Do-It-Yourself Camera Fix

[outdoor_lover]

So I watched my Camera bounce off a Rock and into the Water earlier this week. Immediately took the Batteries and Memory Card out and opened all the "Compartments" and let it sit in the Sun for about 1/2 hour. The Camera did not fully submerge but both the Batteries and Memory Card were wet and both the inside of the Lens and the View Screen had a nice wet "Fog" going on, on the inside.

It dried out pretty quick except for the View Screen and Lens. Put it back together and it actually did turn on and off. Took it home and since I don't have anywhere to just plug an SD Card into the Computer, I had to plug in the entire Camera to get the pics off the Memory Card. I was able to retrieve my PIcs without any problem and the Pics turned out, so the Memory Card must have been ok.

I then poured a bag of Long Grain, Brown, Uncooked, Rice into a Tupperware Dish. I put the Batteries back in the Camera just long enough to "Open" the Lens and then removed the Batteries, keeping the Lens open and extended. I opened up all the compartments and then placed the entire Camera into the Tupperware Dish. I then poured another bag of Rice (ok, I was desperate, it was probably overkill) over the top of the Camera, completely submerging the Camera in rice and then slapped the lid on. You couldn't even tell there was a Camera in this dish, all you could see was Rice,

This was Sunday Night. I just dumped the Rice and took the Camera out. (Tuesday morning). Got all of the Rice out of the compartments and looked. No moisture in the Lens or the Screen!!!

Threw fresh batteries in it and took a few pics in the yard, including a Macro and a sky shot. Downloaded the pics and other than those irritating "dust" spots inside my sensor, the pics are just as good as they would have been last week!!!

I took the Batteries back out and will pick up a can of Compressed Air today and will shoot some in the compartments just to get any residual "Rice" dust out before I use it.

Now, if you got thru all of that, I have a question. Should I go ahead and chuck the Memory Card and get a new one, since it did get wet??? Anything else, that I haven't thought of??? Want to use this Camera starting tomorrow....I also chucked the little Battery that kept the Time/Date stamp current, since even with a new battery, the Time/Date Stamp didn't work and I just plan on not putting another one in....I think that that's all that Battery does....

[chulavista]

Woohoo!! Sounds like you might have lucked out. My thoughts on the memory card - keep it but get a second one. Use this one as backup.

[Alston_Neal]

@Outdoor Lover
Liar liar, you said you had no marketable skills...

[outdoor_lover]

@Alston Neal
The only Marketable Skill I see here is how to f*** up a Camera and get extremely lucky in the salvaging! Don't care to repeat this particular process, one heart attack is enough, thank you.....

[sneakySASQUATCH]

I've found memory cards and flash drives are very durable. My main flash drive has been washed and dried in my pants pocket on more than one occasion and have never lost any data. I've got a memory I got wet when I dropped it in a cooler while swapping out cards and it was fine after it dried. Not as good of success with washing bluetooth phone ear pieces. One I washed and it would never turn on (wish I had known about the rice a couple years ago) and one I washed 6 months ago. The second one I kept as an experiment. I just charged it after letting it sit for 6 months and tested it out. It works fine and now I have a backup. I guess I should check my pockets better before laundering.

I'm glad you were able to get your mother's camera working.

[johnlp]

If you have already tested the memory card and it works, why buy more? My boss put a thumb drive through the wash -twice and it still works fine.

[outdoor_lover]

If you have already tested the memory card and it works, why buy more?

I guess I was just worried about long term consequences from having been wet, like corrosion or something....I sure would hate to take my "best picture" ever and then not be able to retrieve it....

@bart01
I will still be buying 2 Cameras eventually. I just was able to fend off having get at least 1 now, since I was apparently able to "dry" this one out. I will be replacing this Camera for my Mom. She deserves it, as much as I've commandeered this one and needless to say, it is not in the same condition as when I first starting using it....

And then I will be getting one for me....I know what I'm going to get, but I just have to quit buying Hiking, Camping and Backpacking gear, so I can save enough to get it....Or just quit Hiking and Camping for the next 6 months and save the gas money.... (Don't think that's an option for me right now...) (Long, boring, personal story....)

The Camera will be getting a workout in the next three days, so we'll see how it goes and if there's any lingering effects....

[beterarcher]

Pretty cool that the rice thing worked for you. I once dropped my cell phone in a bucket of drywall texture mud. Had to run it under water to get the mud off so i'm sure there wasn't a dry spot in the thing. I set it out in the sun for a couple of days and it was good as new. the phone cam worked too! ;)

[big_load]

I guess I was just worried about long term consequences from having been wet, like corrosion or something...

I wouldn't expect any long-term consequences. If it didn't fry while the battery was still in it and you dried it well afterward, there wouldn't be any lasting damage.

Good save!