trumperl Now the camera is brand new, still under warranty so I am hesitating to take this path.
What do you think?
If it has been assembled correctly, that new camera should not need new dessicants right away. So, I wonder if the problem is due to moisture gotten in during assembly. At least, I have yet to have to replace the dessicant tabets of my half a dozen plus cooled cameras, some of which are many years old.
You can try to replace the dessicant tablets (I suggest just buying new tablets instead of trying to dry the existing ones in a microwave oven -- the new ones come in moisture sealed bags).
Seal the camera chamber up immediuately after replacing the tablet.
The problem is that you need to do this in a dust free environment, or you will have to keep opening the chamber up again to clean the sensor. If you do decide to do it, try to face the sensor as much as possible towards the ground, so that dust particles don't fall on top of the sensor.
When I open the chamber of my simpler (non-cooled) cameras, or when I assemble filters into a filter wheel, I try to do it in front of an air purifier that has a HEPA filter. And I also use a heavy duty hand held air blower with HEPA filter, instead of a bulb blower: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B097XRM28M
Just try to slowly cool the camera first -- it might be good enough to solve the problem. Or you may end up fighting with dust, which is arguably a bigger nuisance than spending 15 minutes to half an hour coaxing the temperature down before you start imaging.
Finally, are you friendly with your dealer? They might be able to swap the tablets for you, and they may have a clean air box to do it in.
Chen
