Water Leak into ipx-8 Light

flydiver · 2019-01-23T19:00:21.000Z

Expensive light. Whether it’s worth it to deal with a return is up to you. Shipping from the US to China is not cheap.
Personally I’d probably pull the lens, dry it out when apart (let the reflector dry, don’t rub), inspect ALL the parts for burrs and assembly issues, make sure the O-rings are OK, and put it back together.
If you got water under the lens just from a ‘rinse’ I suspect something was not done right there.

One of the issues is a hot light going into cold water. The outside is going to cool rapidly and create some negative pressure/suction. If it’s not well sealed water can be VERY invasive.
Conversely, just putting it in a desiccant is not likely to be very useful. If you put it in a WARM/150-170* oven with the desiccant you ‘may’ have some success….maybe.

mortuus · 2019-01-23T18:43:18.000Z

u should never submerge lights under water on purpose… even with that rating it doesnt mean much. Also u pretty much voided the warranty maybe i dont know ? It seems imalens quality isnt the best but they can if water inside deny you warranty who knows…

vwpieces · 2019-01-23T18:53:29.000Z

Turn the light on and heat it up.
Open up what you can, like take head off etc. If possible open the bezel a bit to break seal.
Allow it to cool off in a dry environment.

repeat as necessary.

Good luck on warranty if you choose that route.

Firelight2 · 2019-01-23T20:33:21.000Z

I probably wouldn’t remove the light. Instead I’d do the following:

Remove the bezel (if it is not glued) and the body tube.
Place the light overnight in a closed container of uncooked rice to remove moisture.
Check all o-rings to make sure they are fully lubricated. If not, add more lubricant.

Firelight2 · 2019-01-23T20:34:39.000Z

mortuus:

u should never submerge lights under water on purpose… even with that rating it doesnt mean much. Also u pretty much voided the warranty maybe i dont know ? It seems imalens quality isnt the best but they can if water inside deny you warranty who knows…

I think submerging a light rated for it should be ok.

But I don’t think I’d purposely do so before checking all o-rings.

teacher · 2019-01-23T21:12:14.000Z

The light in question is rated, Waterproof: IPX-8 waterproof 2 meters by Imalent.

Submerge it if you wish, it should not leak… period. As said above, probably a good idea to check & lube the O-rings first. BUT, the bottom line is it should not leak above 2 Meters.

If it did, they owe you another light or fix that one under Warranty. That also is the bottom line.

If you want to try and dry it out yourself to see if it still works OK…… do what Firelight2 said. Take it as far apart as you can, put the head & any other part that contains springs & electronics in a baking pan, & cover with dry uncooked rice.

Warm the oven a bit, NOT MUCH… JUST A BIT; around 125 F - 150 F.
Turn oven OFF, pop in the pan and close the door… leaving it just barely cracked open.

Let it sit for a day or two.

Reassemble & see what you’ve got.

EDIT… Or use a “sealed container” as Firelight2 said & forget the oven part.

Edit 2: Be careful with the reflector/optics . Don’t touch the reflective part with anything or screw it up. Set it aside in a safe place.

Firelight2 · 2019-01-23T21:13:55.000Z

teacher:

The light in question is rated, Waterproof: IPX-8 waterproof 2 meters by Imalent.

Submerge it if you wish, it should not leak… period. As said above, probably a good idea to check & lube the O-rings first. BUT, the bottom line is it should not leak above 2 Meters.

If it did, they owe you another light or fix that one under Warranty. That also is the bottom line.
…

Agreed.

But why go through the time and hassle of potentially having to return your light for warranty repair or replacement when you could have just checked and lubed the o-rings first?

teacher · 2019-01-23T21:25:28.000Z

Firelight2:

teacher:

The light in question is rated, Waterproof: IPX-8 waterproof 2 meters by Imalent.

Submerge it if you wish, it should not leak… period. As said above, probably a good idea to check & lube the O-rings first. BUT, the bottom line is it should not leak above 2 Meters.

If it did, they owe you another light or fix that one under Warranty. That also is the bottom line.
…

Agreed.

But why go through the time and hassle of potentially having to return your light for warranty repair or replacement when you could have just checked and lubed the o-rings first?

Oh, I agree 100% Firelight2. :+1:
It would have definitely been the prudent thing to do to check and lube the O-rings first. It possibly/probably would have saved a bunch of hassle for sure. No doubt at all.
I think we are on the same page…… .
I did not mean to come across any other way.

flydiver · 2019-01-23T21:40:30.000Z

Have a $15 Chinese SCUBA-rated light I took on a 30 dive vacation. Prior to that event I checked every O-ring and sealing surface on it. Then I did a burn test in a large clear tub of water so I could watch it. Insides were carefully checked after > dry.
Then it went on a local dive. There is a huge difference between a tub and 90 feet of pressure. You really don’t want to take an untested light (most anything really) on an expensive, distant, dive trip only to find it fails.
It passed. Only then did I take it. Even so I took a backup that had been through more serious testing.

After 30 dives I found a little clouding on the lens when I got home. Battery compartment always dry after each battery change, which was 2x/day. Took the lens out, dried the whole light out well when disassembled and put it back together.

Now, I have to repeat all above tests to prove being water tight.

