The best part about the Sensor Gel Stick, is that it can be re-used over and over again and with normal use can last for a long time. But what happens if the gel tip gets less sticky overtime or potentially even completely lose the stickiness property? Some of our customers apparently use the product heavily (even some gear rentals companies use the Sensor Gel Stick) and one of our customers reached out to us asking what to do in such situations. I forwarded the email to our German manufacturer and the response I received was quite simple – just wash it! Apparently, you can safely wash the Sensor Gel Stick with just tap water, let it air dry and it will be as good as new again. I had a hard time believing this, so I decided to test it out on my stick and then use it on my camera to make sure that it actually works. To my surprise, it worked perfectly fine and better yet, it became even more effective than before!
Here is the process for properly washing the Sensor Gel Stick:
- Wash your hands with soap first to make sure that there is no oil / grease on your fingers
- Wash the Sensor Gel Stick under clean, running tap water using your fingers – do not use any cleaning chemicals or solutions
- Shake the water off, then air dry the gel part by leaving the product in a dry, dust-free environment
- Once the gel is completely dry, use Sticky Paper to clean up the gel before first use
So if you end up dropping the Sensor Gel Stick on the ground or drop it on unclean surface, you do not have to waste your sticky paper – just give it a wash and you will be good to go!
If you end up with oil / grease on the gel and it won’t wash off, some liquid dish detergents can be safely used to remove oil / grease as well (only do this as a last resort though).
Moose Peterson followed the above procedure and he seems to be very happy with the outcome.
Nasim
I’ve used the gel stick for my Fuji X-T1 and X-T2. Is there any reason why it won’t work on the X-T3?
Thanks
George
Fort Collins
A similar question: Any issues using the Sensor Gel Stick on a Nikon Z7/Z6 due to the in-body stabilized sensor (which I understand locks when the camera is turned off)?
Hi Nasim,
I am interested in the Sony version for my Fuji X-T2. It doesn’t seem Eyelead Germany is offering that through German Amazon. Is it only available through your USA site? I’m in Hong Kong and postage from USA to Hong Kong is quite expensive. Thanks.
Hi Yuri,
Is it safe for the Pentax K1 ?
Hi Nasim,
I am going to wait by mid August as I really need the stick and the paper for my a6000. I would greatly appreciate if you could kindly inform me thru email if my 2 orders are already shipped out by then. Thanks.
Hi Nasim.
May I inquire again the status of my sisters’ (felicisima) purchase to buy me 1pc each of sensor gel stick (orange color for a6000) and sticky paper thru your website? The order number is 129363 with order receipt date of July 10, 2016.
Please feel free to reply thru my email. Thanks
Jojo, we are completely out of stock of the Sony version. Expected ETA for arrival of new stock is mid August, that’s when we are planning to ship everything out. If you would like to cancel your order, I can do that and issue a full refund. I apologize for the wait!
Hi Nasim,
I bought one of the Sony gel sticks, but on first use out of the box it’s not sticky enough to pick up any dust on my A7rII. I tried washing it as per the maintenance instructions, but still nothing. I also own the Nikon gel stick and it’s night and day between the stickiness of the two. Is mine defective, or am I just doing something wrong?
Feel free to follow up with me over email.
Thanks!
Hi Nasim. I asked my sister (felicisima) in the US to buy me 1pc each of sensor gel stick and sticky paper thru your website. May I know the status of her purchase? The order number is 129363 with order receipt date of July 10, 2016. Thanks.
I’ve been using one of these (>I thinkeverything<, which can be horrible.
I have used a lint free cloth moistened with propanol (normal "IPA", industrial alcohol) to wipe the gel pad on, which removes anything it picks up, and renews its stickiness. Getting the gel just slightly moist with alcohol makes it much MUCH more effective at stippling small oil dots away. As you use it, the alcohol evaporates, so you can stipple away any smear. Other fluid methods spread oil around a lot and make the job bigger.
I also do microscopy, which can mean tiny effective apertures, and eveything on the sensor shows up. ONLY the gel stick works.
I wondered if you have any warnings about contact with alcohol?
CR
That got corrupted!! …these ( I THINK my gel pad is yours, it came without a label…. with great success… I use a stereo microscope to inspect the sensor & see everything ….. which can be horrible !…)
Can the orange gel stick be used on the Fuji XPro 2 with the new Xtrans sensor?
To be honest I think your last discussion answers my question however; I assume the Sony Gel Stick is ok to use on the new Sony A7R II? I used it on my A7R without any problems and it worked extremely well.
Toni, yes, the product will work perfectly fine on the A7R II – I have used it on mine a number of times without problems. The only concern is – please be extremely careful during the process, since the sensor moves. You do not want to be applying much pressure or moving the sensor around, as it is a delicate mechanism.
Thanks, it works fine. The stickiness has slightly gone whichI think is a good thing for this sensor. No matter what I tried I couldn’t get rid of this piece of dust – the gel stick did it! ;-)
Toni, the stickiness decreasing is normal, but there is an awesome tip – simply wash the tip of the gel stick in distilled water and let it air dry. Once you do that, the product will be as good as new! And the best part, you can do this over and over again!
Hi Nasim, because of the Sony A7R II sensor I prefer the slight loss of stickiness! It still removes all the dust. ;-)