Fungus on Nikon EII 8x30. What to do? Ideas and comments welcome (1 Viewer)

[yarrellii]

I’ve had my 2018 Nikon EII 8x30 fogged up internally several times, the last time it displayed an odd looking «noodle patter» that was probably not fungus. However, yesterday while cleaning the lenses I spotted something worrying that I’m afraid this time is indeed fungal growth, is it?



I’m afraid the answer is yes. In that case, I guess this is something you can’t simply reverse, so, my questions are:

• Is there anything you can do to stop it? At the moment they are in a zip bag with a couple of 25 g silica gel sachets.
• Is there any product I can put in the bag to “kill the fungus” and prevent it from spreading further? I don’t know, maybe something like a chemical treatment that is released in a sealed bag and left to work for hours/days like the ones used to kill some pests?
• Can this be "undo"/totally cleaned by a professional?

Over here humidity is pretty terrible, but to be honest I wasn’t expecting a 4 year old device to suffer from fungus so quick (in my mind, this was something related to “decades old” binoculars that had been seating in a damp drawer for years. It’s true that I haven’t used the EII over that last few months (it was rainy and I had used other models) but I’ve been really surprised. Since a few months I have all my non-sealed Porro binoculars in zip bags with silica gel sachets (due to my concerns over humidity which, as it turns out, were not baseless), but I guess in this case the fungus had made it’s way into the Nikon before.

Any advice or comment is greatly appreciated, a true pity given that the small EII are one of my favourite binoculars 😔 At the moment I don't think this affects the view, but I'm concerned it might in the future, and also I'm worried it might spread to other non sealed Porro binoculars I have.

 

[Alexander Stöhr]

Hello,
my first advice i to bring your bino to an expert/professional. They can clean it (hope they can do). If there is no such person/service in your area. I suggest that you go to an/your glasses optician and get advice here.

And there are some members here on BF, that have experience with fungus in optics. I hope, they are jumping in here. Thanks from me, too. And I see, that others helped in your other thread

Yes, I heard before, that "fungus-optics" need to be seperated from other optics, but I dont know if this some kind of an urban legend. But its an easy action (and it hasnt any disadvantage), so I would do it.

 

[PeterPS]

I’ve had my 2018 Nikon EII 8x30 fogged up internally several times, the last time it displayed an odd looking «noodle patter» that was probably not fungus. However, yesterday while cleaning the lenses I spotted something worrying that I’m afraid this time is indeed fungal growth, is it?

View attachment 1439679

I’m afraid the answer is yes. In that case, I guess this is something you can’t simply reverse, so, my questions are:

• Is there anything you can do to stop it? At the moment they are in a zip bag with a couple of 25 g silica gel sachets.
• Is there any product I can put in the bag to “kill the fungus” and prevent it from spreading further? I don’t know, maybe something like a chemical treatment that is released in a sealed bag and left to work for hours/days like the ones used to kill some pests?
• Can this be "undo"/totally cleaned by a professional?

Over here humidity is pretty terrible, but to be honest I wasn’t expecting a 4 year old device to suffer from fungus so quick (in my mind, this was something related to “decades old” binoculars that had been seating in a damp drawer for years. It’s true that I haven’t used the EII over that last few months (it was rainy and I had used other models) but I’ve been really surprised. Since a few months I have all my non-sealed Porro binoculars in zip bags with silica gel sachets (due to my concerns over humidity which, as it turns out, were not baseless), but I guess in this case the fungus had made it’s way into the Nikon before.

Any advice or comment is greatly appreciated, a true pity given that the small EII are one of my favourite binoculars 😔 At the moment I don't think this affects the view, but I'm concerned it might in the future, and also I'm worried it might spread to other non sealed Porro binoculars I have.

Possibly this is separation of the cement (balsam) between the lens elements rather than fungus. In either case service by a professional would be needed.

