-
Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.
Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
Cleaning binoculars. (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter lvn600
- Start date
Katy Penland
Well-known member
Simplest answer: Whenever they need it.
I keep a small can of "canned air" in my pack (usually in the camera bag) and before touching anything to the lenses, will use that to blow off loose dust/dirt/crumbs
, then I just breathe onto each lens element for a bit of condensation, and use a micro-fiber cloth to gently wipe dry. Use a slightly damp cloth to wipe dust and dirt off the bins themselves.
When I'm on pelagic trips, I tend to wipe my bins down with a damp cloth several times a day to keep the salt spray from accumulating on the rubber components and in the hinges. To clean the optics, I run warm water on each lens element (my bins are waterproof), shake off the excess water, and use a micro-fiber cloth to dry the glass.
I.e., I wouldn't use anything but a cloth made for fine optics on your lenses, and certainly never anything made from wood products, like kleenex, paper towels, etc. The micro-fiber cloths can be found at any camera store, but they're expenesive: Starting around $9 and going up for an 8-10" square. But well worth it to prevent scratching the coatings.
I don't know about using any kind of "lens cleaner" for lenses, whether for camera, bins or scopes. I've never used anything like this but maybe someone else can comment.
I keep a small can of "canned air" in my pack (usually in the camera bag) and before touching anything to the lenses, will use that to blow off loose dust/dirt/crumbs
, then I just breathe onto each lens element for a bit of condensation, and use a micro-fiber cloth to gently wipe dry. Use a slightly damp cloth to wipe dust and dirt off the bins themselves.When I'm on pelagic trips, I tend to wipe my bins down with a damp cloth several times a day to keep the salt spray from accumulating on the rubber components and in the hinges. To clean the optics, I run warm water on each lens element (my bins are waterproof), shake off the excess water, and use a micro-fiber cloth to dry the glass.
I.e., I wouldn't use anything but a cloth made for fine optics on your lenses, and certainly never anything made from wood products, like kleenex, paper towels, etc. The micro-fiber cloths can be found at any camera store, but they're expenesive: Starting around $9 and going up for an 8-10" square. But well worth it to prevent scratching the coatings.
I don't know about using any kind of "lens cleaner" for lenses, whether for camera, bins or scopes. I've never used anything like this but maybe someone else can comment.
lvn600 said:
This has come up in a previous thread and had lots of input with a wide range of opinions. I'm feeling too lazy to search for it though!
The most expensive bins have hard coatings and so are more tolerant of abuse. Leica use quartz, Swarovski call their coating Swarodur (whatever that might be) and I presume that Nikon and Zeiss also take some steps to harden the coatings though I don't know for sure. Cheaper optics tend not to have such tough coatings and so more care should be taken.
Poor cleaning might lead to a gradual build up of small scratches on the lens surface, which will scatter light, and reduce contrast. The worst case is that you will re-figure the optical surface, resulting in a loss of sharpness. I know of one case of a 50 year old Leica camera lens that produced soft images due to overzealous cleaning.
I never use the breath and micro-fibre cloth approach as I am too worried that it will degrade the optics. (Not that I have evidence.) I take a more cautious approach.
One cleaning method is to blow dirt off with a hand bulb blower, then take a bit of cotton wool from a sterile pack so that it is free from grit, moisten it with photographic lens cleaning fluid (isopropyl alcohol and distilled water as far as I know) and then draw the cotton over a lens without applying pressure. Discard after a wipe of two and repeat with another bit and so on. Alternatively blow grit away, then lay a lens tissue (e.g. from Jessops) over the lens, apply some fluid, and draw the tissue across the lens, and then away. I can get optics looking like new even when viewed in glancing light.
I believe that amateur astronomers are even more careful than me.
Leif
Well I guess I will combine these suggested methods to come up with one of my own. I do have one of those bulb brushes. Even though my binoculars are supposed to be waterproof I don't think I would take a chance of running them under water. I guess I better stop using sandpaper to clean my lenses.(Just kidding of course). Thanks to all for the feedback.
Grousemore
Senior Member
Some good advice above, I'd only add that Walmart sell microfibre cloths for 'no money' and Zeiss sell a lens cleaning spray that seems to do the job for $6 or so.
Here are my opinions on this very important issue, which is worth repeating occasionally
In birdwatching the optics are often used in many different conditions and different properties of "dirt" may determine the optimal cleaning procedure. Astro-optics are not usually exposed to dusty or rainy conditions, sandstorms or salt water sprays, which means that IMO more attention has to be paid on cleaning birdwatching optics. Well, I wouldn't clean my optics until at home in very clean environment.
A recommended general purpose cleaning fluid (by the Leica microscope service):
70ml isopropyl alcohol (pure, not technical grade)
30ml distilled water
1-2 drops of ammonia
It has enough water to dissolve salt crystals, alcohol penetrates into some greases and ammonia reduces drying spots.
If the lens is heavily exposed to salt-water sprays (seawatching) the IPA-water ratio can be lowered (eg. 50-50%).
Greasy/oily lenses may require higher percentage of isopropanol or stronger solvents (not water miscible): trichloroethylene, carbon tetrachloride, ethyl ether, freon ff, heptane, methylene chloride, naptha, toluene, turpentine, or xylene. Many of these are carcinogenic or toxic BTW.
Of course - as mentioned above - removal of any hard particles (eg. using a brush-blower) prior to wiping is very important. Leif's gentle wiping technique is highly recommended.
HTH,
Ilkka
In birdwatching the optics are often used in many different conditions and different properties of "dirt" may determine the optimal cleaning procedure. Astro-optics are not usually exposed to dusty or rainy conditions, sandstorms or salt water sprays, which means that IMO more attention has to be paid on cleaning birdwatching optics. Well, I wouldn't clean my optics until at home in very clean environment.
