Wet Cleaning & Product Review: Dust-Wand Kit By Dust-Aid

Introduction

So far, I've written articles to deal with dust on your sensor using dry-cleaning products ( such as the Sensor Klear or an air blaster).

However, sometimes that is not enough, dust is persistant and stubborn and won't go away no matter how much you blow or use the Sensor Klear's tip.

That kind of dust is called welded dust.

Welded because it sticks to the sensor filter as if you actually took a welding torch and bonded it with the filter.

As with lose dust, this kind will appear when using small apertures, however, it can show up in two forms:

1.- Like a regular black dust spot

or

2.- Like a liquid drop when it dries out on a crystal surface. This kind is tricky, because sometimes you can mistake it for something else or you won't see it because its translucid (meaning it will let light through it but its not completely transparent).

Particles such as pollen or that have a sticky composition will weld into the filter. Another way of welding a dry dust particle is to blow inside the mirror chamber with the sensor exposed with your mouth. The water in your breath will work as a glue for the particle.

If this has or hasn't happened to you yet, rest assured, there is a solution to try before having to send it to the manufacturer.

And that's to perform a Wet Cleaning.

Wet Cleaning

A wet cleaning is basically the cleaning of the sensor filter with a liquid solution and especially made pads or cloths to rub the filter.

There are many ways to do this, the most popular is the Copper Hill method. Of course there are many other sites in the internet that can help you perform a wet cleaning, but this one is one of the most accurate.

The wet cleaning is usually regarded as a very difficult and/or risky process, and if it's the first time you do it, it will be.

Difficult because you got to be precise and fast in your movements, risky because you can make a worse mess on your sensor; you can move it out of place or spill liquid under the filter, and that would be BAD, because it would dry on the sensor itself, which means that all the pictures you take will have the pattern of the dried liquid and will require that you send it to the manufacturer so they can remove the filter and either clean or replace the sensor.

However, a well executed wet cleaning can get rid of all the welded dust attached your sensor, remove liquid stains and lose dust; leaving your sensor filter completely clean.

Just as its inevitable that at some point you WILL have to perform a sensor cleaning, it is INEVITABLE that at some point you will have to do a wet cleaning.

One problem of wet cleaning is the price of materials, they can be somewhat expensive and in the long run it may not be affordable to do a wet cleaning.

Another problem of the wet cleaning is that it's not as fast as blowing air into the mirror box or using a Sensor Klear. Not to mention that requires a clean place to perform the operation, otherwise it will be adding dirt over dirt...

The second point doesnt have much work around, but the first one does have a solution...

The charge of Dust bunny; my personal esperience

A few months ago I noticed a dust bunny (a.k.a. dust spot or dust particle) on the sensor filter of my A700, I blew and blew and blew at it with my air blaster, and just like the wolf from The Three Little Pigs, I ended getting nowhere...

Then I brought out my Sensor Klear and tried to remove it but it wouldnt budge either. I left it alone for a few days and tried again with the Sensor Klear, but the dust bunny had made a home in the sensor filter.

At this point I knew this meant only one thing... Welded dust, dreadful welded dust.

I was pretty much screwed because 1.- I didnt know how to perform a wet cleaning 2.- I didnt have anything to perform a wet cleaning and 3.- The dust bunny prevented me from using small apertures.

One small thing in my favor was that the dust bunny lost itself in the picture most of the time without being noticed, but if I used f/22 to f/40, it was visible if you know where to look for it.

I was pretty bothered at this because I thought I was staying ahead of the dust because I check for dust frequently and if there is, I blow it or rub it away. How this one got welded in particular, beats me.

I had to do a lot of reasearch about HOW to clean the filter using liquids, WHAT products to use and not to use and WHERE to get them. And when I say a lot of reasearch, I mean A L-O-T.

I found a lot of products to use but I needed something that included all the items I needed in one box, that was affordable and most importantly SIMPLE to use.

I kept coming across the items required for a wet cleaning separately in Amazon, and unfortunately the liquids I kept founding werent allowed in airplanes due to the fact they are flammable due to their chemical composition.

