked when pressed during my subsequent dive when I brought down the empty housing for evaulation. Brought the housing back after the trip and the local nauticam dealer notice that the screw holding the button on the back was loose.

 

Needless to say, I was rather upset about damaging my camera with my brand new housing. I have sent it back to Nauticam for them to take a look and I am still waiting for them to get back to me.

 

A word of advice to everyone: should the housing flood and damage the camera, keep the camera as proof. Or at least that was what my local dealer informed me, or else there will be very chance of any compensation.

 

Right now I am keeping my fingers crossed as I have another dive trip coming up in September and I hope Nauticam will resolve the problem in time. This will be a test of their after sales service.

Will keep you guys updated!

[Mike L 0]

I am very sorry to hear about your flood. Having been there years ago on a trip, I know how devastating it is. I am not sure who you purchased your set up through, however if it was purchased in the states, I have no doubt that Nauticam USA will take excellent care of you however they can. I will say, having been a dealer since their initial housing releases in November, we have sold quite a number of their housings without any issues such as this. And, to their credit, the few minor tweaks or issues that have been needed, Nauticam USA has always reacted promptly and professionally to make sure the customer is taken care of and a rapid manner. Some questions and investigation into how it came loose are definitely a must.

 

Please keep us posted on the progress. Just an FYI, I know the Nauticam USA Sales manager is out of the office for the remainder of the week, however I am sure others in the office will reply promptly.

Edited August 10, 2010 by Mike L

[Drew 0]

Very sorry to hear that. Will be interesting to see how Nauticam handles this. Are they really responsible? After all it was the 4th day of diving when the screw became loose enough to leak.

 

A similar situation happened with a Gates housing:

 

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=32024

 

Good luck.

[wtneo 0]

Mike: I bought it from a Singaporean dealer, and I agree with you on the fact that minor tweaks or issues that have been needed was fixed and updated on subsequent batches of the 7D (got a friend who bought it).

 

Hope they will deal with my case promptly as well, though Drew has brought up the issue of the cause of the loose screw.

 

Will update the thread when nauticam replies.

 

Cheers

WT

Edited August 10, 2010 by wtneo

[Alex_Tattersall 90]

Hi WT,

 

Sorry to hear of your misfortune, I'm sure it will be dealt with professionally and appropriately.

 

Glad to say though that, as with Mike above, we have sold a number of housings which have not suffered from a similar issue.

 

I'm a little confused though as to why the leak alarm did not sound, or did it? Also, just wondering, if water entered on pushing the rocker switch, how did this trickle managed to fill the housing enough to drown both dSLR and lens. Any extra information would be very helpful to us here,

 

Alex

[wtneo 0]

Hi Alex,

 

I think water was progressively trickling in without pushing the faulty rocker button. This was confirmed when when I brought down the empty housing on the subsequent day. It was also during then that I realised the button was faulty as water also squirt in on pressing the rocker button.

 

I didnt notice the alarm setting off during the dive until the end when i was doing my safety stop. This could have happened as i forgot to put on the diffusers for my strobes and therefore barely took any photos during the dive. I normally hold the housing port down when not taking any photos and when i finally realised the alarm was activated towards the end of the dive, there was enough water to almost fill the dome port.

 

WT

[wtneo 0]

just a quick note... its also not possible to hear the alarm sound while underwater FYI.

[divegypsy 22]

I feel that if a screw comes loose in the first week of use in a new housing, this indicates sloppy assembly and ought to be considered a "manufacturing defect". Screws that are not intended to be adjusted by the user can, and should, be "secured" in place using a product like LocTite. There are grades of Loctite, and of similar products, that will "secure" the screw in place, but still allow it to be removed with the mechanical "leverage" a tool provides. These products should be used in quality housings so that this type of accident doesn't occur.

 

What the housing company will do about such a situation, once it occurs, is a very different thing. Many will simply say that they will fix the problem in the housing itself, but accept no responsibility for cameras and/or lenses destroyed. I tend to doubt this kind of response would hold up in a court case, but too often the amount of money involved is just not enough for the person who has suffered the loss to initiate legal action. And so the manufacturer just "gets away with it".

