Ugly Hedgehog Newsletter

Hi,

This question may be a little naive, but I'm going to ask anyway. I recently was on vacation and was taking beach shots of my toddlers. One of them decided what fun it would be to throw sand that has the consistency of sugar. Needless to say, some of the sand found its way into my lens and now it is difficult to zoom in and out. Is there anyway that I can clean the sand out myself, or should I bite the bullet and take it in for a cleaning?

Thank you for your time in reading my question. I truly appreciate it.

Heather

jdtx Loc: SA, Tx.

I sure wouldn't try to take a lens apart and clean it..

Dennis

TAke it in and have it done. Oh, and take the cost of it out of the kids allowance.

ked Loc: California

I would bite the bullet and have it cleaned by someone that knows how and it can't cost as much as it would to replace it if you do something wrong

Phyllis Loc: NE PA

Yikes!! You gotta get it cleaned professionally, or even buy a new lens.

PitchurMan Loc: Michigan

Depending on the camera, it may be more cost effective to buy a new one.

marcomarks Loc: Ft. Myers, FL

If you continue to use it, you will sand all the internal moving parts as if you were using sandpaper on them and ruin it - so act immediately.

You didn't say whether it's an expensive dSLR lens or a zoom point & shoot. Go get a quote on having it cleaned professionally by a repair shop. If it's a dSLR lens and the price to repair is higher than 50% of the online price of an exactly-the-same brand and model new one, I'd buy a replacement instead (maybe a new one that was meant to be in a camera package but the purchaser didn't want it and bought a different lens instead). Or you may have wanted a lens that has more range and this is your opportunity to upgrade.

As someone else said, take it out of their future allowances every week until they turn 21. Or their little butts need to be tanned - but not by sunlight. To avoid this in the future you could buy an underwater sealed camera casing which keeps out water and, of course, sand. Or leave the good camera back in your hotel room and carry a Canon $129 14MP point & shoot with a 4X lens that you don't care much about for beach pix.

jeh3 Loc: Ft Collins, CO

The first step is to get an estimate of the cost of cleaning and any re[pairs that might be needed due to the sand ingestion.

If the lens is expensive, take it in ... cleaning my more expensive Canon lens cost up to $200.00 per lens. If it's not an expensive lens, toss it (or make a coffee cup out of it) and replace it.

Notice the "Up to $200.," I'd say the sooner the better on at least getting an estimate. You can do a lot of damage forcing it to "grind."

cgchief Loc: Jarrettsville

I have used naphtha (Ronsonol Lighter Fuel) to clean sand out of a zoom lens. Spray some up under the rotating sleeve and hold the lens vertical so it can run out as you rotate it; hope the sand comes out. It did in my lens.
I use naphtha because it does not affect plastics; according
to what I have read on the subject. Good luck!