 

[dorubird]

Take the binoculars out in the strong sunlight regular. You can expose the interior of binoculars directly to strong sunlight periodically for a few minutes/ day to kill the fungus, and it will not spread. But you shouldn't leave it too long so that it doesn't overheat. And be careful not to fire anything through binoculars lenses UV radiation is the number one enemy of fungus!! It is good, from time to time, to make such a habit with all the optics in the drawers: binoculars, telescopes, photo lenses. It's best not to keep it in the same place as before. Keep it on a shelf in an open and ventilated place, not in a box or drawer

 

[BKoh]

As others have stated, letting the sun shine through the lenses for some time should kill the fungus. But in a non-sealed bino, fungus risk is always there. So maybe you should save up for a replacement EII (and its future replacement too), or get a different (waterproof) bino.

It's a pity Nikon has not decided to make a waterproof EII, I think it would sell quite well.

 

[Binastro]

Hi Yarrellii,

It seems more like fungus than balsam separation.
Balsam separation is actually worse as the doublet has to be separated and rebalsamed.

UV exposure is good up to a point.
Too long and it can lead to balsam separation.

I am not at all surprised by fungus in your environment.

In WW2 Australian binoculars became useless in 6 weeks from brand new.
They had to set up mobile binocular repair units to regularly deal with fungus.

Some people use dehumidifier units to store optics.
I am not sure if these are used for cigars.

If the surface is easily reached you may be able to remove the small amount of fungus, if that is what it is.

Definitely don't store the binocular in its case or a drawer.
Better left out in a relative humidity of less than 60%, preferably less than 40%.

I would invest in a new EII also and store it carefully.

The fungus growth can be slowed by careful attention now if it is fungus.

At the moment the effect on the image will not be seen.

I am not sure if a chemical agent can be used, but this is likely to harm your health.

Regards,
B.

 

[Binastro]

Silica bags are useless once they are saturated.

B.

 

[MiddleRiver]

Silica bags are useless once they are saturated.

B.

If you DO need to store bins in a cabinet or drawer, cans of gel which change color to indicate when they need to be dried-out are commonly used in firearm storage lockers. Just look for 'safe dehumidifier'. To 'recharge' you simply heat in oven.

 

[Brink]

Hi Yarrellii,

It seems more like fungus than balsam separation.
Balsam separation is actually worse as the doublet has to be separated and rebalsamed.

UV exposure is good up to a point.
Too long and it can lead to balsam separation.

I am not at all surprised by fungus in your environment.

In WW2 Australian binoculars became useless in 6 weeks from brand new.
They had to set up mobile binocular repair units to regularly deal with fungus.

Some people use dehumidifier units to store optics.
I am not sure if these are used for cigars.

If the surface is easily reached you may be able to remove the small amount of fungus, if that is what it is.

Definitely don't store the binocular in its case or a drawer.
Better left out in a relative humidity of less than 60%, preferably less than 40%.

I would invest in a new EII also and store it carefully.

The fungus growth can be slowed by careful attention now if it is fungus.

At the moment the effect on the image will not be seen.

I am not sure if a chemical agent can be used, but this is likely to harm your health.

Regards,
B.

If the fungus is internal, how do you expose it to UV light?

Edit: I assume most of the "harmful" UV can't get through the objective or ocular lenses (Optical Glass N-BK7 Optical Material)

 

[PeterPS]

Binastro is right: if it looks like a fern then often it is ..."ferngus"; but I believe there is a possibility that in your case it is balsam separation.

 

[Binastro]

The near blue and longer wave UV should get through.

It may be that just near blue visible light stops fungus.

But if the humidity and temperature are high, as in the tropics, fungus is probably inevitable except in the best protected binoculars.

A cigar humidor should help, but I don't know the range of relative humidity that are used.

A dehumidifier in a small room might work.

B.

 

[Richard D]

I know a couple of collectors of old camera lenses who use UV torches (flashlights) to kill fungus - it won't undo the damage but might kill it off so it no longer spreads.

 

[Brink]

Yes, short-wave visible light and UVA light may be able to kill fungus, if that is what this is. Maybe a strong artificial light source for prolonged duration. You can get bright 405 nm LEDs pretty cheaply these days (probably what is in the flashlights Richard mentions). You could probably even continuously expose the binoculars to this light while they are in storage pretty cheaply and efficiently.

