Sticky Buttons Fix :)

[David Haas]

Don't know if I posted this before but if it helps any new UW photographer here goes........

Below's a link on keeping buttons lubed. It’s a great tutorial from a guy who's rented compact housings for years.

The part on using an eye dropper and liquid silicone is great! I bought a pump bottle of the liquid silicone stuff and a couple eye droppers.


Article by Jeff Mullins in Indonesia……….

I've used his PUSH BUTTON lubing method on my Fantasea housings keeping push button controls working great!

Underwater Camera Maintenance

Scroll down his page for the liquid silicone fix for sticky buttons



VERY IMPORTANT !!!!!!!!!!!

I always rinse and soak the housing before lubing the buttons !!!!!

After any dive up near the bottom where silt, sand, etc. might have got in those little crevices I flush water around each button and gently press each button (usually holding the housing in a rinse tank.) This seems to flush small grains of sand away BEFORE lubing with the eye dropper and liquid silicone as shown in the link.

Back home I give the housing a good long soak dissolving salt crystals for 24-48 hours, housing sealed with no camera inside. Occasionally I press the buttons changing the water each day over a couple days.

I also soak my strobes sealed up (no batteries) plus my wrist dive computers and regulator with dust cap in (don’t push the purge while submerged !!!!!!)

 

[mentosik83]

Any recommendation what what product for liquid silicone? The mentioned one in the article seems to vanish from the Internet.

 

[happy-diver]

I generally recommend not using it at all, as the milky white mess attracts dirt and sand

It's the same stuff as car vinyl protectants Aerospace 303, Armorall etc, do you own a car

However to drip into camera buttons to lubricate dry orings and then wash the excess out

IS A BRILLIANT IDEA

https://www.scuba.com/p-aquspc8/silicone-pump-conditioner-8-fl-oz-237-ml

 

[toondebruyn]

I recently ran out of the silicone gel for the o-rings of my strobes, and was wondering if I should get the branded one or if any silicone gel would do for the o-rings used for photography equipment? I am reading that using the same brand is recommended, but I wanted to know if there is unbranded silicone that can be used. Not to try to save a dollar or two, it is just not easy to always get the same products here. Thx!

 

[davehicks]

I recently ran out of the silicone gel for the o-rings of my strobes, and was wondering if I should get the branded one or if any silicone gel would do for the o-rings used for photography equipment? I am reading that using the same brand is recommended, but I wanted to know if there is unbranded silicone that can be used. Not to try to save a dollar or two, it is just not easy to always get the same products here. Thx!

Get a 2oz tube of Tribolube to use on all orings rather than silicone. Tribo will work on all oring materials which is not true of silcone. Silicone lube can damage silicone orings oddly enough. Tribo is what ships with Nauticam and many other products, but they give you a tiny amount.

A two ounce tube of Tribolube may last you for many years.

Tribolube 71 O2 Compatible Lubricant

The Aerospace Lubricants Tribolube® line of lubrication products are recommended for scuba diving applications.

www.divegearexpress.com

 

[toondebruyn]

Get a 2oz tube of Tribolube to use on all orings rather than silicone. Tribo will work on all oring materials which is not true of silcone. Silicone lube can damage silicone orings oddly enough. Tribo is what ships with Nauticam and many other products, but they give you a tiny amount.

A two ounce tube of Tribolube may last you for many years.

Tribolube 71 O2 Compatible Lubricant

The Aerospace Lubricants Tribolube® line of lubrication products are recommended for scuba diving applications.

www.divegearexpress.com

Thanks for this, very helpful!