Nauticam vacuum leak detector

I know that there are several post regarding vacuum leak detectors but I am looking for some feed back from Nauticam user that have had the housing upgraded to the new detectors.

1. How do you like the new detector?

2. Do you feel it was worth the price of the upgrade?

3. Have there been any trouble?

I am considering sending my housing in for this upgrade and can not find anyone who has talked about it since it was introduced. Any thoughts would helpful.

Regards,

Steve

I retro fitted it to my NA-GH3.

I think its brilliant. Turn it on, close the housing, pump til green and leave - if by the time I get to the dive site its still green, I'll jump in

Can't remember how much the upgrade was - but it was worth it - so much so, I would consider adding it to my NA-NINJA2 too!

Richard, did you do it yourself or send it in to be fitted?

I fitted it myself.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/richardwait/sets/72157640734845115/

Hi,

I also retrofitted it into my D800 Housing.

I find it great.

In my opinion the Price is ok.

No Troubles so far after about 60 dives with it.

The only slight negative is that you have to open the Housing in order to Switch on/off the electronics. Well, that is a minor issue.

The LED is very easy to see even in bright daylight. I find this a really good and important.

It is not difficult to retrofit it yourself as long as you can solder, since the cables are much longer than needed for my D800 housing.

/Erik

Before you lock into the Nauticam leak detector, I'd suggest that you investigate the Leak Sentinel by Vivid Housings. It can be installed by the user without problem. Vivid makes adapters to fit most housings. And the unit can be turned on/off without opening the housing. I've got one in my Aquatica housing and have not had any problems with about 50 dives on it.

And it's a bit cheaper than the Nauticam unit.

There are some posts on it if you search, or PM me for more info.

Harry

Hi Richard

Were did you order the vacuum leak detector from?

I contacted Nauticam USA and was told that they don't sell the leak detector to fit it yourself

Thanks

I also had the vacuum system installed into my new Nauticam NA-EM1 housing and after around 75 dives I have had no problems. Once you get into the routine of using the system it adds little time to the assembly process and adds great piece of mind. It is a bit like the cell phone or something else you felt you could live without until you have it. You can read my full review of the vacuum system in back issue #76 of Underwater Photography Magazine on line at uwpmag.com.

Could anyone provide feedback about battery life of the leak system? I try to open the housing as seldom as possible and am sometimes able to make through an entire dive day without opening the housing, so envision the system being left on quite a bitThanks..

I leave mine on for a whole morning's diving. Set it up at home (8am) and its on all the time till I finish diving at 14:00. Had it in the water 3 weekends so far, no battery issues so far.

Turbohamster, if you're uk based, try the UK distributor?

I have used the leak sentinel over now 9 consecutive days (always on as the housing was not opened) no problems so far

I did however get a false positive as I shot some footage on land before getting in the water. The camera temperature rose and the water was not cool enough to stop it.

As it started flashing red before entering the water I put the housing in a cool rinse tank and immediately it went green so I decided it was a false positive and proceeded with the dive

however after shooting some footage in water it started blinking which was stressful however there was no leak

I would prefer a system like the nauticam that has temperature compensation to avoid those situations however the leak sentinel is currently being redeveloped to do that and is much cheaper also I can;t retrofit my housing

Thanks guys. Helps me know how many spare batteries to take on a trip and often I should be planning on changing the batt. By the way, I should have made clear it is the Nauticam system I was wondering about, although battery consumption may be similar.

Thanks Richard

i will give them a try

The Nauticam system has been tested with a full battery and will give approx 1000 hours of constant green light on a full battery.

The Nauticam system has been tested with a full battery and will give approx 1000 hours of constant green light on a full battery.

WOW - Mightily impressive! It will be a few years of diving for me then before I need a new battery!

I've been using mine about a year now and will not own another housing without one.

The review we wrote for Wetpixel back in Oct.;

Good Luck,

Steve

_{I agree 100%. I am sold on vacuum systems. I feel The benefits of making sure I made no mistakes in set-up, as well as locking the components together and preloading the o-rings to prvent surface blow-by water intrusion, make my U/W photography experience much more relaxing and enjoyable.}

I think the vacuum system is great, and I wouldn't dive without one...

... but it isn't foolproof: I had a catastrophic leak that began without a red light, recently.

I think this warrants further comment. I am at a loss to visualize a glass dome simply falling off, especially while under vacuum. I won't be able to sleep well until I can get a mental picture of this and then convince myself it could never happen to me.

That done weights 4.5 lbs in excess of 2 kg. though vacuum exerts a pulling force to keep it together the delta pressure of 200 mbar only gives 200 grams per cm2. Considering the surface of the oring this is barely half a kilogram. Now this dome in water will be less heavy but maybe still more than the half kg the vacuum can hold? Half kg would be adequate to keep in place acrylic ports or small glass ports unless you exert a torque then both would drop easily. But all nauticam ports have a secure latching system that holds much more and resists torque so maybe this special some doesn't have it??