[dfp771]

I've owned the K-1 for about two years now. After every major gig that I use the camera, the sensor gets dirty. I've been using the sensor cleaning kit and it seems to work fine but, I cleaned the sensor two days ago before going out. I was a in a hurry and I pressed too hard on the tool. I left some un removable marks on the sensor and I sent the camera to Precision to repair/ clean the sensor. I'm wondering how often do you guys clean it? I use almost all primes so I'm always changing lenses. I always point the camera down when changing. Any thoughts on how this camera compares to others in regards to sensor cleaning? Thanks!

[KiloHotelphoto]

Over the past four years and five bodies I’ve never had to clean a sensor. I once had to just use a rocket blower on the K50 to clean off some dust but that’s it.

[jatrax]

I've never cleaned a sensor in my last 4 camera bodies. The builtin dust removal system has taken care of any dust I found. I always have it set to run at start up.

Personally I think a wet cleaning is a very last resort if all else fails.
1) built in system running on start up
2) repeat use of the builtin system if the auto function doesn't get something
3) Rocket blower if needed
4) wet clean
5) pro clean

I've never gotten past step 3.

[BigMackCam]

I can't speak about the K-1, as I don't own one However, I clean my other camera sensors as and when I need to. Most often (every few weeks or months), it's just a case of blowing away the odd dust particle. Occasionally, stubborn particles need to be removed (once or twice a year). Full wet cleaning is something I do only very rarely (I haven't done this in over a year), as it's usually not necessary.

See the following post for my own approach. It has worked well for me, it's the approach I *always* follow, and it's what I recommend:

How do you clean a really dirty sensor? - PentaxForums.com

Note: In that post I recommended 17mm cleaning swabs as we were talking about an APS-C camera. Use the right size swabs for whatever sensor you're cleaning

[Paul the Sunman]

Once. This should be a very rare requirement. The only time I needed it was when I mounted a brand new (Pentax) lens that turned out to be full of dust!

[pakinjapan]

I am not a K-1 owner.
I used to let Pentax square in Shinjuku clean my camera one a year. they clean sensor, mirror and focus screen. My excuse is, I change lenses out side often.

Later I get a "Sensor Gel Stick", and I has never had to go to the service center for cleaning again. My excuse is still somewhat same, I change lenses out side often, dust can find a way in there soon anyway.

[stevebrot]

I've been shooting Pentax since 2007 (two cameras with the latest bought in 2014) and have never done other than a puff of air from the rocket blower and/or a couple of cycles with the dust-removal shaker.


Steve

[kiwi_jono]

I use mostly primes too. I always try to keep change time to a minimum and wherever possible do it in a clean environment. But inevitably some dust gets in over time (even if I have being using a single lens for a period).
With my K-5 I had to wet clean the sensor approximately once a year. With the K-x was perhaps more frequent (dust removal was more effective on K-5).
This was, as usual, after letting my camera remove dust and using a blower. If I don't clean them, then the symptoms are darker spots that start showing up at f11 and eventually f8 if it gets really dirty. If I'm doing macro work at say f16 then having a clean sensor is even more important.

On K-1, I have had a good run so far (built in dust removal is possibly improved?) but got to point of using blower and may need a wet clean soon.

Interestingly, now I think about, I have yet to need to clean the K-01 sensor!

[mirocal]

I didn't have to clean my K-1 prior to buying the 28-105, but this one is a massive air pump which turned the camera into a dirt attractor, the SR and blower couldn't cope with eventually. Hint: don't zoom frantically in a pouring rain or a dusty environment. Even in the midst of the action, try to stay on the expected focal length. Zoom out (wide) is fine, zoom in should be gentle. Humidity by itself does not spot the sensor but it can capture dust and make it stick. I had to do several wet passes in one cleaning session, and while just the blower fixed my latest woes, the jet needed directed precisely to get rid of the more stubborn specks. No other lenses gave me this trouble, be it sealed primes of course (300/4, 200/2.8), nor 100/2.8 macro which also is supposed to displace large volumes of air, neither other zooms (20-35/4). A word on environment: if I really need to change lenses in a dusty/spraying environment, like Mt. Saint Helens or on a boat, I do this blindly inside a jacket used like a bag, my hands through sleeves. Train before trying it in the field.

