SPI and Ross® Lens Cleaning Tissue
Suggested procedures for cleaning light microscope lenses
Cleaning of light microscope lenses:
There are probably as many suggested protocols as there are persons willing
to quote protocols, so what we are suggesting must be taken with some health
dose of skepticism. In other words, we believe this guidance will work in
many cases, perhaps most cases, but we cannot guarantee that it will work in
all cases.
We consider these to be the "Golden Rules of Lens Cleaning":
- Never "dry" clean a lens
Cleaning dry a lens, no matter what the wiper, is virtually guaranteed
to cause problems.
- Use a solvent or dispersant that is likely to remove the "dirt"
you want to remove
For example, use a high quality lens cleaner.
- Use the best quality lens tissue
you can find.
The explanation of the Golden Rules of Lens Cleaning
The most likely source of damage to glass surfaces and fine optical
coatings is abrasion. The fine particulates that cause the abrasion
are the particulates that are on the lens surface to begin with as swell
as the particulates that come from the wiping media being used to wipe
the lens.
If you simply wipe the surface of an objective lens, for example, with
lens tissue, no matter how great might be its quality, it is all too easy
to rub the particulates over the lens surface, and in the process, wear
or abrade away the coating. If there should be particularly large
particles present, and depending on its composition, one can without too
much difficulty, actually can cause damage (e.g. scratching) to the glass
lens (or prism surface) itself.
Therefore, the very best procedure for lens cleaning is to remove the
objective lens from the microscope and while it is standing upright, on
its base, apply a small drop of the lens cleaning solution on the top
surface. Leave enough time for it to dissolve and float away any
contaminating materials. But before the cleaner dries, gently wipe the
lens with the very highest quality lens cleaning tissue, either the
Ross® or SPI Supplies® Brand of lens cleaning tissues.
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Friday February 03, 2012
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