o-ring questions

[Wendy]

Ok so I got my new digital camera and housing. I took the housing to the bath tub and tested it for leaks, everything good so far. i read in the manual that it said not to keep the housing closed with the o-ring in it while not in use, so do you guys remove the o-ring when not in use and keep it safe in a zip lock bag or something? If I do this would it be ok to then close the housing so it stays clean inside?

Thanks

 

[Gilligan]

That's what I do Wendy. I take mine out after every dive and keep it in a zip loc bag between dives.
There are those that leave theirs in all the time.
Guess there is no right way, just what you are comfortable with. I prefer to 100% know that the entire O ring is clean and lightly greased each and every time.

 

[H2Andy]

yes, i keep my o-ring (canon SD-100 camera) in a ziplock bag when not in use.

i keep the case closed with dessicant in it (i got a ton of packets from a shoe store).

i also grease the o-ring with a TINY amount of silicon grease before storing it, to keep
it flexible.

 

[Spectre]

jeez. I just leave the sucker kinda closed, but not latched. When I pull it out after maybe a few months sitting, I wash the o-ring, lube it up, and slap it back on.

I suppose a ziplock might work if I put it -in- the housing, otherwise I'm gonna lose the o-ring!

 

[fpoole]

Yeah, same here with Spectre...

Just open up the back, take O-ring out, grease, put it back on and gently put the cover on to attach it (loosely) just to keep the backplate on. When done with a days diving. Also clean & remove the Strobe batteries, grease the strobe o-rings and gently pop the caps back on, not tight. Seems to work so far, only flooded it 4 times so I'd say it works ok.. just joking.. no problems with o-rings left in around the camera on my side.
Now, one curious thing about o-rings... you can get them from an O-ring Store...a lot cheaper than a camera store... Just send them one of each, they'll match them up and order 10 or 20 of each... apx $0.15 to $0.90 each.. better than paying $15 for 3... got enough that my camera will wear out before I need some new rings...

Hope that helps...
shooting an Oly C4040 , Tetra housing w/2 SB105s...

Hope that helps... just do a web search for O-rings and you'll probably find one in your city, or mail order... $25 gets you almost a life time of 0-rings...

 

[jcclink]

Something I've never seen mentioned. Many people are concerned about removing the main o-rings when not in use. How about all the little control shaft o-rings? They are always in place (being used or not) & always under compression. No problems there. This o-rings thing is really over worked. They are designed to be under compression. They do not need to be removed every day (some people even remove after every dive). Unless you have to remove em for proper cleaning leave em alone. Silicon grease on the black ones, a little spit on the red ones. I've done this for over 20 yrs without leaks. Just kick back with a nice merlot. The little guys will be ok as long as they're clean.

 

[jcclink]

O-rings for most of the acrylic housings (Olympus, Canon etc) meet a Japanese specification. These are not readily available in the US - only a few vendors have them. Standard US sizes are not within dimensional tolerances to be used as substitutes (except maybe the large door o-ring). Be careful about getting the proper sizes. Thousandths do make a difference for the tiny ones.

 

[d33ps1x]

Always forget and end up leavingit closed withthe oring in.

Oh well.

 

[Scubamedicjoe]

remember to remove at least one O-ring during flights , I remove one O-ring during storage , just what I was tought .

 

[seacam diver]

Ok so I got my new digital camera and housing. I took the housing to the bath tub and tested it for leaks, everything good so far. i read in the manual that it said not to keep the housing closed with the o-ring in it while not in use, so do you guys remove the o-ring when not in use and keep it safe in a zip lock bag or something? If I do this would it be ok to then close the housing so it stays clean inside?

Thanks

Dear Wendy,

When this set of o rings get old you can use them as storage o rings. I do however suggest you leave them in a zip lock bag with some grease on them. The o rings will take a set if stored in the housing for extended periods. When you reuse them check for nicks, cracks and any debris including hairs that may be on them. I use a small magnifying glass to make sure mine are OK. Be sure to clean the grooves before rreplaing the rings. Good luck...