Pro tip: cleaning sensor with a toothpick tip saved my Canon 5D

Picked this up from an old repair guy in Detroit last month. Took a toothpick, wrapped a tiny piece of Pec-Pad around it, dabbed some Eclipse fluid. Way more control than those chunky swabs. Done three sensors so far no streaks. Anyone else try this or got a better hack for stubborn spots?

3 comments

3 Comments

blair_nguyen1d ago

Aaron740, the silicone press-and-drag kit is basically a fancy version of what I described. I tried that on a Rebel T6i once and it left this weird residue that took forever to clean off. About the toothpick thing though - I actually sanded mine down with 400 grit paper first to round off the tip. Got the idea from a forum post from like 2012. No splintering at all that way, just make sure you check the tip under a bright light before you go near the sensor.

aaron7402d ago

Did you find the toothpick splintered at all? I was using those pointy q-tips for a bit but kept getting little fibers left behind. Finally switched to a silicone sensor cleaning kit, the type you press and drag across. Got rid of a nasty oil speck on my D750 that nothing else would touch. Took like 3 passes but no streaks at all.

sean_green442d agoTop Commenter

Yeah the fiber thing is just like how cheap paper towels leave lint all over your kitchen counters.