A new lens cleaning experience

[linhofbiker]

I have not tried this on any "valuable" lenses yet, but....

I have 2 Minolta MC lenses that have been stored away in a NON climate controlled area in Florida.
Both lenses have blotches on the front (unprotected) lens surface. Must be fungus I thought.

I tried using the usual lens cleaning fluid but the blotches remained and appeared to be unaffected.

What have I got to lose, so I squirted the household clean "Simple Green" directly on the lens at full strength.
Then wiped the lens with a tissue and low and behold the blotches were removed. The lens shines like new.

Is this the new miracle cleaner for a lens?

[Oren Grad]

Per the MSDS, the ingredients of the basic Simple Green product ("All-Purpose Cleaner") are:

Water 7732-18-5 > 84.8%
C9-11 Alcohols Ethoxylated 68439-46-3 < 5%
Sodium Citrate 68-04-2 < 5%
Sodium Carbonate 497-19-8 < 1%
Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate 51981-21-6 < 1%
Citric Acid 77-92-9 < 1%
Methylchloroisothiazolinone 26172-55-4 < 0.002%
Methylisothiazolinone 2682-20-4 < 0.001%
Fragrance Proprietary Mixture < 1%
Liquitint Colorant Proprietary Mixture < 1%

Perhaps we have some chemists who can comment about putting this on optical glass. At the least, I'd rather not have the fragrance nor the colorant.

[linhofbiker]

It was suggested that the cleaner contains acid that should not be left on the lens. I used regular lens cleaner fluid to hopefully remove any residual "Simple Green" from the lens and it still looks as good as new.

[Sal Santamaura]

...At the least, I'd rather not have the fragrance nor the colorant.

At least in normal household use, the fragrance dissipates in a few hours, and it's not strong to begin with. I detect no color or other residue when cleaning white ceramic tile with this product.

[Drew Wiley]

Some people enjoy gambling. I can't afford it. Simple Green is one of the least "green" products I can think of. It's a surfactant which in even extremely low concentration kills marine and aquatic life by preventing oxygen from adhering to their gills. In the case of lenses, this same formula which works on one lens might ruin another by affecting its mounting cement and allowing moisture in. Surfactants break the surface tension of droplets and allow moisture to get through extremely small cracks or pores. And certain of the ingredients can actually attack older mounting cements. The alcohol component would ordinarily evaporate very quickly, but the other ingredients prevent it from doing so. I could say more, but I'm not the one rolling the dice.

[Nodda Duma]

Hydrogen Peroxide as bought at the store also cleans fungus very well.

[Havoc]

Hydrogen Peroxide as bought at the store also cleans fungus very well.

Certainly when combined with ammonia.

[Drew Wiley]

Appropriately posted by "havoc". Are we talking about cleaning lenses or blowing them apart? Well, even if that's not the case, ammonia is known to dissolve shellac, which is the primary sealant of older lenses, as well as being a cosmetic coating on old brass barrels.