Want to do a wet sensor clean myself

Rservello said:

I'm not a big fan of wet cleaning. And with dry tools today, it's not needed. Here is everything you need to keep your sensor clean as the day you got it with no solutions needed! And it won't even break the bank...total cost is under $100



I use that set up and it works without a hitch!

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https://www.flickr.com/photos/49019071@N03/
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2334596/

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1w12q312qw1 said:

So you can mess around all you want but nothing beats a wet cleaning with Eclipse - nothing.

Stan

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Rservello said:

mactac said:

PenPix said:

"Help, did I screw up my sensor?" thread: http://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/52937971

I'm not saying you shouldn't do it, but just be very careful going about it.

I have used the Visible Dust swabs on my D200. After 2 tries I still had 1 dust spot visible on my images, but I can live with it as it is easily fixed in PP. Luckily I've managed to dodge the dust bullet with my D700.

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I was the person who started this thread. I will never buy visible dust products again - they left a film on my sensor that just wouldn't go away, no matter how much wiping, scraping and rubbing I did (I'm exaggerating a bit here!). It almost looked like scratches (the reason I started the thread)

The very first wipe from a competing product got rid of the film.

After all of that, I'm won't have any problems cleaning my own sensor (using the right product), and will continue to do so.

I did find cleaning it somewhat frustrating though, as it seems like a pretty imperfect solution (no pun intended): With each clean, it seemed like it got rid of some dust, but added other dust. I took 7 wipes (actually, 14 if you count one way then the other) to get rid of 95% of the dust (I still have a bit).

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Are you using a rocket blower and a charged brush? That should remove any residual dust.

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1w12q312qw1 said:

Rservello said:

I'm not a big fan of wet cleaning. And with dry tools today, it's not needed. Here is everything you need to keep your sensor clean as the day you got it with no solutions needed! And it won't even break the bank...total cost is under $100

I use that set up and it works without a hitch!

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

Rservello said:

1w12q312qw1 said:

Rservello said:

I'm not a big fan of wet cleaning. And with dry tools today, it's not needed. Here is everything you need to keep your sensor clean as the day you got it with no solutions needed! And it won't even break the bank...total cost is under $100

I use that set up and it works without a hitch!

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

Rservello said:

I'm not a big fan of wet cleaning. And with dry tools today, it's not needed. Here is everything you need to keep your sensor clean as the day you got it with no solutions needed! And it won't even break the bank...total cost is under $100

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001QUIEIS/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00017LSPI/ref=oh_details_o03_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0091SS310/ref=oh_details_o03_s00_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001B9RI5O/ref=oh_details_o03_s01_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0019K8YVM/ref=oh_details_o03_s01_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I use that set up and it works without a hitch!

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Rservello said:

1w12q312qw1 said:

Rservello said:

I'm not a big fan of wet cleaning. And with dry tools today, it's not needed. Here is everything you need to keep your sensor clean as the day you got it with no solutions needed! And it won't even break the bank...total cost is under $100

I use that set up and it works without a hitch!

Click to expand...

If it works for you, that's fine. But the items you posted have absolutely NO effect on stuck-on dust specks and lubricant. For that you need a wet cleaning kit such as this one:

Wet & Dry Sensor Kit

I have the sensor pen and it works OK for picking up loose dust but I had no luck with it on the more stubborn particles and oil. I would never use an adhesive on my sensor, no matter what anyone says.

So you can mess around all you want but nothing beats a wet cleaning with Eclipse - nothing.

Stan

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Not true at all. I had some smears that came right off.

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Iliah Borg said:

Iliah Borg said:

Iliah Borg said:

If it works for you, that's fine. But the items you posted have absolutely NO effect on stuck-on dust specks and lubricant. For that you need a wet cleaning kit such as this one:

Wet & Dry Sensor Kit

I have the sensor pen and it works OK for picking up loose dust but I had no luck with it on the more stubborn particles and oil. I would never use an adhesive on my sensor, no matter what anyone says.

So you can mess around all you want but nothing beats a wet cleaning with Eclipse - nothing.

Stan

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Do not overdose Eclipse 2 drops max.

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dswinsor said:

I have orered this:

http://photographylife.com/product/sensor-gel-stick

Anyone have any experience?

There is a video showing a technician using at on the Leica assembly line.

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Robin Casady said:

dswinsor said:

I have orered this:

http://photographylife.com/product/sensor-gel-stick

Anyone have any experience?

There is a video showing a technician using at on the Leica assembly line.

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I haven't used it, but watched the video. I don't think it will be of any help with oil

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Iliah Borg said:

Rservello said:

1w12q312qw1 said:

Rservello said:

I'm not a big fan of wet cleaning. And with dry tools today, it's not needed. Here is everything you need to keep your sensor clean as the day you got it with no solutions needed! And it won't even break the bank...total cost is under $100

I use that set up and it works without a hitch!

Click to expand...

If it works for you, that's fine. But the items you posted have absolutely NO effect on stuck-on dust specks and lubricant. For that you need a wet cleaning kit such as this one:

Wet & Dry Sensor Kit

I have the sensor pen and it works OK for picking up loose dust but I had no luck with it on the more stubborn particles and oil. I would never use an adhesive on my sensor, no matter what anyone says.

So you can mess around all you want but nothing beats a wet cleaning with Eclipse - nothing.

Stan

Click to expand...

Not true at all. I had some smears that came right off.

Click to expand...

Do not overdose Eclipse 2 drops max.

Click to expand...

mactac said:

mactac said:

Rservello wrote

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mactac said:

mactac said:

Are you using a rocket blower and a charged brush? That should remove any residual dust.

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No charged brush, just the blower.

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Stuart001 said:

mactac said:

Stuart001 said:

Rservello wrote

Are you using a rocket blower and a charged brush? That should remove any residual dust.

Click to expand...

No charged brush, just the blower.

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Rservell is right. There is a three step system and it is the reason why the whole process takes a while. The idea is to always start with the least intrusive step and work up to a wet clean which may only be needed every second or third time you clean the sensor. The cleanliness of the sensor is dependent on many factors, including the camera itself, how many times you change the lenses, where and how you change them, and how fussy you are.

First, take a record photograph--an out-of-focus blue sky or white wall on the largest f number of your lens--f16, 22). Import the image and look at it closely at at least a 100%. I use Photoshop and circle each piece of dust on the image.

If there is dust set the camera to open the shutter for cleaning. Use a blower (not a blower brush but just an air blower) and blow the dust out.

Re-photograph the sky or wall, and repeat. If there is still dust but it has moved, repeat the previous step. If there is dust that has not been moved by the blower, THEN use the static charged brush. A sensor brush can be charged with blasts of air or with motion (like the Arctic Butterfly) and this is used to lightly brush the sensor. The static charge will cause any dust to stick to the brush. But it is important to brush, charge, brush, charge, etc.

Take another photo and see if the dust is gone, moved, or is still in the same place. If it is gone, great. The sensor brush will remove a lot of the general dust. If it still has dust but it has moved repeat the two steps above.

If there is dust that is stuck to the sensor--that is, the air and sensor brush have not removed it completely or at least moved it around, only now should you use a wet clean.

And then repeat the steps with the least impact on the sensor as you need to remembering to take another photograph after each clean and looking closely at them.

Just remember that you will probably never get a sensor completely clean.

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