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Olympus 12x50 EXPS I - Fungus Problem (1 Viewer)

super_i_man

New member
I have a "Olympus 12x50 EXPS I" binocular that was purchased in 1998. I have observed growth of some fungus inside the binocular, last month, it was not there 6 months back. I think this has happend as i had stored it in a plastic bag with no ventilation. I stay in India.

Please can anyone suggest some remedy for this. I dont want the binos to be opened as this would misallign the lenses and render them useless.

Will the fungus spread inside???? Now I have kept it in the orginal pouch with some Silica Gel kept in an envelope.
 
I have a "Olympus 12x50 EXPS I" binocular that was purchased in 1998. I have observed growth of some fungus inside the binocular, last month, it was not there 6 months back. I think this has happend as i had stored it in a plastic bag with no ventilation. I stay in India.

Please can anyone suggest some remedy for this. I dont want the binos to be opened as this would misallign the lenses and render them useless.

Will the fungus spread inside???? Now I have kept it in the orginal pouch with some Silica Gel kept in an envelope.

I do not know if the fungus can be stopped, but read this awhile back and may be worth a try.

http://www.photoethnography.com/blog/archives/2005/03/keeping_cameras.html

When silca gel gets saturated, it does no good since it will try to equilize with the microenvironment it is in.

I use "indicating silca gel" that changes color when it needs to be regenerated (depending on brand and type, typically put in oven at some temperature and time). I also use humidity indicating cards (the cards with the blue circles packed with drugs sometimes) in zip lock bags or a hygrometer in a safe or case. Do not try to get humidity to low, say below 30% RH since that can dry wood, rubber seals, etc. From memory I think it has to be above about 63% RH for fungus to grow, but not sure about that.

Hopefully, this will give you some place to start. It has been awhile since looked into this and a web search may well turn up some later information.

A couple of types of desicant I use most of the time are linked below. The blue type may be banned as a cancer causing agent overseas. So you may look for types with other indicating colors that do not use cobalt as the doping agent. The last time I checked (several years ago) the US did not have it on their list. The blue and white is far cheaper than orange and red indicators and I only use 1 or 2% weight blue/white ratio and watch the dust. You can also just use the white, which I do for a lot of applications, and check the weight to tell when regeneration is needed.

http://www.sorbentsystems.com/bulksorbents.html
http://www.deltaadsorbents.com/pdf/Sorbead_o.pdf

Ron
 
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hio super,

most of photographers and birders using dry cabinet or dry box to stores our electronic devices as well scope and bin to prevent any growth of fungus in the lense.

recommended for those who live in tropical countries and im using one about 100 litres made by hui fong from china. u can check this link if you are interested;

www.digihub.com.sg - hui fong manufactured for singaporean market.
www.shashanki.com.my - u can buy online too

by the way, welcome to the club and happy birding while searching for info here :)
 
Not useless if opened

Hello Super I man. It is usually sucessful for an experienced binocular technician to open a binocular; clean the fungus off the prisms; rebuild and realign. If fungus is left too long on the prism it can stain the coatings as well as spreading. As your bino is not water proof, the air will be sucked in and pumped out ever time there is a change in temperature. Putting the bino in a sealed poly bag with silica gel is a good idea but the silica gel needs to be dried out every now and again to keep it working. You just have to pop it in your oven after cooking a meal.
 
Leave them in direct sunlight for as much time as possible. The UV might kill if not stunt the fungal growth.
 
These Oly bins are particularly prone to fungus and mould problems as I have the same problem in my 10X50 while the Nikon 16X50 still is fungus free when stored in the same environment.
 
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