Keeping a 20D in a hot car

[george_prescott]

I've looked around for this specific question, but can't find it, so

here it goes.

 

What is everybody's comfort level with keeping their camera in a car

on a hot day? I live in Indiana where the highs are in the 90's.

I've got a 20D (my first digital) and I tend to be cautious with it!

 

Thanks!

 

George

[ky2]

Errrr... No.

[tommyinca]

Consider keeping an ice chest in the truck (note: no ice). It should keep your gear from overheating for a few hours.

[george_prescott]

One solution I was considering was to use an ice chest with those blue things you can freeze to keep it cool, with some sort of divider so the camera would not come in direct contact with it. I would run a trial first and measure the peak temperature. The reason I'm wondering is that since I have to work all day, there are a lot of photo ops I'm missing because I'm not taking my camera with me (I would have to leave the camera in the car). But, I want to do a "reality check" to see if I'm being too paranoid!

[geoffm]

Put it in its bag, then either in the boot or on the floor. It should be OK if you avoid leaving it where the sun can shine on it directly through the glass. If I leave my car in the open on a 45 degree Celsius summer day then I have to put on gloves to hold the steering wheel - that couldn't be good for any electronic equipment.

[wolver]

If it is not in direct sunlight it will not hurt your equipment, but you will end up with a higher noise level in your photos if using the camera when it is extremely warm.

[v.anisimov]

What Geoff said ("...Put it in its bag, then either in the boot or on the floor..."

 

I think the boot is generally cooler. You can also pur your camera bag in another bigger bag. Zip it up to prevent air circulation. This should keep your camera relatively cool for a few hours.

[emwalker]

I highly recommend not cooling your camera with the blue things, even with the divider. If you pull it out on a hot day and it's a lot cooler than the ambient temperature, you run the risk of condensation inside and outside the camera, definitely not good. I second the 'boot' idea (that's the trunk around here I think.)

[pjmeade]

Hello George, when they get hot, your LCDs will go opaque and will need to cool down before use.

 

If you are not going to use it, why have it with you? If you live in an area where you can leave something in a car and have a reasonable expectation of still owning it when you return, you're lucky. In the UK, no one leaves anything in cars.

[PuppyDigs]

The camera can probably take the heat better than the lenses. The lens optics are often

compound elements cemented together. I imagine the heat could damage the optical

adhesives more easily than electronics.

[gary_ferguson1]

"The camera can probably take the heat better than the lenses"

 

I'm not sure this applies with a digital camera, heat equals noise in the digital world.

[mark u]

While travelling it's better to have the camera in with you in the AC, rather than in the trunk without. Park in the shade when you stop, and try not to let too much cool air escape when you get out. Use reflector panels in the windows to minimise heating if you can't find shade. Don't put the camera in the glovebox, which often gets overheated - under a seat is good (cool air falls, hot air rises). Avoid sudden big temperature changes to minimise the risk of condensation.

[dave_nelson___atlanta__ga]

I second the recommendation of just keeping your equiptment in a good bag, or a bag in a bag. That has worked for me for the last couple of years in Atlanta, GA where it is going to be in the mid-80's today the 14th of April.

 

I have thought about using a large cooler to hold the camera bag, without any blue-thingy or other means of cooling. It is my understanding that camera equiptment is able to withstand high temperatures, but that qucik temperature changes can cause big problems.

 

This has become less of a problem for me in a larger vehicle (Honda Element) where the camera is not in a small space. I also think having a lighter colored car makes a difference.

[will_perlis]

In the (trunk)(boot) in a foam cooler. A $14.95 thermometer from Radio Shack or the equivalent, and a few quick tests in sun and shade will convince you.

 

In the cab is the worst place, the greenhouse effect is called that for good reason, as any number of dead pets and children have demonstrated

 

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2261630

 

And get a white vehicle. ;)

[george_prescott]

Thanks for the feedback. To answer Peter's question, there are occasionally times where I might want to go straight from work to taking pictures without stopping home first to pick up my camera, which would mean leaving the camera in the car all day. Luckily, where I work security is not a problem. And of course there are other occasions where a camera may have to be left in a car for a while. I've always been a fanatic about not leaving a camera in a car (when I travel the camera stays in the AC with me), but I don't want to be one of those people that babies their equipment so much that they end up not using it! I'll take some temperature measurements before I do anything. Thanks!

 

George

[KenPapai]

Las Vegas, July 2005, 116 degrees (in the shade)... 'nuff said. EOS DSLRs work *very well* in that combo, definitely exceeding Canon's official temperature tolerances.

[JeffOwen]

I forgot and left my 20D on a table in the sun (UK Summer) for a few hours last year and the back was almost too hot to touch when I picked it up. The next day the LCD screen failed and had to be sent back to Canon for repair. Coincidence? I don't know.

[john v.]

The best way I've found to keep things cool in a hot car without using ice is to put things on the backseat floor and then cover with a blanket or several large towels. I've successfully kept a 12-pack of beer reasonably cool this way for up to eight hours in the summer sun. If it works for beer, it should work for a camera.

[steve_dunn2]

<p>Keep in mind, too, that the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_ion#Storage_Temperature_and_Charge" target="_blank">lifetime of a Li-ion battery is severely reduced if you store it in a hot place</a>. By lifetime, I don't mean how many shots you get before you have to recharge it; I mean how long it lasts before it will no longer hold a charge and you need to buy a new one.</p>

[whwhitejr]

This year at a week long air-show I kept my two 20D's + most of my lenses in the trunk in tool suitcases (pluck foam type) $25 at Lowes. I accesses them all day some days other days I only opened the trunk a couple of times. They were always about outside tempture to the touch never hot in the day time or cold at night. These cases are cheep,tough and protect your gear. When you grab your cases you have every thing with you. They will hold a body and a few lenses depending how big the lenses are plus a flash (550ex). See the picture it is my first case but it will give you some idea of what they will hold. I have been using them for about 4years. Check them out, Bill<div></div>

[PuppyDigs]

"I'm not sure this applies with a digital camera, heat equals noise in the digital world."

 

I though we were talking about physical damage not performance. Nonetheless, it will cool

down in 10 minutes so not to worry. I often shoot in the topical sun of Hawaii, leaving the

camera on tripod for hours during big wave season. It gets so hot it's uncomfortable to touch

but seems to work fine. Of course I'n using ISO 100 usually.

[ratface1]

I took my 10D into a BURNING BUILDING while in full-fireman gear, and it works fine. It was in there quite some time and came out with no problems, other than the paint melting off parts of the frame.

 

Unless it's in your car for many hours, and I mean 5+, I can't imagine the heat affecting your camera. Leave the window open a crack, and leave it in a shady area.

[thomas_sullivan]

is there a particular reason why you can't bring it into work with you? I have gone into actual secure areas and as long as you declare it and leave it with the guard there is no problem. If it's just company policy, there is somebody in charge of that....talk to them about securing, locking up, the camera to ensure you don't take pics at the work place.

 

It's a shame 9/11 killed all the bus depot lockers......they were always a safe bet for securing valuables when roaming around doing other things........and in my younger days, only a quarter for the whole day.

 

I personally wouldn't leave it in a car all day. A friend of mine use to have a thermometer in his car.....when it was in the 90's F outside, even with a window cracked a bit, it was in the 130-140 range inside the car by the end of a work day.

[thomas_sullivan]

bill white.....$25 at Lowe's?....damn, that's really a nice case for that price. Have to check it out....still don't know about even those in a car all day, but they sure look good for travel for the "extra" stuff you don't have in the carry-on cam bag