[kiwi_jono]

I didn't have to clean my K-1 prior to buying the 28-105, but this one is a massive air pump which turned the camera into a dirt attractor, the SR and blower couldn't cope with eventually. Hint: don't zoom frantically in a pouring rain or a dusty environment. Even in the midst of the action, try to stay on the expected focal length. Zoom out (wide) is fine, zoom in should be gentle. Humidity by itself does not spot the sensor but it can capture dust and make it stick. I had to do several wet passes in one cleaning session, and while just the blower fixed my latest woes, the jet needed directed precisely to get rid of the more stubborn specks. No other lenses gave me this trouble, be it sealed primes of course (300/4, 200/2.8), nor 100/2.8 macro which also is supposed to displace large volumes of air, neither other zooms (20-35/4). A word on environment: if I really need to change lenses in a dusty/spraying environment, like Mt. Saint Helens or on a boat, I do this blindly inside a jacket used like a bag, my hands through sleeves. Train before trying it in the field.

Indeed I have noticed more dust (which internal removal has mostly dealt with) since I got the DFA28-105 - its otherwise a great and very useful lens though!
No doubt how much you need to clean the sensor is significantly impacted by how much you use your camera. I'm not a pro or even a particularly heavy user, but I'm sure some professional users must have to clean pretty frequently.

[dfp771]

I didn't have to clean my K-1 prior to buying the 28-105, but this one is a massive air pump which turned the camera into a dirt attractor, the SR and blower couldn't cope with eventually. Hint: don't zoom frantically in a pouring rain or a dusty environment. Even in the midst of the action, try to stay on the expected focal length. Zoom out (wide) is fine, zoom in should be gentle. Humidity by itself does not spot the sensor but it can capture dust and make it stick. I had to do several wet passes in one cleaning session, and while just the blower fixed my latest woes, the jet needed directed precisely to get rid of the more stubborn specks. No other lenses gave me this trouble, be it sealed primes of course (300/4, 200/2.8), nor 100/2.8 macro which also is supposed to displace large volumes of air, neither other zooms (20-35/4). A word on environment: if I really need to change lenses in a dusty/spraying environment, like Mt. Saint Helens or on a boat, I do this blindly inside a jacket used like a bag, my hands through sleeves. Train before trying it in the field.

My last location gig was a wedding reception under a tent in pouring rain in Tijuana, BC. I only made one lens change- from the 31mm F1.8 to the 28-105 zoom. I'm glad I did because the tent had some low spots and someone hit a low spot and water poured down near me and splashed on the camera. All the images were clean from that shoot but later shoots had sensor dust that could not be blown clean.

[Bob 256]

I've had my K-1 for about a year now and have only had to blow off the sensor twice. I've changed lenses fairly frequently and in some not-so-clean areas where I held my breath (not because the area was dirty) but so far so good.

I acquired a used K-01 which I had converted to full spectrum about 9 months ago and have only had to blow it out once, but the lens stays on that one most of the time. Since the UV/IR blocking filter is removed on the K-01, dust falls directly on the sensor so it's noticeable right away if it does have a blob on it.

---------- Post added 04-17-2018 at 07:51 PM ----------

My last location gig was a wedding reception under a tent in pouring rain in Tijuana, BC. I only made one lens change- from the 31mm F1.8 to the 28-105 zoom. I'm glad I did because the tent had some low spots and someone hit a low spot and water poured down near me and splashed on the camera. All the images were clean from that shoot but later shoots had sensor dust that could not be blown clean.

Good idea to your camera with a bag of silica gel in a plastic bag when not in use - it will draw moisture from the camera and may help keep the dust from sticking so much. Make sure though, the silica gel is well contained so dust from it doesn't contaminate things.

[jbinpg]

I just got my K-1 back after the sensor block was replaced. I had put an indelible scratch on the left side of the sensor when cleaning it. Pressing too hard and the foam pulled off the stick allowing one corner of the plastic wand to contact the sensor. Only visible at small f-stops but I needed those to be clean. All fine now after I gave them my $1200CDN. Just a reminder to tread carefully when cleaning a sensor.

[leekil]

I've only cleaned my sensor once, when I stupidly blew on it to get some dust off, and a saliva speck landed on the sensor.

[joergens.mi]

My K-3 i cleaned two times in 4 years, because there was a possibility. There was no need to go beyond rocket blower.
My K1 two times a year. There was a need to go beyond rocket blower.

I always used local photo exhibitions with a "cleaning stand", and it was done by professionals.
In my opinion the K1 attracts more dust than the previous models.
But as usual, most of it get blown away with some air.
The internal cleaning is a start stop option in my camera,
I'm missing the dust check option, as it was available with the previous models