So I washed my L2D today...

e0603 · Jul 15, 2008

I've never put anything through the washing machine that didn't belong in it other than the occasional coin or receipt. Then last week my cell phone went through the wash in my jeans pocket. I remember thinking, if something electronic was going to go through the wash, I wish it would have been one of my lights instead so it would have survived. Well, sure enough, today I accidentally washed my L2D! :ohgeez:

On the plus side it appears to be unharmed other than a few nicks in the anodization on the rim of the head and tail. I don't see any moisture or fogginess on the lens, the body and batteries seem totally dry, and I removed the switch and boot from the tailcap and everything seems dry there too. Put back together, it all works just fine.

My reason for posting, other than sharing a funny story, was to see if there was any reason for concern about some problem popping up with this light in the future due to this incident. I plan to leave it apart for a couple days to let it dry out just in case some moisture got in that I couldn't see, and I'll clean the threads and relube. Do you think maybe I should replace the O-rings and tailcap boot? -- could the detergent and bleach have caused any damage to them? I don't want to have a light that I'm not 100% confident in, but maybe I should be looking at this as passing a test of reliability! Thanks for any thoughts on the matter!

LED-holic · Jul 15, 2008

You might want to lube the o-rings and the threads again, but other than that I don't think you'll have any problems.

9x23 · Jul 15, 2008

About 8 months ago my P3D also was accidentally washed in a full wash cycle in a stainless tub but survived nicely except for some cosmetic finish damage at the front and tail bezel edges. My wife brought the light to me after she found it in the washer at the end of the cycle and said "Sorry, this was in the wash" and then proceeded to turn in on and was quite surprised when the light worked. I opened it up and everything appeared quite dry so I put the batteries back in and contined to use it. I didn't even bother airing it out so I think your P2D will also be fine. Besides, at least each of us knows that our particular lights have been tested to be watertight!

9x23

WildChild · Jul 15, 2008

3 weeks ago, my L0D-CE went through a full wash cycle plus half a drying cycle. I was looking for it and couldn't find it. When I heard the big bangs in the dryer I thought about it and it was there... No water inside but the anodizing took a bad hit. Also, the heat from the dryer was enough to melt the shrink wrap of the NiMH that was inside.

e0603 · Jul 16, 2008

Thanks guys, I feel better about it now, and it's nice to know I'm not the only person who's done such a thing! Yikes re: the battery wrapper melting on the L0D-CE's trip through the dryer, I never thought about just how hot that would get. If my L2D hadn't been lucky enough to fall out of the pocket it was in, it would've gone through the dryer too. I'll lube the O-rings and threads tomorrow, put it back in service, and hope for the best! :thumbsup:

TONY M · Jul 16, 2008

I've wrecked an old mobile phone after it got washed!

Good to hear that the L2D is OK.
I have put my E01 in the wash with my keys by accident and then I couldn't find them. I remembered that they were in my pocket and now they were in the wash! Luckily that was just a few minutes after I had turned on the machine so I retrieved them with no harm done.

I wouldn't recommend it as an easy way to wash lights.

TONY M · Jul 16, 2008

BTW Does anyone know if running tap water over the light after the batteries are removed is a good idea if it has been through a washing machine. I gather that the water when mixed with the washing powder can be corrosive and running tap water over (or inside) it soon after could possibly prevent some damage caused by it?
Distilled watter I'm sure is better but we can't always get it in a hurry.

Thanks.

oops · Jul 16, 2008

Had an L0D Rebel. It went through the washing machine in a pocket. No visible moisture inside. Didn't work. Fenix store said warranty did not include a trip through the washing machine, but gave me a discount on a new one (L0D Q4 - no more Rebels available) just to be nice.

