Avoiding fungus - does refrigerating help?

When you take them out of the refrigerator the moisture will condense inside the lens and it is moisture that helps fungi to grow. Also, it is hard to take interesting pictures while your lenses are in the fridge.

I let my kit dry out outside of the bag when I come back from a walk; that let the condensation clears up, and when that is done they can go back with their little lens friends on the (closed) shelves, with silica gel.

Oh, BTW, filters are awesome moisture traps. Most of the lens I've seen that had science projects growing in were the "filter fitted from day one" kind; so be warned.

Spot on about the humidity. Here in Bombay, what with the high humidity, fungus is something you gotta be careful about, and silica gel is the way to go. Also store the lens in a airtight ziplock bag with silica gel in and you reduce the risk of getting fungus on the lens.

nevilleb

Keep the lens dry ans give it a sunning sometimes. It is said the UV from the sun kills fungus. You might want to take off the UV filter first though

My father's cheapest home make dry box: any regular big wooden box with a 5W light bulb.

Do you worry about your clothes growing mold while in storage? Do your living spaces, closets and cupboards smell musty? Do books mildew on the shelves? If so, you should worry about fungus on your lenses. Otherwise, you're probably OK. Living at around 85-100% humidity, you may have problems, depending on air circulation, but in "normal" humidity conditions, it should be OK.

I've always wondered about this whole fungus thing too. Never had a problem and I don't do anything special with my kit, it just gets stored in the house. Nothing else I own seems to get covered in fungus, so why should my lenses?

I have 2 Toshiba electrical dry box for storing my cameras and lenses. The relative humidity here from March to September can be as high as 90%-100%, Storing cameras and lenses in closet or camera beg can be a recipe for disaster. Whether you need to invest this type of equipment depends on the the local condition.

However, I would never consider to store my photographic equipment into a refrigerator.

i always store my camera inside a pelican case with 3 huge silica gel packs. I live in one of the most humid areas in the country. Haven't had any problems at all... this is from a location that ruined my leather coat in just 3 months