However, I came across a product called Dust-Wand Kit by Dust-Aid that included all the items needed to perform a wet cleaning, and all in one box.

So I decided to do some research about it.

I went to the official Dust-Aid site and researched the Dust-Wand kit, it seemed to be a good option to purchase for wet cleanings. However, I don't take everything the maker of a product says blindly, when trying to sell something, people will say whatever to convince you. Thats why the input of other people in this kind of stuff is needed.

I then tried to find reviews about this product and came up short of them, I guess because its a fairly new product, not many people have tried it. I kept finding mostly reviews by other users who got it and used it. As with all reviews, there were good and bad ones. Although the bad ones seemed to have happened due to a failure to follow the instructions contained in the box.

At this point it pretty much meant that I either went with it or kept looking. So I bit the bullet and purchased it.

Once it arrived, I reviewed videos, tutorials and articles related to wet cleaning. Then I watched the video by Dust-Aid about how to use their kit several times.

Once I felt sure enough, I did my first wet cleaning.

As of this point, I have performed two wet cleanings using the Dust-Wand kit with excellent results.

The Dust-Wand Kit by Dust-Aid

The Dust-Wand kit its a product from a company called Dust-Aid that offers sensor cleaning products, either for dry or wet cleanings. The Dust-Wand is obviously for wet cleaning.

The kit contains the following:

1. Travel case, red color


2. Instructions manual


3. Ultra Clean cleaning liquid (fast drying liquid)


4. 3 plastic wands (they come in different sizes to cover the different sensor sizes: 1.0x, 1.6x and 1.3x)


5. 3 cloth clips (these are used to hold the cloth on the wand once your wrap it)


6. Dust Cloths x 50 (this are the wipes that youll use to clean the sensor)

Things regarding the contents:

• Everything comes packed in zip lock bags, this is in order to keep the items clean. Don't throw those bags away!


• The Ultra Clean liquid is a fast drying liquid (the fastest on the planet according to Dust-Aid) so dont let too much time pass once you apply it. This liquid is safe for travel, so you can take it on airplanes with no problem. It also leave very little trace once it dries.


• The plastic wands are small so they wont clash against the mirror box walls, they come in different ratios to cover different sensor sizes: A200/300/330/700 use the 1.3x wands, A900 should use the 1.0x wand since its the biggest and meant to be used with full frame sensors.


• The Dust Cloths are said to be lint free but I have experienced this isnt exactly true all the time, some of the cloths will have it, but usually it will come up in parts that you wont use to clean the sensor.

Extra recommended items

Aside from the Dust-Wand kit, I will list a few items I consider that you also should have in order to have a successful wet cleaning, especially if its your first time:

a.- Latex gloves: Like the ones doctors use, these will prevent that you touch the cloth with your fingers in the center or elsewhere in the camera.

b.- Head lamp or a lamp: This will allow you to see the welded dust particles and to light the area you need to see.

c.- A magnifying glass: Especially those pocket magnifying glasses with light included. This will help you spot the dust particles and check if your sensor is clean once you perform a wet cleaning.

d.- An air blaster: It may happen that dust falls on the sensor while cleaning it or after you do but before you put the lens back, in that case, the blaster can get it out of the way quickly without having to clean again.

Finally, if you feel you need it, something to cover your mouth and nose, like those things surgeons use while operating. It prevents that you breathe into the mirror box, but again, only if you feel you need it.

How to use it

1.- You first have to put the wand and wrap it with the cloth included in the box. The exact procedure of how to wrap it is included in the instructions as well as in the video of how to use (which Ill link in the Links section). I wont put it here since it wont much sense unless you actually see how.

2.-.- Set the camera to Cleaning Mode

In the A100: Menu-> Setup (Wrench Icon) Page 3-> Clean CCD

A200/300/350: Menu-> Setup (Wrench Icon) Page 3-> Cleaning Mode

A700: Menu-> Setup (Wrench Icon) Page 3-> Cleaning Mode

A900: Menu-> Setup (Wrench Icon) Page 3-> Cleaning Mode

Cleaning Mode (or Clean CCD) locks the mirror up, opens the shutter and cuts power off the sensor for you to clean it.

