Hi, I need some help. I have an ST7-XME, purchased about a dozen years ago. In the last several months, maybe a year, I find that when I turn on the camera and cooler (to reach -15C), I can see a ring of frost or ice on images. This ring expands outward and in three or four hours it has completely disappeared off the edge. It takes that long. From then on imaging is as good as ever. This means I have to turn on the camera and cooler in the middle of the afternoon. Lately, I've been leaving it on 24x7. If I run it 24x7 for days, it's okay when I start up, but if I turn off the camera in the morning, then the problem returns the same evening. I have changed the dessicant several times and checked the O-ring, and I have brought the camera in the house and opened it up to "dry out" but found no obvious drops of moisture anywhere. Any ideas about what's wrong and how to fix it? It's a d... nuisance. Don't mind the donuts - I know how to fix them! Thanks, Dick
You may have a bad o-ring. Inspect it and see if it has cracks or deformations. Also you may have to bake it a couple of times if its filled with moisture. You can call my cell anytime to get help.
If a new O-ring won't fix the issue I suspect it will need to come in for repair if Bill has the parts. Email Bill@sbig.com as well. He monitors this list as well.
Dick, Opening the camera to dry out might be a good way to allow any actual wetness to evaporate but when you put the cover back on, that section of the camera is full of ambient, wet, air and any attempt to cool the camera will produce frost. If you have a Dummy Plug, insert it into the camera while you bake the real plug. Get the freshly baked plug back into the camera within a few minutes of removing it from the oven. It should be cool enough to handle after 3 or 4 minutes, you want to get it in while it's still warm but not so hot you burn yourself. Let it work for 24 hours before cooling the camera. You may have to repeat this process a couple of times to fully dry out the interior of the camera. -Bill
