Using Alcohol Swabs To Clean a Lens

[elmo_2006]

LOL....molecular level....that's too funny! Whenever friction is involved, there will always be some sort of damage doneat the molecular level.


[H]

[wickerprints]

LOL....molecular level....that's too funny! Whenever friction is involved, there will always be some sort of damage doneat the molecular level.


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Why is this funny? Coatings, especially multicoatings, are made of precise and extremely thin vapor-deposited layers. Rubbing away the coating at a molecular level can indeed be very harmful.


I also pointed out that to basically rub this coating off, you would have to apply a lot of abrasive pressure or clean the lens obsessively over many years. Lens designers do not use the more delicate coatings on the accessible surfaces of a lens, because there is an expectation that these surfaces will be cleaned repeatedly over its lifetime.

[elmo_2006]

Hi wickerprints....


I just have a strange sense of humour, please accept my apologies. I was not expecting tosee this amount of granularity but it's also greatas it shows the wealth of knowledge in these forums.


Keep up the great opinions/comments.


[}]

[musickna]

Interesting discussion here. Personally - because I can - I wash my lenses with Milli-Q ultra-distilled water (18.2 ohm resistance) with approximately 0.1% Nonidet P-40, a very mild non-ionic detergent, applied using a Pec Pad. I then rinse with pure Mill-Q water. I usually do this in a cell culture filtered-air hood to keep any dust out.


Of course, this is absurd overkill, but it amuses me and it is a pleasure to see the glass shining as good as new. Naturally, once out in the real world, the glass collects the usual atmospheric clutter that has absolutely no discernible effect whatsoever on my images. []