DO NOT NOT NOT NOT NOT USE BULB SHUTTER SPEED UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE.

This is risky AND stupid. Bulb is designed for long exposures NOT sensor cleaning. While its true that it opens the shutter and reveals the sensor as long as you keep the shutter button pressed, IT DOES NOT LOCK THE MIRROR UP NOR IT CUTS POWER OFF THE SENSOR, IF YOU ACCIDENTALLY REMOVE YOUR FINGER OFF THE SHUTTER BUTTON AND IT CLOSES, THE SHUTTER CURTAINS CAN CRASH AGAINST THE WAND AND THEY WILL GET BENT, THIS MEANS YOUR CAMERA IS RUINED FOR GOOD.

DO NOT USE BULB SHUTTER SPEED, USE CLEANING MODE.

3.- Remove the lens mounted on the camera and put it aside where its safe.

4.- Clean the loose dust that may be on the sensor filter, for this you can use an air blaster, a Sensor Klear or the Dust-Aid Platinum cleaner (more on that one later).

5.- Apply 3-5 drops of the liquid included (Ultra Clean) to each side of the wrapped tip.

6.- Place the Dust-Wand in the lower corner of the sensor filter and gently move it across the sensor filter.

7.- Remove the Dust-Wand and replace the cloth with a new one to insure you wont have any dust particles in the reverse cleaning. (Check the Notes of use section)

8.- Add liquid again to the tip, place on the upper corner of the sensor and clean.

Youre done!

As you can see, this is a fairly simple and quick procedure. It takes practice to become a master on it, but once you get the hang of this, you will spare yourself the trouble of sending the camera for a clean everytime you got dust since you can do it yourself.

Notes of use

• The instruction booklet includes diagrams as to how to wrap the cloth around the wand, how to move the wand on the filter, so if you couldnt picture it from the instructions above, dont worry.
• The liquid dries VERY quickly, so once you apply it, go straight for the sensor. A work around for this is to add 6-8 drops of liquid to the tip.
• I personally recommend wet cleaning only when its called for. Some sites recommend you do it weekly, but I feel that too much intervention too frequently on the filter may be more harm than good. If the blower and a dry cleaning dont work, then go for the wet method.
• The instructions recommend you also get a Dust-Aid Platinum for dry cleaning. The Dust-Aid Platinum is a stick with a sticky pad thats supposed to collect dust and other contamination from the sensor without damaging it. However, I cant vouch for the veracity of this, Ive seen the video of how to use it, but I personally dont feel that sticky pads are a thing you want to put in your sensor. I may be wrong, if anyone of you uses this product, let me know your experience.
• You will find a contradiction in the written instructions and in the video of how to use the Dust-Wand Kit. The instructions tell you to replace the cloth when going in reverse, but the guy in the video doesnt do this, he actually turns the wand and uses the same cloth. If you use the tip, then you will need to replace the cloth, but if you actually use the parts just below the tip, you can actually turn the wand around and avoid having to change the cloth. Ive tried this and it has worked perfectly for me. With this Im not suggesting you deviate from the instructions, just pointing out and letting you know the options. You decide what you do.
• One aspect that can turn confusing and requires A LOT of research is the kind of coatings the sensor filter uses. Why is this important? Because some wet cleaning liquids are meant for specifical coatings, not for everyone. The liquid in the Dust-Wand Kit is meant to be used with all Alphas since they all share the same coating. The Sony Alpha DSLRs use the ITO coating, ITO stands for Indium Tin Oxide, which is the chemical that the filter is coated with. For future reference also, if you cant remember the name of the coatiing, go with this, if the liquid you pick is safe to use with the Nikon D300, then its safe for the Alphas, since the sensor of that camera also shares the ITO coating.
• One important thing you will need to perform a successful wet cleaning is a clean room. By clean room I dont mean the one where sensors are actually mounted or records are recorded into the master plaques (in other words, 100% dust-less) If you could use one of these, great, go for it, but a more practical approach is this:

A clean room should be free of:

1. Air currents. Turn off the ventilators or close the vents.
2. Kids. Ask them out and buy them an ice cream if theyre nice and leave.
3. Pets. They let hairs loose into the environment. So take them out of the room.
4. Dust. Duh...
5. Anything that can distract you. This is a sensitive procedure, and you must put your full attention to it so you wont screw up. Whatever distracts you, get rid of it momentarily.

