Storing lenses that have been suffering from fungus with other lenses

[Autoluminescent]

Hello,

Apologies if this seems like a silly topic for a thread. I have read elsewhere that it is a bad idea to store lenses suffering from fungus amongst others as it can spread, which makes sense to me. As I live in South Wales, in what I imagine is one of the dampest towns in the UK, I am especially concerned about it growing/spreading. I recently bought a Konica 40mm 1.8 for £20 with a bit of fungus (or at least I think that's what it is) and plan on trying to clean it.

When I have cleaned the fungus off, should I still keep the lens "quarantined" indefinitely? I imagine that no matter how good the cleaning job there would still be a little residual fungus, and this almost certainly won't be a particularly good cleaning job considering I've never done it before... Assuming the lens survives it would be awkward and a bit of a shame to have to keep it out of contact with my other gear, I suppose it would mean only being able to shoot with this lens on its own.

Again, apologies if this is a silly thread topic, and thanks in advance for the help.

 

[leica M2 fan]

Perfectly legitimate question and not silly at all! I have heard
the same thing for years and think it is a good practice even
though I've never had a lens with fungus. I've also heard that
a good cleanser for the fungus is a cold cream like the ladies
use on their faces! BTW, you're going to love that 40mm Konica.
It is a very sharp lens and the 40mm imparts a wonderful
perspective.

 

[Robert Lai]

Fungal spores are everywhere. The only thing you can do after removing the fungus on your current lens is to try to provide an environment that will discourage fungal growth on all of your equipment. The purpose of fungus removal on the lens is to prevent the acidity from their metabolism from etching the lens permanently.

I have open containers of "Damp Rid" which absorbs atmospheric moisture, in the closet with my gear. Others recommend a closet with a low wattage incandescent bulb burning continuously, to perform the heating and drying of the air in the closet. Leaving the camera and lenses outside of their leather cases until you are ready to use them, will also help to prevent fungal growth.
I store the cameras and lenses in large plastic storage containers which have ventilation holes drilled on the body near where the lid attaches. The reason for using these containers is that I live in the midwestern USA, where flat land allows for potential flooding during rainstorms. These containers are waterproof, at least until the waterline reaches the ventilation holes.

 

[sevo]

The germs involved are ubiquitous and spores are present on every surface exposed to air. Their growth is a matter of conditions (damp and dark), not infection.

Nonetheless you certainly should not store massively fungus infested equipment together with good lenses, as that might cause the spores to spread even into internal areas that were previously sterile. But lenses cleaned to the point where they are useful again are no more a risk than any lens that never had a fungus growth.

And in any case, the main risk is hidden fungus in (especially leather) bags and cases. If even a single item inside has developed fungus, trash the bag/case (or sterilize it inside an autoclave - but no leather or canvas and only few all-plastics bags will survive that treatment), even if it does not look infested!

 

[Phil_F_NM]

If you can get a UV-B lamp, you can effectively sterilize the lens inside and out with it. If fungus is a problem that you occasionally encounter, creating a UV save cabinet with a germicidal bulb inside might be a benefit to preserving your lenses. I thought seriously about doing this when living in the US Pacific NW where moisture and all nature of fungi exist everywhere, always. Park a car for a few days and moss will start to grow!
Good luck.

Phil Forrest

 

[sevo]

If you can get a UV-B lamp, you can effectively sterilize the lens inside and out with it.

Make that UV-C! For one, UV-B does not seem to be available in generally available and affordable lamps (hospital and koi pond sterilisation lamps are UV-C, tanning and varnish hardening lamps UV-A), for the other, the sterilizing power of UV-B is limited while the dangers to the operator (eye damage, skin cancer) and disadvantages (paint fading, plastics erosion) are barely smaller than those of UV-C.

But the latter, plus the problem of lens glass being an highly effective UV-B/C filter, means it is usually no smart idea to use UV sterilization on a lens - you need a safe irradiation box, cannot reach the spores inside the barrel without disassembly (after which cleaning with a disinfectant would do), and a high intensity irradiation effective against the spores will visibly deteriorate the paint and plastics parts.

 

[Autoluminescent]

Thank you very much for all the responses guys! Sadly as a university student, living in a student house and with a student budget, UV lamps and special cabinets are probably not practical. However I will definitely make sure to get some "damp-rid" or something similar and maybe keep all the gear I have here in a drawer or something with that.

Thanks for the tip on leather bags and the like as well, as most of my older gear is stored in the cases/bags I got them in. I will try storing them all seperately to that.

Now I just need to work out how to clean the lens...

EDIT: I assume that by the same merit (that fungus is not directly "infectious") you wouldn't consider it unsafe or unwise to use said lens (once the clean has been attempted) on a Micro Four-Thirds camera? Presumably the sensor can in theory be damaged by fungus..

 

[KenR]

Unless you clean the lens with the camera lying sensor up on the bench next to you, placing the lens on the camera is not going to harm the sensor. As stated by others, the spores are ubiquitous in nature. We and everything we eat, own and use is constantly exposed to the spores. It is only when conditions are right (temp and humidity) that the spores start to multiply. After Katrina, the flooded houses had major mold problems and more recently, on the US east coast, the are still ongoing mold problems after Sandy. There are gel packs that you can buy that absorb moisture and turn color when they are saturated. Bake them in an oven and they are ready to go again - this may be the best thing to get if humidity is any ongoing problem for you.

 

[L David Tomei]

I keep some lenses in plastic bags with two silica capsules to absorb moisture. Even then the plastic bags aren't great because many have volatile plasticizers that can condense of optics over long periods of time in storage. However, the gels capsules are very helpful in keeping the humidity down which is the critical thing. Just remember that the fungal growth will eventually etch the glass and will be unrepairable.
David

 

[sevo]

Even then the plastic bags aren't great because many have volatile plasticizers that can condense of optics over long periods of time in storage.

Food grade PE bags do not contain volatile plasticizers. But at least in Europe, generally available bags are required to decompose after a few years of exposure to sunlight or air, to limit environmental damage due to plastics litter - that is usually done either by reducing the amount of stabilizers or by adding a de-polymerizing catalyst.

If you keep them in dark and dry storage and switch bags once a decade, they are safe enough. Otherwise, get medical or archival grade bags - but don't be surprised if you have to register somewhere where you'll have to list your inventory and disposal methods each year if you want to avoid being fined...

 

[L David Tomei]

sevo: That's good. I really had no evidence that there were volatile components in plastic storage bags that could condense on optics, just thought it was possible. Our plastic bags are different from those in the USA and zip lock bags are nowhere to be found. We still use the little green paper-covered wire and twist it for seal. I used silica gel capsules and drierite for years in my lab for storage of anything sensitive to humidity. I continue to use the capsules for camera/lens storage perhaps out of habit and psychological comfort. David

 

[Sid836]

No worries guys. The plastics get volatile in notable quantities after hundreds of years. If you worry though, wrap up in a soft cloth your lens throw the silica gel bag on it and wrap it in the plastic bag.