 

[pat mitchel]

Seems to me that if the bino in question is 4 years old, it is unlikely to be using a Canada Balsam for the bonding agent- probably a synthetic (stronger bond- more difficult to "de" bond). Pat

 

[yarrellii]

Thanks all for your ideas and comments, I'll check with the repairer I used last time (de Kijkerspecialist, in the Netherlands, unfortunately I don't know of any good quality service in Spain. I used one that is usually recommended but I wasn't really satisfied with their service).

As others have stated, letting the sun shine through the lenses for some time should kill the fungus. But in a non-sealed bino, fungus risk is always there. So maybe you should save up for a replacement EII (and its future replacement too), or get a different (waterproof) bino.

It's a pity Nikon has not decided to make a waterproof EII, I think it would sell quite well.

I have other very nice 8x32 waterproof binoculars (like the Swarovski EL SV and the Opticron Traveller), so the EII doesn't actually need replacement, since it's just a pleasure to use and it gives some things the others don't/can't. It's really a pity what you say about Nikon not offering an updated waterproof Porro (I also have the Action EX 7x35 which is nice, but quite bulky and heavy, and nowhere near as nice as the EII).

In WW2 Australian binoculars became useless in 6 weeks from brand new.

I'm shocked 😱

 

[dries1]

yarrellii,

I think getting them cleaned and serviced would be prudent, before any potential coating issues take shape. After service I would keep them in a dry box during the elevated high humidity climate. Now this will help getting more use out of them between service/cleaning services, the frequency of those service intervals will depend on if they are a daily user or not. I am sure that you probably used them in the field more than anyone else on birdforum.
I am confident that it will work out.

 

[Patudo]

Hopefully this has been resolved to your satisfaction yarrelli. It's unfortunate, but issues like these are part of the reason why the modern sealed roof prism binocular came to be, and why that type of binocular now dominates the birding market.

PS. it's easy to see why certain individuals who make their living from optical repair might love unsealed porros!

 

[WJC]

I’ve had my 2018 Nikon EII 8x30 fogged up internally several times, the last time it displayed an odd looking «noodle patter» that was probably not fungus. However, yesterday while cleaning the lenses I spotted something worrying that I’m afraid this time is indeed fungal growth, is it?

View attachment 1439679

I’m afraid the answer is yes. In that case, I guess this is something you can’t simply reverse, so, my questions are:

• Is there anything you can do to stop it? At the moment they are in a zip bag with a couple of 25 g silica gel sachets.
• Is there any product I can put in the bag to “kill the fungus” and prevent it from spreading further? I don’t know, maybe something like a chemical treatment that is released in a sealed bag and left to work for hours/days like the ones used to kill some pests?
• Can this be "undo"/totally cleaned by a professional?

Over here humidity is pretty terrible, but to be honest I wasn’t expecting a 4 year old device to suffer from fungus so quick (in my mind, this was something related to “decades old” binoculars that had been seating in a damp drawer for years. It’s true that I haven’t used the EII over that last few months (it was rainy and I had used other models) but I’ve been really surprised. Since a few months I have all my non-sealed Porro binoculars in zip bags with silica gel sachets (due to my concerns over humidity which, as it turns out, were not baseless), but I guess in this case the fungus had made it’s way into the Nikon before.

Any advice or comment is greatly appreciated, a true pity given that the small EII are one of my favourite binoculars 😔 At the moment I don't think this affects the view, but I'm concerned it might in the future, and also I'm worried it might spread to other non sealed Porro binoculars I have.

On the left, balsam breakdown. On the right fungus. It is a matter of quality, not binocular type. Many of the best Porros have "o" ring seals and many roofs ... don't.

 

[hvt]

I'm in Brazil, I got the best possible solution, to avoid any kind of problem related to humidity, fungus, among others

Dehumidifier, which regulates by temperature, humidity and lighting

This company is from Brazil, fully customizable

In addition to being incredibly beautiful

 

[hvt]

Póp Case - Dry Box Dehumidifier Binoculars