If you follow this, you shouldnt have a problem when cleaning the sensor on a well cleaned room in your house.

• I recommend that once youve done cleaning with the wet method, to test if the sensor is clean. For this do the following:

1. Use the smallest aperture possible on the lens your using. If it goes up to f/40, go there. Raise the ISO if you have to.
2. Set the exposure for 0EV or +1EV maximum. If your shutter speed is too slow (0.6" or slower) dont worry about it, the dust will come out even if there is slight movement in the photo. Just dont make the picture TOO bright otherwise the dust will be hidden in the highlights.
3. Focus at infinity at a white wall or the sky.
4. Take a shot, if theres nothing on it but color, then youre done, if there is a hair or dust spec, go to Cleaning Mode again and try getting rid of that with a blower or Sensor Klear. If it wont do, do a wet cleaning again.

• The gloves I recommended earlier are meant to be used when you manipulate the cloths, here's why: If you touch the middle section of the cloth with your fingers, the oils in your hand will be transfered to the cloth, therefore you will rub them all over the sensor. I recommend using the gloves so you wont touch any of the cloth with your fingers and eliminating the risk of messing the filter worse than already is. If you touch the center and clean the sensor with it and you notice, repeat the procedure for the cleaning but with gloves, the liquid will remove the oil stains.
• Make sure that you do this procedure from A to B with no stops in between. One reason is to reduce the time the sensor is exposed to the environment so it wont gather more dust, another one is to avoid light build up on the sensor itself, it may affect the Bayer filter in it and affect the colors the camera yields.
• If you welded dust that wont budge using the normal dosage of liquid, double it and soak the dust spec by placing the tip over it. In my experience when welded dust is soaked, it lets go easily when you brush it off with the wand.
• I recommend that if its the first time you do a wet cleaning, that you watch the instruction video several times, read this instructions and do a simulation of the movements youll need to do. This way youll be familiar with what you need to know so you dont have to interrupt the procedure when you actually do it.
• An important point: BE CALM when doing this procedure.
• The Dust-Wand Kit is safe for air travel.
• Finally, remember the Sensor Cleaning Axiom #1: IF YOU DO NOT TRUST YOURSELF OR DO NOT FEEL CONFIDENT ENOUGH TO DO A CLEANING PROCEDURE, DO NOT DO IT. TAKE YOUR CAMERA TO AN AUTHORIZED SERVICE CENTER OR LET A QUALIFIED PERSON TO DO IT.

Links

Dust-Aid's Official Site

Dust-Wand Kit

Contact Information

Instruction Video

Link to purchase it through Amazon US

Closure

No one likes to clean their sensors, but its a fact we have to deal with until someone invents a way to stop dust from entering the mirror chamber.

Now you know of the three ways I recommend for sensor cleaning: Air blaster->Dry Cleaning->Wet Cleaning. If all else fails, then you have to send the camera to Sony for them to deal with it.

Eventually you will have to do a wet cleaning, which is a trickier procedure than dry cleaning, but it can be done easily and quickly if you got the right tools and you know how.

The Dust-Wand Kit is a product Ive tried on my A700 with excellent results. The first time I used it it removed a spec of welded dust than had on my filter some time, the next one it removed some weird streaks that showed up on the pictures at small apertures. I still dont know how they got there, but they did and the Dust-Wand Kit got rid of them for good.

The good thing about the kit is that you can take it with you and perform a wet cleaning anywhere, just as you would with the Sensor Klear. The procedure isnt as fast as the dry cleaning, but its better to have the option available than having to wait to get home to perform a cleaning and either waste time post-processing your pictures to remove the contamination on your sensor or worse, miss the pictures due to a dirty sensor.

This product is therefore an Alpha Sight Recommended Product.