 

I had a flood that destroyed a Nikon F5 and Sigma 14mm lens the first year I had my Seacam housings for the Nikon F5. We traced the problem to one particular extension ring that leaked very frequently when used in combination with the big, heavy Seacam Superdome. Because I had bought a considerable number of extension rings and two Superdomes, I had not tested every possible combination. When we placed the extension ring in a lathe and put a feeler gauge on the sealing surface, you could see the needle "hop" each time it came to one particular point in the 360 degree revolution.

 

When I reported the problem to Seacam, the first thing they said was that they would replace the extension ring, but would take no responsibility for the camera or lens.

 

If you want a housing made by a manufacturer who will accept responsibility for camera damage caused by "manufacturing defects", the only one I know is IKELITE. Very honorable people.

 

A related question is whether the buyer should have to be responsible, at his own expense, for the manufacturer's quality control. Maybe Wetpixel could compile a list of the housing manufacturers and tell whether the manufacturer's warranty covers only the replacement of the defective part, or whether it also includes replacement of damaged photo gear. That would be very useful information for many people considering buying a new housing.

 

Fred

Edited August 20, 2010 by divegypsy

[CADiver 2]

A related question is whether the buyer should have to be responsible, at his own expense, for the manufacturer's quality control. Maybe Wetpixel could compile a list of the housing manufacturers and tell whether the manufacturer's warranty covers only the replacement of the defective part, or whether it also includes replacement of damaged photo gear. That would be very useful information for many people considering buying a new housing.

 

Fred

 

You are going to make Eric work ... ?! :-)

[JimSwims 31]

Maybe Fred could get to work and submit the data to be posted on Wetpixel as a pinned topic?

 

Cheers,

Jim.

[kkgodiving 1]

Sorry to hear this, Neo. I have been there and empathize with you. I will be interested to hear David's response.

[divegypsy 22]

As JimSwims has suggested, I'd be happy to do the work on a list of camera manufacturers and their warranties IF I make it to DEMA this year where I'd be able to ask each manufacturer who is there, in person. But asking doesn't mean you will get an honest answer, or even any answer. Some will probably refuse to answer, particularly answer for the record.

 

A related question is how would I be able to post this information on Wetpixel?

 

I'd also be very interested in researching and posting a full comparison of housings for the Nikon D700, which I think is a real landmark camera for Nikon users. The camera has full frame AND has a separate flash compensation control which gives the underwater shooter an advantage that NONE of Nikon's other full frame cameras provide - unequal compensations on flash and ambient light.

 

Over the last year I've purchased 2 housings (Seacam) for the D700. More recently, I spent a lot of time working with two very good machine shop engineers making modifications to the housings to give me much better access to the D700's capabilities. Love 'em now!

 

A housing may have a control for a particular camera button or function. But if you have to use two hands simultaneously to use it, and take the housing down from your eye to do it, then the control may not be really practical. I want the controls that I will use the most, and use when things are happening, to be accessible when my hand are on the housing's handgrips and my eye is looking through the camera's viewfinder.

 

One example of this are the push buttons that move the active auto-focus point around the picture frame. If you have to take your hand off of the housing's handle(s) and especially if you must take the camera away from your eye, to move the focus point, this will often take more time than the subject allows you when photographing a moving subject.

 

The same is also true if you want to change the flash compensation setting. (This applies ONLY if you shoot with an i-TTL flash) If your housing can keep the flash compensation button held down, you can change flash compensations by ONLY turning the front input dial (usually the same control as the aperture control) of the camera. When this button is held down, you see the amount of flash compensation set in the viewfinder and can still shoot, without ever taking the camera down from your eye. This is one of the many changes that I've made to my housings - a "lockable" flash compensation button control.

 

I'll be in Bali from mid-September until mid-November and will be happy to show my housing(s) to anyone who is interested. And, conditions permitting, maybe be able to do a dive with them and let them handle the camera underwater.

 

Fred

[CheungyDiver 53]

Sorry to hear this, Neo. I have been there and empathize with you. I will be interested to hear David's response.

