Chosen Solution
I would like to know if anyone has tried cleaning the sensor on this camera. I love it but somehow it got dust all over the sensor, and not just a little bit either. I was taking pictures for about 3 weeks before I noticed the same black spot in every single one. (I don’t download my pics often, I have a big SD card.) My camera is still under warranty so I’ve sent it off to their service center in Texas. But it’s been about a month since I’ve seen my camera. And I’m apparently not the most organized person in the world since it took me about two weeks to do the following: I called them, got the information on the support options,printed out a letter and proof of purchase,packaged everything up, drove around with it in my car without mailing itfinally mailed it with insurance and delivery confirmation. So that’s been about 6 weeks. I would much prefer to take it apart and sandpaper or gently brush the sensor off in a cardboard box with an air filter (or whatever the clean requirements are) and spend maybe 2 or 4 hours of sweating bullets instead of twiddling my thumbs for 6+ weeks. I know from other forums that this isn’t an uncommon problem. You can find a few results by googling “dust sensor lx100”. Thanks – J
I got this great tip from another member on dppreview. It works great, save $$$ and give me joy with this awesome Lumix LX100 again: … The dust can be easily removed with a vacuum cleaner, just make an adapter with a plastic bottle and while the vacuum cleaner is sucking the air, turn the camera on and zoom in and out several times . The adaptor can be made with a small plastic water bottle, cut both sides, one end will receive the vacuum hose and the other end the lens of the camera, the size must allow the lens to fully extend. If your vacuum cleaner is very strong , set it to low power or cut some holes in the adaptor . Did this procedure sometimes and it works like magic even for sensor dust.
Do not sandpaper It! It should not have dust on the sensor, so it is best if you let Panasonic clean it. Taking apart cameras is risky, because there are many things that can be broken or gotten dirty. Also, in many cameras, the lens and sensor are assembled as one unit, and the risk of getting dirt anywhere around in there is high. I do not recommend taking it apart. Besides, if you do take it apart, it will void the warranty, and if anything unfixable should go wrong, your gonna have to pay to fix it or replace. Sensors are very delicate, and to sand it would be to ruin it. If you do decide to do it yourself, get a good sensor cleaning kit. I hope this helps, but still, be careful.
The vacuum cleaner idea worked. I had my wife hold the plastic bottle attachment I made while I turned the camera on and off to zoom the lens in and out. I held the camera on it’s side and gently tapped it while the lens was collapsing, and that did the trick.
