O-ring grease

[TedJ]

Hi - am new here and reading your thread. I just got in the pool with my new Oly C5050, PT015 housing and INON D180 strobe. Am now worried that I've made a grave grease error and would appreciate your help!

I received a tiny tube of brownish- clear o ring grease from INON for the strobe's yellow o rings. I also received a tiny tube of clear silicone grease from Olympus for the housing's black o rings. I applied the INON grease to both orings, as I wasn't thinking clearly before I jumped in the pool. Did I just damage my Olympus o rings by using the INON grease? I thought colored o rings were more susceptible to breaking down, and thus am hoping that the INON grease is safe enough for the silicon orings on my Oly....

Hope to put my mind at ease.....

First, welcome to the board. We're glad you jumped right in.

I have never seen black o-rings for the 5050 housing. All the ones I have seen, and I just ordered a new set from Yuzo, are red. Without knowing the makeup of the INON o-rings and grease versus the Olympus o-rings and grease it is hard to answer your question. However, my guess is that you should be fine. I would get a backup set of o-rings for both though. And I would start using the supplied grease with its o-ring. One time greasing is not going to hurt anything in this case, IMHO.

Anyone else seen black o-rings for the 5050?
TedJ

 

[Wayne_Sargent]

Does everyone remove orings each dive day? each dive? ever? Do you lube it every dive? every dive day? ever? Do you store the housing open, or closed and locked?

Now to confess my sins... my pt012 baby blue oring might have been lubricated a few times when I first used it a couple years ago, but I saw too many orings stretched and overgreased, and particles worked into grooves, so I decided to test this. The oring has about 120 dives, never out of the housing oring groove, maybe lightly lubed a few times in 2002, oring's and opposite housing face are always cleaned by fingers... maybe the natural oils in my hands are worth something. Camera rep's always preach removing, cleaning, and lubricating orings in UW photography classes I've attended, so maybe my experiment will fail, but there doesn't appear to be any stiffness, discoloration, cracking, or wear on this oring yet. It is still very pliable... soft, resilient, when it is pressed by a thumbnail... still acts like new. I've never recommended this to anyone, but seems to me that you will see or feel it when it is time to replace the oring. Let me know if you've tried this and if it failed... and where it failed.

 

[nwdiver2]

People are told to baby the o-ring as it is a liability issue with the manufacturers, they have to be able to say I told you so or they would be liable for camera losses, some manufactures say its up to you do as you have been taught and get out of the line of fire that way (or use to they have recently changed to the service the o-rings after every dive mantra). I redo mine in film and digital housing as required or every second dive day where the housings are opened 2 times per day. As to the silicone to use; stick with what the manufacture recommends some type will swell incompatible o-rings and may lead to floods as the o-ring loses its ability to move in the groove and a proper seal may not occur or may change at depth.

Ikelite strobes have o-rings that are never removed I have never had a problem with their system and sometime may go for 10 dives without cleaning and adding a little lube to the exposed surface of the o-ring on the strobe.