For many novices, most of them will only consider the of buying a good camera, and neglect how to maintain your photographic equipment. This time I will share with you how to save your photographic equipment! Humid environment is the enemy of our photographic equipment, because the mold is easy to breed in the humid environment. In case of accidental mold growth on the lens, it will affect the imaging of the lens, and it will cause permanent damage! In addition, most people nowadays use digital cameras. When the camera is kept in a humid environment for a long time, the electronic parts inside the camera will be affected and cannot be operated. So how should we store our photographic equipment? The best answer is to equip a moisture-proof box.

Types of moisture-proof boxes
The moisture-proof box is generally divided into electronic and non- electronic. Most people call it electronic moisture-proof box and ordinary moisture-proof box.

Ordinary moisture-proof box

Ordinary moisture-proof boxes are actually not much different from the plastic storage boxes used to store dry food in ordinary households. The most important thing is that there is a sealant edge to prevent moisture from entering. However, this plastic edge alone cannot achieve the effect of moisture absorption. Therefore, it must be equipped with moisture-proof beads to absorb moisture in the air. However, do not use hygroscopic agents for storage in the wardrobe as to prevent the water from pouring out and damage the equipment. Moisture-proof beads are also available in general photography supply stores. After you open the bottle cap of the moisture-proof bead, you will find that the moisture-proof bead should be blue (please refer to the description of the moisture-proof bead). When the moisture-proof bead is found to become pink, you must replace it, because the pink moisture-proof bead means that the moisture-proof bead has been No longer has the effect of absorbing moisture. Of course, you can use hot air to dry the pink moisture-proof beads to blue, but this is too time-consuming, so I still recommend that you buy new ones directly to replace them. There are also some things on the market called “electronic moisture absorption cards”. In fact, they are just ordinary moisture-proof beads, but the difference is that when the moisture-proof beads inside fail, you can plug the “electronic moisture-absorbing cards” into the power source and dry the moisture-proof beads directly. Continue to use after drying. In addition to paying attention to the color of the moisture-proof beads, there are some well-designed moisture-proof boxes on the market that also have a hygrometer to facilitate users to keep an eye on the humidity. Generally, the best storage humidity for camera equipment is 45-55%. If it is too low, it may cause the lubricant on some parts to dry out, which will also damage the equipment.

You can buy the moisture proof case from household good store or photography equipment store.

Advantage : Cost are low with moisture-proof case around USD 40 – 50 , moisture-proof beads around USD 3-8, No need to connect to electricity all the time.

Disadvantage:
Difficult to control humidity, always pay attention to the condition of moisture-proof beads

Electronic moisture-proof cabinet

The electronic moisture-proof cabinet can be described as the best storage solution. It is relatively expensive, but compared with ordinary moisture-proof boxes, its capacity is larger, and it is separated into different intervals for easy storage. Electronic moisture-proof boxes have different storage capacities. Of course, the larger the storage capacity, the more expensive it is. If you only store one body with a smaller lens, generally about small cabinet is enough. But in the long run, you can consider buying larger cabinet, which is about USD 500-700 or more. The biggest advantage of the electronic moisture-proof box is that it is easy to adjust the humidity. For example, when you set the humidity at 50%, if the humidity in the moisture-proof cabinet is higher than 50%, the cabinet will automatically operate and perform dehumidification to reduce the humidity to 50%.

Advantage: Better storage environment, easy to control humidity, saving time and money to replace and purchase moisture-proof beads

Disadvantage:
Mostly very expensive, it needs to be plugged in for electricity all the time.

However, users need to keep in mind that even if the electronic moisture-proof box or cabinet is used, it may not 100% prevent the lens from getting moldy. So what should you do if the lens is moldy? When the lens becomes moldy, you should go to the repair center to repair the lens immediately. If you have no experience, you should not disassemble the lens by yourself. Don’t treat it immediately because there is only a small amount of mold, because mold will spread and damage the coating on the lens, causing permanent damage.

Written by Collin Smith @ remotes.works Holborn London