Cleaning filters in an ultrasonic bath?

[Forunke]

Hi,

I was wondering if I could use an ultrasonic cleaner bath (usually used to clean glasses) filled with isopropanol to clean my filters.

You'd need some holders so they can't touch each other but aside from that I think it should work...

Anyone have any experience with this? I don't want to prove myself wrong by ruining my Ha filter

 

[Demonperformer]

No experience of this, but you could pick up cheap filter from astroboot (or similar) and try it on that.

[Waldemar]

The problem may be that the liquid will get between the glas and the mounting. 
I don't know if there are any sealings between the glass and the metal rings that may get resolved by the alcohol...

I know the Baader filters do not have any sealings, they are a bit 'loose' in their mounting to allow expension.
That may also mean they can dry quite easily.

Astronomiks can be cleaned with anything but sanding paper

[Zakalwe]

I've got to ask the obvious question: Why do you want to do this in the first place? Flats will take care of any obvious dust bunnies. Anything else can be sorted with an air blower. Why are your filters so mucky that you'd consider ultrasonic cleaning?

 

Just because something can be done it doesn't automatically follow that it should be done.

[Waldemar]

3 minutes ago, Zakalwe said:

Just because something can be done it doesn't automatically follow that it should be done.

Or will be done...?

[Forunke]

16 minutes ago, Zakalwe said:

Just because something can be done it doesn't automatically follow that it should be done.

I was just curious if it could be used to "powerclean" them every once in a while.

Had some nasty specks on one of my filters that wouldn't come of with a blower or even a lens brush... 

Still no idea how they got there but had to use isopropanol and a microfibre cloth to get rid of them and I don't like the idea of rubbing "dirt" inbetween an optical element and a cleaning cloth

[MarsG76]

Never tried it, very techie way of cleaning you filters.. try spraying it with distilled water, than isopropyl alcohol then wash it down with another spray of distilled water and let it dry... will dry clean and streak free.

 

[Forunke]

3 minutes ago, MarsG76 said:

Never tried it, very techie way of cleaning you filters.. try spraying it with distilled water, than isopropyl alcohol then wash it down with another spray of distilled water and let it dry... will dry clean and streak free.

Well I already have the bath for my glasses so I thought if it works for them it should also work for other optical stuff.

Those ultrasonic cleaners are actually pretty cheap for what they can do.

Guess I'll simply have to try it with both isopropanol and distilled water on some cheaper moon filter

[MarsG76]

11 minutes ago, Forunke said:

Guess I'll simply have to try it with both isopropanol and distilled water on some cheaper moon filter

Thats a good plan.. try it on a expendable item.

 

[Forunke]

Ok, I neither had enough isopropanol nor destilled water around so I tried the usual mix I use for my glasses.

Tap water with a few drops of unscented dish soap.

Put a nasty, greasy fingerprint on a leftover moon filter and ran the bath for 10 minutes. Shook of most of the water and dried of the last drops with some toiletpaper strips. Just lightly touching the glas so the water would be sucked up by the paper.

Results look really promising.

Can't see any remains of the fingerprint and only really minor water streaks (shouldn't be a problem with distilled water)

Sadly camera wasn't able to pickup the fingerprint for a before and after shot but I feel confident enough to try it with my more expensive filters once I have some distilled water.

[Zakalwe]

Don't worry about it and just take flats.