Housing Storage

[chippy]

I've got a PT-015 housing, but I would thing this thread will equally apply to most, if not all housings.

I was wondering what's the best way to store the housing between dives - I.E. should the O-rings be left in place and the back closed, or should the O-rings be taken out?

I've been religiously cleaning and relubing the O-rings after each and every dive and haven't had any problems, and I keep the housing and strobe in an aluminium case when not in use.

Is there anything else I should be doing?

Thanks for any info.

 

[Ruu]

From what I have read on the subject, the o-ring should not be stored in the housing, and it definitely should not be stored closed in the housing, since you might run into some compression issues over time. I took mine out, cleaned it thoroughly, siliconed it a little, and put it in a ziploc bag with the case.

Dave

 

[chippy]

That's what I thought, but then it crossed my mind that it came from Oly with the rings in place, and presumed that that's how they stored them.

Better safe than sorry though, so I'll take your advice - cheers

 

[Dee]

As a rule I store my good O-ring, well greased, in a ziplock bag. I have an old one that I've permanently marked (be sure to do this part!) and it's used for storage. But there's not specific reason, I just like the cushion it provides. When I fly, I remove the o-ring, just in case it gets locked up with the pressure change. When I'm using the housing on weekend, I leave the o-ring in, I just don't close the back.

While I applaud you for your diligence in keeping your o-ring clean, be careful of over doing it. It's not necessary to clean and relube after every dive, unless you are going through surf or rough shore conditions where there's alot of sand in the water. Every time you open the housing, or I should say every time you close it, is another chance for a flood. Sounds scarey, huh? But it's not if you're careful and pay attention to detail. That said, there's no reason to open the housing unless you need to change batteries or memory. Mine last me a minimum of 3 dives and since I like things in 2's I change batteries every other dive. At that time I will visually check the o-ring. I'll wait until evening to remove, clean and regrease the o-ring. Also keep in mind this schedule is when I'm on dive boats in open ocean or lake diving from a dock in clean water.

What I'm bumbling and trying to say is too much attention to the o-ring can be just as bad as too little.

 

[docmartin]

i own a canon housing and i believe you can't remove the o-ring. so you don't have much choice.

 

[Gilligan]

I agree with the previous posts on the Oly housing storage. I have a section on my website with some helpful hints, if you are interested.:shades:

 

[chippy]

Thanks Gilligan, very helpful.

I've bought a 67mm "normal" lens cap to protect the port though - seems to work fine.

 

[Former FLL Now MSP Diver]

docmartin once bubbled...
i own a canon housing and i believe you can't remove the o-ring. so you don't have much choice.

Are you sure? The O-ring comes out of my WP-DC700, and I know it also comes out of a buddy's WP-DC300.

Marc

 

[docmartin]

thanks fll diver! just removed the o-ring from wp-dc300. it was not so easy though without damaging it with the o-ring picker. i was just assuming you could not /should not remove it because the manual does not mention it under maintenance and says to contact customer service for o-ring replacement which sounded to me like they expect you to send it in. as far as storage, they also state to store the camera open so the o-ring does not get squeezed. that sounds like they assume you do not take it out to store separately. however, i will definitely keep it separate from now on. just seems less stress on the o-ring.

 

[wetbehindtheear]

I just called Canon's parts department (1-888-832-4719 for Canon Canada) and got the parts list for my WP-DC800. The O-ring is $14 CAD and I can pick it up at the parts depot 15 minutes from my house (otherwise they'd either mail it or send it to a nearby distributor). Great guys to deal with as soon as I got one who spoke english.