Finally, if you dont feel up to the ask to do a wet cleaning, dont ruin your sensor and leave it to someone who has done it successfully or take it to an authorized center. Dont risk a more expensive repair or having to replace your camera body.

I hope this article was helpful to you,

Until next time.

Useful Link: Kurt Munger's Site

Hello everybody:

I recently came across a site that I wasn't aware of. A very useful site about reviews for Alpha mount lenses that for once isn't actually biased or that favors another brand.

This site contains very detailed reviews, covering the specs of each lens, shots that display the actual lens and not just mount or frontal element shots, it's short comings (face it, ALL lenses have them no matter how expensive or what brand they are) and good points as well.

The main plus point of this site is that the reviews are done by an Alpha mount user with a pretty objective perspective, displaying both the pros and cons of each lens but without falling in the usual "It's a Sony so don't expect anything great" mentality of a lot of photography sites or blogs. Plus, when applicable, it compares lenses among the same Alpha mount line up, NOT with other brands.

Personally, I think that's very valuable, because despite how professional a review looks to me, I couldn't care less if a lens is better or worse compared to its Canon, Nikon, Olympus, etc. equivalents. Sigma and Tamron yes because they can be bought for Alpha mount (most of the time) but I got no use for other camera manufacturer's lenses that I don't own and I don't own a body of that system.

So next time you need to read a useful lens review for that lens you're considering of buying, go to http://www.kurtmunger.com/index.html. And if you can, be nice and donate a few bucks :)

Ill add this link to the Alpha System Dedicated Buttons section for future reference.

By the way, if you need a second opinion about a lens, you can also check http://www.alphamountworld.com , another great site ran by an Alpha mount user with a unbiased perspective as well. It doesn't have as many lens reviews as the first link so far, but nonetheless, its a very very useful link for researching stuff related to the Alpha Mount.

I hope they're useful to you!

Until next time.

P.S. I haven't forgotten about that review I told you about, I'm almost done with it but I'm busy with something at the moment, as soon as I'm done with that, Ill finish it and post it here.

Collaborator's Article: My First Sony Camera And My First Experience With Sony Customer Service

It's annoying, sad and troublesome when your camera suffers an accident and it can't take any more pictures and you have to send it for repair.

Usually one is scared, since one needs a place to send the camera to without having to worry what kind of experiments they will run on it. You need a reliable and trustworthy place to perform any repairs (or maintenance)

Sony has a facility at Laredo, Texas in the United States that provides repair or maintenance service to Alpha DSLRs.

Our new collaborator, Elspeth Duncan, had to send her A300 there in order to get it repaired, I asked her to write an article about her experience with Sony's service so you have input on the kind of service they provide if you ever need to send in your Alpha for repairs.

My First Sony Camera And My First Experience With Sony Customer Service by Elspeth Duncan.

On February 14th 2009 my padded camera bag containing my SONY A300 DSLR dropped to the floor from a low height of approximately ten inches. As the bag is padded and the fall was minimal, I thought nothing of it.

About an hour later I took my camera out of its bag to get a shot. Upon looking at my LCD screen afterwards, I was shocked to see the screen looking like it had taken a shot of curtains being drawn on a stage. My mind went back to the low fall in the padded bag. Could it be possible that something so simple had caused what appeared to be a serious problem? I had ordered my camera from B&H Photovideo eight months before and had it shipped to Trinidad & Tobago where I live. It had never given trouble, I was consistently pleased with its performance and was sure to always handle it with great care.

I consulted a camera buff friend of mine and sent him a shot of the LCD screen. “Looks like your screen got cracked inside and there is leakage,” he said. I couldn’t believe this misfortune. I googled SONY A300 LCD to see if there was anyone who had experienced something similar. I found no such thing. However, in my search, I came across the Alpha Sight website (http://alphasight.blogspot.com/). I contacted the owner, Diego, using the address in the side bar, explained my issue and asked for advice. He responded quickly and, having done research on the issue after receiving my email, was able to offer comprehensive advice. I had sent him the photo of the LCD screen and he confirmed what my friend had told me: the LCD screen was internally cracked.

Picture of the cracked LCD screen.