Some of the Chinese manufactures take the IPX stuff seriously. Some just use it as a marketing gimmick. And, as indicated, you cannot rely on their assembly. Trust, but verify.

Henk4U2 · 2019-01-24T00:47:49.000Z

Actually using a light under water is something else than incidentally allowing it to get wet in rain.
I would feel quite confortable walking around in the rain with an IP-8 certified light.
And even that I would not do without first checking if all seals were in the right place.
Swimming around with a light causes pressure peaks that are higher than gently submerging it.
Turning on a high powered light in cold water just adds extra pressure.

Look at a typical dive light and you know they are are not built from the same perspective.
A Convoy S2+ is absolutely not fit for wet weather, but I do love my S2.
That little light tries to keep the water out with 3 (single) O-rings and a rubber tailcap.
I would open it every time I use it when it rains. Clean it and let it dry.

My Ledlenser D14 consist of only two parts, the head and the body-tail, and has double O-rings.
The switch operates with a magnet. Magnet on the outside, switch on the inside. No chance of immersing.
And yet it is only rated at 40 meters.

NB there is a big gap between any item that is called waterproof and a real dive-item.
Experts say it is safe to take your 100m waterproof watch into a swimming pool, if you don’t play rough.
If you would like to snorkel in shallow water, use a 200m waterproof watch.

CalvinIS · 2019-01-24T01:20:28.000Z

The problem with lights that get as hot as the DX80 is that air can get pushed out the light and sucked back in during hot and cold cycles. It's possible that when you ran the light under cold water the cooling effect caused air to get sucked in with water alongside it.

chadvone · 2019-01-24T01:40:49.000Z

Most of my EDC lights have been washed right along with my hands when I get dirty.
I try to keep my o-rings in good shape.

When one gets a foggy lens, I just put it on hi for a while and carry on.

If your worried, I would try the rice or the oven for sure. It has saved many phones.

Edit- Just looked that light up. Yeah I would be concerned that an expensive light.

RobertB · 2019-01-24T02:46:51.000Z

Uncooked rice does absolutely nothing to dehumidify. Old wives tail.

danallen · 2019-01-29T05:17:03.000Z

Firelight2:

I probably wouldn’t remove the light. Instead I’d do the following:

Remove the bezel (if it is not glued) and the body tube.

Place the light overnight in a closed container of uncooked rice to remove moisture.

Check all o-rings to make sure they are fully lubricated. If not, add more lubricant.

The head comes off. There are two o-rings in place, lubricated. I did not check them before putting the light in water, my bad but that is not going to invalidate the warranty.

CalvinIS:

The problem with lights that get as hot as the DX80 is that air can get pushed out the light and sucked back in during hot and cold cycles. It’s possible that when you ran the light under cold water the cooling effect caused air to get sucked in with water alongside it.

Interesting point.

I wonder if that is where the problem was.

There also are vents in the side of the head. I cannot get the bezel off or disassemble the head from the other end, where the battery contacts are. The bezel is too tight and I am not experienced enough to fool with the other end.

I forgot about this issue for a few days. I am contacting one of the US based dealers.

danallen · 2019-01-29T05:41:45.000Z

I got the bezel off, by flipping a rubber matt in the kitchen over, pressing the head into the rubber and twisting. Now this thing can dry out. Still contacting the us-based imalent dealer.

Also covering the reflectors with a lint free cloth and putting out of harm’s way to dry.

Humm, bezel off. no gasket or o-rings to be found between bezel and glass or glass and head.

teacher · 2019-01-29T05:40:17.000Z

Thanks for the update danallen. Good luck & keep us posted.

danallen · 2019-01-29T05:43:14.000Z

teacher:

Thanks for the update danallen. Good luck & keep us posted. :+1:

Thank Teacher.

I just noticed:
Bezel off. No o-ring or gaskets around the bezel or glass.

teacher · 2019-01-29T05:48:33.000Z

danallen:

teacher:

Thanks for the update danallen. Good luck & keep us posted. :+1:

Thank Teacher.

I just noticed:
Bezel off. No o-ring or gaskets around the bezel or glass.

Your welcome my friend.

That don’t sound good…. no O-ring. :person_facepalming:

Somebody’s got some ‘splainin’ to do……

mmalive · 2019-01-29T09:27:54.000Z

The most likely issue is this:

Did you run water on light that was ” Hot ” to touch? If so you cracked light because you ran water through it not allowing proper cool down.Water seeped in from hair line crack.

I will use this as example. I knew guy that wanted to clean ” gunk ” from engine block of car. Instead of waiting for engine to properly cool down. He doused the engine when ” HOT ” cracked engine block due to carelessness.

Did all check water proofing areas that seals are good and sealed tightly. O rings, tightened bezel ring/head? etc…. Any loose connection allows for water seepage.

Banggood will give you problems. Read my warning about these guys to see further details.

danallen · 2019-01-29T16:25:16.000Z

I took a closer look. Definitely no o-ring, however, there might be a seal around the edge of the reflector. There is plastic ring that looks like it might work as a seal. I did not remove the reflector to get good look at how plastic fits or to see how soft it is. It light gray, nearly white in color. It is conceivable that the bezel presses the glass into this plastic hard enough to form a seal.

That said, it seems the water must have gone into the light by around the edge of the glass, because there is no sign of water below the inside surface of the glass, thank goodness, because that would explain why the light was undamaged.