A recommended general purpose cleaning fluid (by the Leica microscope service):
70ml isopropyl alcohol (pure, not technical grade)
30ml distilled water
1-2 drops of ammonia
It has enough water to dissolve salt crystals, alcohol penetrates into some greases and ammonia reduces drying spots.
If the lens is heavily exposed to salt-water sprays (seawatching) the IPA-water ratio can be lowered (eg. 50-50%).
Greasy/oily lenses may require higher percentage of isopropanol or stronger solvents (not water miscible): trichloroethylene, carbon tetrachloride, ethyl ether, freon ff, heptane, methylene chloride, naptha, toluene, turpentine, or xylene. Many of these are carcinogenic or toxic BTW.
Of course - as mentioned above - removal of any hard particles (eg. using a brush-blower) prior to wiping is very important. Leif's gentle wiping technique is highly recommended.
HTH,
Ilkka
matt green
Norfolkman gone walkabout
johnson's baby wipes are brilliant for cleaning grimey mit prints off the rubber armouring after a hot summer.i also use those silk dusting cloth's from viking optical centres.these are genuinly lint free and wont clog up your lenses like tissue paper etc.also good are old shaving brushes for your delicate lenses.matt
Bradley B
Well-known member
ammonia a no-no on coated bins?
Iporali may be more knowledgeable than I, but I have repeatedly run across warnings against using ammonia on my bins due to possible damage to the coatings. Most common advice I have seen, other than a quality commercial cleaning solution, would be distilled water and pure isopropyl alcohol.
Perhaps ammonia is not an issue on a particular microscope.
e.g. see Item 2 on this FAQ from Astro-Optical, the same advice as many others: keep your cleaner ammonia-free to avoid harming the coatings.
http://tinyurl.com/6r8v7
Bradley B.
iporali said:
Iporali may be more knowledgeable than I, but I have repeatedly run across warnings against using ammonia on my bins due to possible damage to the coatings. Most common advice I have seen, other than a quality commercial cleaning solution, would be distilled water and pure isopropyl alcohol.
Perhaps ammonia is not an issue on a particular microscope.
e.g. see Item 2 on this FAQ from Astro-Optical, the same advice as many others: keep your cleaner ammonia-free to avoid harming the coatings.
http://tinyurl.com/6r8v7
Bradley B.
javva
Caffeine fiend.
Although this thread is now a few weeks old, it looks like just the right one for me to chuck in my five pennies worth’.
I think I have something that may be of interest.
I hope that’s ok with you all.
Anyway….
I have a product called Opticlean I keep with my camera kits. I never ‘wash and wipe’ my cameras optics. Medium format lenses don’t come cheap y’know. Obviously all my camera lenses have suitable filters over their front elements to help keep them mostly pristine, but the rear elements need a bit of ‘TLC’ from time to time though.
Sand and salt air will soon leave a residue of the lenses of binoculars and scopes so out came the Opticlean, and ‘hey presto’, clean again right up to the edges.
Here are a couple of links site which you like to visit.
http://www.caliope.co.uk/html/opticlean.html
http://homepages.tesco.net/paul.buglass/yaspages/yas articles/opticlean review.htm
javva
I think I have something that may be of interest.
I hope that’s ok with you all.
Anyway….
I have a product called Opticlean I keep with my camera kits. I never ‘wash and wipe’ my cameras optics. Medium format lenses don’t come cheap y’know. Obviously all my camera lenses have suitable filters over their front elements to help keep them mostly pristine, but the rear elements need a bit of ‘TLC’ from time to time though.
Sand and salt air will soon leave a residue of the lenses of binoculars and scopes so out came the Opticlean, and ‘hey presto’, clean again right up to the edges.
Here are a couple of links site which you like to visit.
http://www.caliope.co.uk/html/opticlean.html
http://homepages.tesco.net/paul.buglass/yaspages/yas articles/opticlean review.htm
javva
RecoveringScot
Well-known member
john barclay said:
Snap.
javva
Caffeine fiend.
Hi,
I found that doing a search for Opticlean threw up past references to this product with regard to lens cleaning. I’m pleased in a way. Not because I have shares in the company or anything but that a number of members have given it a try.
Along with the majority, I too to use canned air and micro-fibre lens cloths as a rule but have found Opticlean most useful for edge to edge cleaning of the rear elements of my wide and ultra-wide angle lenses in particular. To date I have not experienced problems with ‘sticking at the edges’ though this may be due to the lenses construction and finish.
Given the outlay on fine optics birders spend on their hobby, there seemed to my mind that this product had a place in a cleaning regime if only used once in a blue moon.
.
I found that doing a search for Opticlean threw up past references to this product with regard to lens cleaning. I’m pleased in a way. Not because I have shares in the company or anything but that a number of members have given it a try.
Along with the majority, I too to use canned air and micro-fibre lens cloths as a rule but have found Opticlean most useful for edge to edge cleaning of the rear elements of my wide and ultra-wide angle lenses in particular. To date I have not experienced problems with ‘sticking at the edges’ though this may be due to the lenses construction and finish.
Given the outlay on fine optics birders spend on their hobby, there seemed to my mind that this product had a place in a cleaning regime if only used once in a blue moon.
.
I've kind of figured out that when you have spots or streaks that its easier to breathe on the lens and give a quick light half swirl motion with a micro cloth and repeat the process until its gone. Before I was swirling around the whole lens for one or two spots and this would take more time + effort than what was needed .
Edward woodwood
Member
never use a solvent
i wouldn't let alcohol anywhere near mine
it takes off the coatings!
nothing more drastic than the hem of a t shirt
Tim
i wouldn't let alcohol anywhere near mine
it takes off the coatings!
nothing more drastic than the hem of a t shirt
Tim