There is no SONY service centre in Trinidad, so replacing the LCD screen here was not an option. I had no choice but to make an overseas call for SONY support (http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/contact-relation.pl?mdl=DSLRA300) in the USA. It was my first experience of dealing with them. I was put through to a rep called Adrian, who dealt with me in a polite and professional manner, knowledgeably answering all of my questions and advising me on what I had to do. Further discussions with SONY (this time with a rep called André), when I called to give them some information a while later, proved to be just as professional, thorough and friendly. I was told that I would have to send my camera to the SONY Repair Centre in Laredo, Texas. I was concerned about having to send my camera all the way there, but decided to trust that all would be well.

When I received an email from SONY that night asking me to fill out a customer service evaluation form, based on my thorough conversations with Adrian and André, I did not hesitate to give them high or highest ratings in all categories.

My only frustration in this experience of sending my camera for repairs came with the actual shipment of the camera from Trinidad & Tobago to the United States via DHL. I was told by DHL that it would take two days for my shipment to reach its destination, but this was not the case. For reasons as yet unknown to me, my camera was held for extended periods of time by US customs in both Miami and Ohio. According to one of the reps at the courier company, US customs can sometimes hold a shipment for as long as three weeks to a few months and are not guaranteed to give any explanation. A little over two weeks after sending my camera off, someone at the Laredo Service Centre finally signed for it.

As per SONY’s explanation on the website, it was my understanding that my camera would have been examined and a quote sent to me for approval before they went ahead with any repairs. In the event that the customer cannot pay, no repairs are done and the camera is shipped back “as is”. My unit was still under warranty but, as it had dropped, I did not know if the warranty would be honoured. I awaited their quote.

The day after SONY signed for my camera (3rd March), I got an email from them (4th March) acknowledging its receipt. Then, on the 5th of March, I got an email from them informing me that my camera had been shipped back to me.

I was shocked. So quickly? They had barely even received it! And no quote? There was no further explanation with their brief email, so I had no idea what repairs, if any, had been done. I sent them an e-mail asking for details and promptly received the following response:

We are pleased to inform you that the repair of this Digital SLR Camera was restored to factory specifications. According to the technician’s report the LCD screen was replaced as well as a part that is described as a CV LCD Lower Cov. You should not have any more problems with this unit in the future.

The package was returned via UPS 3rd Day Service, and shipped to the following address: (Sky box address)

If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact us.

Regards, SONY.

After the frustration of waiting more than two weeks for my camera to arrive at its destination, I was relieved and impressed by SONY’s swift action and grateful that my warranty had been honoured. Shipping via UPS was without delay and spot on time. Within a few days my camera was back home, safe and sound, working like brand new at no cost to me other than shipment via courier to the States and a minimal fee for UPS handling within Trinidad. Some days later I was sent another SONY customer evaluation form via e-mail and, once again, gave all categories high or highest markings. I have the feeling they seriously take into consideration the customer feedback and do what is necessary to maintain high levels of service.

Diego asked me if I would write about this for his site and I said yes. This is my first time having any of my equipment repaired, so I have no other such experience with which to compare it. Also, my SONY A300 DSLR is my first SONY product. My camera buff friend (mentioned above) had highly recommended it to me and I was convinced enough to make the purchase. My other cameras (video and photo) have been/are Canon (digital), Pentax (non digital) and Panasonic (video). I don’t know about other people’s experiences with SONY. All that I have said here is based on my personal first time SONY experience (product and service). I am pleased with both my A300 camera and with the level of customer response and assistance received. Prior to this experience I had no real impressions of SONY (having never owned any of their products or had to deal with them as a customer). The brand has since risen in my estimation as one in which I would place confidence.

Elspeth Duncan
Multimedia Artist/Film maker
Blog: http://nowiswowtoo.blogspot.com/


As you can see, Sony is indeed putting hard work into having a reliable customer service for Alpha DSLR owners. The Laredo, TX facility should be the first place to consider if your camera needs a repair or maintenance.

I hope this article is useful to you.

Thanks to Elspeth for taking the time to write this, and welcome to Alpha Sight Collaborators! :)