Posted by
Zoltan on
URL: http://confocal-microscopy-list.275.s1.nabble.com/Cotton-wool-for-lens-cleaning-tp6175236p6179249.html
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Dear All,
The one thing I noticed from the original post, but hasn't been commented
upon yet: the original poster only cleans the lenses every 2-3 MONTHS. I
find this very infrequent, we clean and check our lenses at least once every
two weeks, and would be much happier if we could afford the time to do this
weekly. How often do the others do this?
BTW, we also use cotton buds (Q-Tips or similar) with isopropanol on Leica
oil lenses, or water and then ethanol on water lenses, whilst observing the
front surface via either an inverted ocular or a small prep-scope. We
also check the back surface, usually nothing to clean there, although once I
found a big, greasy fingerprint on the back lens of a 20x multi-immersion
Leica objective!
I would be very interested in hearing from you all about how you compare
the quality of various brands of cotton buds? Amongst other properties, I
e.g. look for proper softness (not too soft or hard when dipped into
isopropanol e.g.), and for one that leaves no residual fibers. What do
others look for in their chosen cotton brand(s)?
Thanks, and best wishes to all,
Zoltan
MDC-Berlin
Confocal and 2-Photon Core Facility
On Wed, Mar 16, 2011 at 11:45 PM, Stanislav Vitha <
[hidden email]>wrote:
> *****
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>
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>
> Hi Aleksandrs,
>
> I like to use the method where you clean the lenses without touching them.
> I learned this from Karl Aufderheide when he was showing this trick to my
> LM
> course students.
>
> 1. Don't touch anything (even lens paper) to a lens surface except as a
> last
> resort. Avoid especially commercial facial or bathroom tissue because it
> could
> contain diatom frustules (glass!) as a filler. One pass of a kleenex over a
> lens
> could possibly ruin it!
> 2. Hold a piece of lens paper or other tissue over a lens. Place a few
> drops of
> ethyl ether on the paper and draw the paper across the lens surface so that
> the ether flows rapidly in a circular pattern over the recessed lens
> surface. In
> this way, the ether contacts the lens but the paper does not, because the
> lens is recessed.
> 3. Inspect the lens using an inverted ocular as a magnifier. Repeat the
> ether
> wash if necessary.
> 4. If ether does not remove the dirt, try first distilled water, then
> chloroform,
> then xylene or benzene, in that order. If all else fails, try a 1:1:1
> mixture of
> water, alcohol and chloroform shaken just before use. Follow with an ether
> wash.
> 5. For stubborn dirt (e.g., on old student microscopes) use the above
> solvents
> on a clean Q-tip.
>
>
> Because of safety concerns with ether (formation of explosive peroxides), I
> just get a fresh bottle every 6 months, and dispose of the old one through
> our
> Hazardous Waste program.
>
> Stan Vitha
> Microscopy and Imaging Center
> Texas A&M University
>
> On Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:03:31 -0400, Aleksandrs Spurmanis, Mr.
> <
[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> >Dear list,
> >
> >The current practice at our facility is to inspect and clean the
> objectives of
> our scopes periodically (approx. once every 2-3 months for each scope)
> using
> lens paper wrapped around small clean-room swabs. I had noticed, however,
> that the field service technicians who run the PMs on our instruments tend
> to
> use 100% cotton wool (which I understand to be essentially the same
> material
> as your basic 100% cotton ball in the pharmacy) and are able to service our
> lenses in a much more efficient manner (read: waayyy quicker) than myself
> using my current methods. In the interests of improving my maintenance
> efficiency, I've been considering trying this out myself but wanted to
> check in
> with the list to see if anyone can share their experiences, insights or
> advice
> before proceeding. My main concern is that the cotton might contribute to
> premature wear on the lens coating. As cleaning solvents, I use either
> Glass
> Plus, anhydrous ethanol and/or water.
> >
> >Thanks in advance.
> >
> >Sincerely,
> >
> >Aleksandrs J. Spurmanis
> >Microscopy Specialist
> >Imaging Facility
> >McGill University Life Sciences Complex
> >Francesco Bellini Building
> >3649 Sir William Osler
> >Suite 137
> >Montreal, QC
> >H3G 0B1
> >tel.: (514)-398-5248
> >fax: (514)-398-7452
> >
[hidden email]
> >
http://www.mcgill.ca/lifesciencescomplex/core/imaging/>
--
Zoltan Cseresnyes
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