 

Sorry to hear that but the housing ain't one of those on my shelf. There are other dealers. If anything leaked I would have found out before I handed anything over. Why do you think I have invested so much equipment on testing. One thing is for sure once the goods are handed over the line of disbute will become a bit blurred. Dealer have to ensure the goods are in working order. Floods with owners equipment is particularly emotive and trying for all concerned. It is not true that ikelite will just replace your equipment without question. Other brands have replaced goods when I found faults before they reached the customers. In this case I could sleep easy.

[Benthichi 0]

Sorry to hear that but the housing ain't one of those on my shelf. There are other dealers. If anything leaked I would have found out before I handed anything over. Why do you think I have invested so much equipment on testing. One thing is for sure once the goods are handed over the line of disbute will become a bit blurred. Dealer have to ensure the goods are in working order. Floods with owners equipment is particularly emotive and trying for all concerned. It is not true that ikelite will just replace your equipment without question. Other brands have replaced goods when I found faults before they reached the customers. In this case I could sleep easy.

 

I purchased the same housing 5 weeks ago, and on the 23rd dive, the housing leaked a little. On the 24th dive, a bit more. Today, I took it under without the camera and discovered that the rocker switch leaks a little when not depressed, and streams water in while depressed. We'll see how one of Nauticam's U.S. distributors handles an obvious manufacturer's defect. Two exterior parts are already rusting (a non-stainless steel snap ring on the ISO lever rod and the steel retainer ring on the eyepiece). Now, the interior has multiple parts corroding and rusting....

[kkgodiving 1]

Sorry to hear that but the housing ain't one of those on my shelf. There are other dealers. If anything leaked I would have found out before I handed anything over. Why do you think I have invested so much equipment on testing. One thing is for sure once the goods are handed over the line of disbute will become a bit blurred. Dealer have to ensure the goods are in working order. Floods with owners equipment is particularly emotive and trying for all concerned. It is not true that ikelite will just replace your equipment without question. Other brands have replaced goods when I found faults before they reached the customers. In this case I could sleep easy.

 

Oops, just noted that there are more than 1 dealers in town. Keep up the prudency and good service, David. You sleep ezy and so can I.

[DerekB 2]

This is getting a little worrying. On the assumption that new Wetpixel members are new to underwater photography and might be getting into trouble from inexperience, have any of the older, greyer photographers using Nauticam experienced any problems? Commiserations in advance if the floods have happened to the experienced, of course.

 

Tim

 

 

So since I'm a newer photog with a brand new nauticam 550 housing im curious on what a more experienced photog would do/not do to their housing that a new guy wouldn't.

[Rob White 0]

I'd just like to add my findings.

I was lucky enough to have the first Nauticam 550D housing off the production line.

I dived with it 4 times a day on a weeks Red-Sea live-aboard trip, on a 2 day trip to the North of England, a few times in the local aquarium and numerous times off the beach of the South coast of England.

The "zoom in" control rod on the housing didnt quite reach the camera button inside but that issue was resolved really quickly, both temporarily so I could use the unit on holiday and then permanently, once I was back in the UK. There was no ingress of water to the unit despite this teething issue.

 

I've had absolutley no problems with any leaks, nor any issues with loose screws.

 

I am over the moon with my Nauticam housing and I'd recommend them to anyone.

 

Hope that helps

[Ferg42 13]

I'd just like to add my findings.

I was lucky enough to have the first Nauticam 550D housing off the production line.

I dived with it 4 times a day on a weeks Red-Sea live-aboard trip, on a 2 day trip to the North of England, a few times in the local aquarium and numerous times off the beach of the South coast of England.

The "zoom in" control rod on the housing didnt quite reach the camera button inside but that issue was resolved really quickly, both temporarily so I could use the unit on holiday and then permanently, once I was back in the UK. There was no ingress of water to the unit despite this teething issue.

 

I've had absolutley no problems with any leaks, nor any issues with loose screws.

 

I am over the moon with my Nauticam housing and I'd recommend them to anyone.

 

Hope that helps

 

Hey Rob, good to see there's another UW photographer locally, I'm based in Lewes . Did you dive in the Sealife Centre at Brighton? Was it good? & how to you go about arranging it? Feeling the urge to get my 7D housing wet again....

