Back in the 1980s I used a potato chip can with kitty litter in the bottom. I was sensitized to the issue of high humidity when I took my beloved Yashica 124G to Nantucket in 1984. In the course of a week, due to the high humidity in the cabin, the focus screen developed mildew/fungus. It was pretty alarming it happened so fast.
According to Zeiss, fungus will form at 70% relative humidity for three days:
http://www.zeiss.com/camera-lenses/en_us/website/service/fungus_on_lenses.html
I have four temperature and humidity sensors in my dedicated Camera Room. Most of the time the relative humidity is under 50%; this week it's been between 38% and 45%.
So, I doubt that your humidity in NYC would be close to 70% - but it wouldn't hurt to monitor it. Small battery powered monitors can be bought for about $6.
I have one for sale actually.I think they are great ;dry dust-frenegatives ready for enlarging or scanning iwithin 20 minutes.It's a Marrut;asking $150 plus shipping or just pick it up in central Florida during a trip to Disney.Hey Apug,
I live and work in NYC and spent some time browsing at B&H the other day. I saw one and it made me think: does anyone here actually own a dry cabinet? Regardless, do you think it's worth the investment and actually adds any material protection to your gear?
I ask because I my main shooters are based off the Canon FD system (F1N, T90, EF) and while not impossible to find, it's not exactly easy to replace a Canon FD 14mm f2.8L or 85mm f1.2L at reasonable prices without long wait times and lots of searching.
I'm in my early 20s and plan on using these lenses indefinitely, so longevity is a consideration. Part of my thinks spare no expense on protecting gear, and part of me says my lenses are 30-40 years old already and never needed anything like that in the past...so why now?
Would love to hear some thoughts on this one, thanks all!
There's a bunch of Temperature / Humidity graphing recorders on eBay right now. One guy has about a half dozen for about 15 dollars shipping included. I took my chance on one, will let you know if that was worth it.
Darkness is not an enemy of lenses. Dark and humid may be slightly more mould friendly than light and humid, but only slightly.That being said, I know darkness is one enemy of lenses besides humidity.
I live in Florida where it can get quite humid in the summer but due to the air conditioning in the house,RH is at a constant 30% year round.often too dry for my nasal cavities.A dehumidifier will easily keep the relative humidity at 50 per cent or so in summer or winter in an average room - keep the door closed if possible! We have a big one which keeps the downstairs "dry" here in Georgia. I then keep my gear in plastic tubs with lids which allow some air circulation but keep dust out.
In a Ziploc plastic bag with silica may be even better.
In a Ziploc plastic bag with silica may be even better.
Why do you say that?
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