Jarl · Jul 16, 2008

If you take a light out the wash, personally I'd check it's dry inside, then just wash and dry the outside with normal tap water. If it's wet inside, I'd remove the batteries, wash the outside with tap water, open it as far as you can without getting silly (i.e, for an L2D, separate switch module/switch body/battery tube/head then wash everything except any electronics (switch module and head, in this case) with water, dry off any electronics with a piece of loo paper or w/e, and leave to air for a day or so.

Federal LG · Jul 16, 2008

e0603 said:
I've never put anything through the washing machine that didn't belong in it other than the occasional coin or receipt. Then last week my cell phone went through the wash in my jeans pocket. I remember thinking, if something electronic was going to go through the wash, I wish it would have been one of my lights instead so it would have survived. Well, sure enough, today I accidentally washed my L2D!

On the plus side it appears to be unharmed other than a few nicks in the anodization on the rim of the head and tail. I don't see any moisture or fogginess on the lens, the body and batteries seem totally dry, and I removed the switch and boot from the tailcap and everything seems dry there too. Put back together, it all works just fine.

My reason for posting, other than sharing a funny story, was to see if there was any reason for concern about some problem popping up with this light in the future due to this incident. I plan to leave it apart for a couple days to let it dry out just in case some moisture got in that I couldn't see, and I'll clean the threads and relube. Do you think maybe I should replace the O-rings and tailcap boot? -- could the detergent and bleach have caused any damage to them? I don't want to have a light that I'm not 100% confident in, but maybe I should be looking at this as passing a test of reliability! Thanks for any thoughts on the matter!

I washed my L2D twice, acidentally. Nothing happened! No chip in the body, no water inside, no fog in the window. It was just wet outside, obviously.

Just dry it, open it, and lube again all the o-rings. :twothumbs

Aluminous · Jul 17, 2008

Federal LG said:
I washed my L2D twice, acidentally. Nothing happened! No chip in the body, no water inside, no fog in the window. It was just wet outside, obviously.

Just dry it, open it, and lube again all the o-rings. :twothumbs

I'm curious, what lube did you use?

Federal LG · Jul 18, 2008

Aluminous said:
I'm curious, what lube did you use?

Sincerely, I don´t know it´s name!

I´m gonna explain: I use Casio wristwatches (G-Shock series - Waterproof 200 meters), and the last time that I took it to my dealer to change it´s battery, I saw him putting lube in the watch internal O-ring before closing it. So I asked where I could find that lube, and he just gave me one little tube of it as a gift.

It don´t have any visible brand name, but he said it is what Casio sent him to lube wristwatch´s O-rings. And he used it for years!

The tube is white, with "Casio" printed on it. The lube itself is transparent (like water), but it is viscous like honey, and it is "no oiled", I mean, it not let your fingers "oiled" or "greasy".

I hope you can understand... I´m having a hard time with english language to explain it correctly to you... :crackup:

Regards!

Aluminous · Jul 19, 2008

Federal LG said:
Sincerely, I don´t know it´s name!

I´m gonna explain: I use Casio wristwatches (G-Shock series - Waterproof 200 meters), and the last time that I took it to my dealer to change it´s battery, I saw him putting lube in the watch internal O-ring before closing it. So I asked where I could find that lube, and he just gave me one little tube of it as a gift.

It don´t have any visible brand name, but he said it is what Casio sent him to lube wristwatch´s O-rings. And he used it for years!

The tube is white, with "Casio" printed on it. The lube itself is transparent (like water), but it is viscous like honey, and it is "no oiled", I mean, it not let your fingers "oiled" or "greasy".

I hope you can understand... I´m having a hard time with english language to explain it correctly to you...

Regards!

Well, thanks for that information at least!

Your English is better than some native speakers.

If you'd like a bit of constructive criticism on the only problematic area there...
it is "no oiled", I mean, it not let your fingers "oiled" or "greasy".
should be something more like this:
it is "non-oily", I mean, it does not make your fingers feel "oiled" or "greasy".

So I washed my L2D today...

e0603

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LED-holic

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9x23

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WildChild

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e0603

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TONY M

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oops

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