 

Fergus

[Cp 29]

Hi all,

 

Our service department handles all of the Nauticam USA warranty claims, and we've had no Nauticam D90, D300s, D700, or 7D returns for leaking control shafts. The piano keys on 7D use a different design, and are no more complicated than any simple pushbutton from a sealing perspective. The rocker key on NA-550 is a new assembly.

 

As mentioned above, there are tolerance variances from camera to camera that affect control alignment. Nauticam housings have some adjustments available to compensate for these different tolerances; and our service department will be glad to help fine tune a housing for a particular camera if needed. It rarely is.

 

We are anxious to evaluate the causes of these issues, and will provide whatever after sale support is necessary. We will continue to stand by Nauticam owners.

 

Cheers,

Chris

[Drew 0]

Chris,

Benthichi says his dealer is in the US. Are you saying that no one has reported any leaking shaft issue about the 550D/T2i housings at all?

[Drew 0]

Due to the overwhelming response on the Nauticam 7D housing, I've split the thread so WT's issue and the 7D housing has more clarity with their own respective threads. You can find the 7D housing thread here:

 

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=37484

[Cp 29]

Chris,

Benthichi says his dealer is in the US. Are you saying that no one has reported any leaking shaft issue about the 550D/T2i housings at all?

 

I said no D90, D300s, D700, or 7D returns for leaking shafts. Yes, we have received the one 550D and we are evaluating it now. Sorry if I wasn't clear there.

 

Cheers,

Cp

[tdpriest 115]

So since I'm a newer photog with a brand new nauticam 550 housing im curious on what a more experienced photog would do/not do to their housing that a new guy wouldn't.

 

OK - common problems in the (less) experienced:

 

over-greasing the main o-ring...

not greasing the main o-ring...

trapping the main o-ring without noticing...

leaving the rig in the dunk bucket where the port gets displaced...

setting up the housing in a hurry (that's my specialty, and, yes, I had a leak)...

failing to make sure that the port is properly seated...

 

... and so on.

 

I've learned from other photographers and reading a lot. I've witnessed a few salt-water camera disasters, and had a couple myself.

 

I've been a diver and photographer, as well as having an interest in diving medicine and having been around salty water for long enough to realise that 90+% of all problems start with human error. I'm also very familiar with the temptation to look for equipment failure rather than face up to the possibility of human error. I apologise if you think that I have been personally critical, but I'm not apologising for a little aged cynicism!

 

Tim

 

[Paul Kay 62]

To add to Tim's comments, its also worth bearing in mind that if you are traveling and the housing has to go in the hold luggage then it will need a careful scrutiny upon arrival at the destination. I've had flash units simply not work (internal connections dislodged), control shafts bent and metal handles bent too, I know of broken port shades as well (even in Pelicases). I always thoroughly inspect the housing, etc., on arrival, which is how I picked up the bent control shaft (I managed to straighten it enough to operate but it was later replaced). Again, experience means that you just accept such checks as a routine part of traveling with a housing (or I do anyway) but its very easy to assume that everything is ok because it was prior to departure. One of my suspicions is that luggage is treated badly enough to loosen bits and pieces even if they were properly assembled, and I've seen luggage fall off the trolley trains so its hardly surprising.

[Drew 0]

To add to Tim's comments, its also worth bearing in mind that if you are traveling and the housing has to go in the hold luggage then it will need a careful scrutiny upon arrival at the destination. I've had flash units simply not work (internal connections dislodged), control shafts bent and metal handles bent too, I know of broken port shades as well (even in Pelicases). I always thoroughly inspect the housing, etc., on arrival, which is how I picked up the bent control shaft (I managed to straighten it enough to operate but it was later replaced). Again, experience means that you just accept such checks as a routine part of traveling with a housing (or I do anyway) but its very easy to assume that everything is ok because it was prior to departure. One of my suspicions is that luggage is treated badly enough to loosen bits and pieces even if they were properly assembled, and I've seen luggage fall off the trolley trains so its hardly surprising.

 

Paul, I totally agree with the preventative steps needed, but again look at the facts of complainant's posts, which is the topic of this thread. Both occurrences happened between the 10th - 23rd dives. Which means it passed the scrutiny test but loosened as it was used. There is no reasonable way you can test for such an issue short of doing a test dive before every real dive. I'm not sure this is a case of mishandled housings.