Ariel, try to put the camera near a heat source with everything OPEN, that may dry off all the water vapor. You can put it near a bulb but don't get it so hot that you melt plastic.
If you want to sell it to me for short money I am open to the idea.
Gerry
Sep 19, 2006 at 10:45 AM
Lars Johnsson Offline • • • • • • • Upload & Sell: Off
Gerry Szarek wrote:
Ariel, try to put the camera near a heat source with everything OPEN, that may dry off all the water vapor. You can put it near a bulb but don't get it so hot that you melt plastic.
That's an idea, but given that it's been a month now, the damage has probably already been done.
If you want to sell it to me for short money I am open to the idea.
I'm amazed at how many people have offered to buy a dead camera. I didn't know it would actually be of any use to them. Anyways, I've gotten some pretty nice offers but have decided to keep it. Thanks anyways.
It could be that this particular 1DII's weather sealing had already badly deteriorated. I am not sure what kind of material those o-ring seals are made of, but if they are plain rubber, they can age and crack if exposed to extreme conditions (high temp, chemical solvents, etc.). Obviously, one won't be able to spot the bad seals until something like this happens.
Just out of curiosity SKPhoton, what's your normal procedure after getting the cam wet?
I've had my fair share of classes on corrosion and prevention of corrosion, so with that in mind I know that printed circuit board wrecking (delaminating) corrosion can only be a result of prolonged exposure to moist.
Did you leave it soaked in a camera bag or did you meticulously clean it and put it out to dry in a warm dry place directly afterwards?
I clean it off and dry it off as much as possible, especially if it's not a weather-sealed body. How "prolonged" does it have to be? I started getting side-effects very quickly after getting the camera really wet.
I shoot professionally in the foulest of the foul weather. This morning, I had two 5D's and my M6 in heavy wet snow. I have owned and used many non sealed and sealed cameras and I know personally that weather seals are over rated and hyped quite often. I have seen my peers have the same problems with the Nikon F5 / F100, 1V, 1D, 1D-II, etc. all because they think that weather sealing means totally weather proof.
Well, it is not and no degree of weather sealing will ever replace common sense. My living depends on getting the shot. The last thing I would ever do is assume that weather sealing is the be-all, end-all and lose the shot to machismo.
Sorry you had to learn the hard way, but thanks for sharing a real world example that weather sealing is indeed, overrated and vastly misunderstood.
Film_Ruled wrote:
Sorry you had to learn the hard way, but thanks for sharing a real world example that weather sealing is indeed, overrated and vastly misunderstood.
You could be right.
For me though, I have heard many many many users report using their 1-series in terrible coniditions (assuming sealed lenses, filter etc) to no ill effects. This is the first I have heard of them failing (Im not saying I think they are impermeable, but I do think that they do what they are supposed to for the most part).
Given the "squeeky wheel" syndrome of the internet, I find your assertion that the weather sealing is overrated to simply not be true. If it were even somewhat unrelaible, I think posts like the OP's would almost be commonplace, with users complaining loud and hard about the inadequecy of the seals. I just havent seen that happen in 2 years of spending way too much time on this forum (and having participated in many of the threads that have popped up over the issue).
Dont get me wrong, Im not trying to say Canon is perfect and dont you dare say otherwise. Im just saying anecdotally, I find your assertion that the weather sealing in overrated to be untrue.
SKPhoton wrote:
I clean it off and dry it off as much as possible, especially if it's not a weather-sealed body. How "prolonged" does it have to be? I started getting side-effects very quickly after getting the camera really wet.
The near-direct side effects are a result of water being slightly conductive. Completely pure water isn't, but even if you get de-ionised water into an electronic device, it will rapidly dissolve all sorts of minute traces of metals and oxides, thus becoming somewhat conductive. Its presence is enough to distort electrical signals, hence the side effect.
The corrosion process is a result of the PCBs being exposed to water for a prolonged time. Well, if you have a breached seal and water gets in, then all the external drying will not help. There must have been enough water in there for a long time, think days to weeks, in order to corrode. Keeping the battery inside, thus providing a voltage differential inside, accelerates the corrosion tremendously.
I hate to put it to you, but the side-effects should have sent up a red flag right away:
WATER INSIDE!! ... Which can only be archived under the heading WHOOPS, Not Good!
The next step would have been to put the camera on a heater, no lens on it, battery out, CF card cover open, all you can do to open up the cam as best as possible, and just let it sit there be warm. Warm as in: Hot to the touch, but holdable. All the internal water has to evaporate as soon as possible to halt the corrosion.
Film_Ruled wrote:
I shoot professionally in the foulest of the foul weather. This morning, I had two 5D's and my M6 in heavy wet snow.
Where you in Alaska, in the mountains, or where did you find heavy wet snow? I hate to think that it will arrive here again soon, probably in 2 month's time, and then stay around for 5 months ... I really hate it when it is wet.
(I'm serious).