Olympus Housings

When digital cameras first came out, there was no way to use these "digicams" underwater except for a few custom made housings. Olympus was one of the first manufacturers to come out with a series of very affordable, inexpensive housings for their line of popular consumer digital cameras. What more could you ask for? Lightweight, easy to use, and to repeat, very affordable! In Japan, Olympus is the most frequently seen digital camera and housing combination.

Current Olympus Housing Models

U.S. Camera Model No.	Japan / Europe Model No.	Housing Model No.
C-50 Zoom	X-2	PT-014
Stylus Digital 300, 400	u Digital (myu)	PT-016
D-560, D-565	X-250, X-200	PT-017
C-740/C-750 Ultra Zoom,	C-740/C-750 Ultra Zoom	PT-018
C5000	C-5000 Zoom	PT-019
C5060	C-5060 Wide Zoom	PT-020
D-575, D-580	X-350	PT-021
C-765, C-770	C-765/C-770 Ultra Zoom	PT-022
C-8080 Wide Zoom	C-8080 Wide Zoom	PT-023
C-60 Zoom	X-3	PT-024

Olympus Housing Specifications

The housing material for the Olympus series of housings is clear, transparent polycarbonate. This is good for checking to see if there are any leaks because you have a direct visual of the camera inside the housing. The fastener and grip are made of colored polycarbonate. Each housing has its own different color for the handles. For example, the PT-015 has red handles while the previous PT-010 has purple handles. Hardware is brass-nickel plated. The cover glass is FL optical glass. The protective rubber seal is Sorbothane.

Most of the housings are rated for 30 meters/100 feet, but the newer housings are rated for 40 meters/130 feet.

Older models have black Buna O-rings. The PT-010 and newer housings have silicone O-rings. For example, the PT-010 has yellow O-rings, the PT-015 has red O-rings. The Buna and silicone O-rings use different grease. Be sure to read the warnings about using the proper grease on the Instructions page.

Olympus Housing Quirks

The only noticeable point is the Olympus housings are positively buoyant. This is probably due to two reasons. First of all, a lot of underwater equipment is normally positively buoyant. If you let go of a negatively buoyant item it will sink in water and will be lost forever in the deep blue. Also, at first, this series of housings was designed for the casual diving, snorkeling, swimming, and skiing markets, so it was made lightweight. Probably, it would have taken a bit more engineering to calculate, design, and manufacture a neutrally buoyant housing taking into consideration the weight of the camera, batteries, and housing material.

This buoyancy problem is solved by adding a counterweight to the housing. The PT-010 housing and later models come with the balance weight included. For previous models, balance weights are available separately. Or, you can simply add your own by mounting an appropriate amount of weight by using a standard tripod screw. A lead bar running along the bottom edge would do the trick, although the Olympus supplied U.N. models are plastic coated. One diver coated his lead weight with tool dip. For reference, the weight of the balance weight for the PT-010 is approximately 320 grams.

Using Ikelite's special tray and handle system for the Olympus PT series housings, the housing/camera/strobe system is slightly negative.

Discontinued Olympus Housing Models

U.S. Camera Model No.	Europe/Japan Model No.	Olympus Housing
D-340L, D-320L	C-840L, C820L/C-420L	PT-001 (splash resistant, 3 m./10 ft.)
D-360L, D240L, D-320L	C860L, C-830L, C-840L, C-820L, C-420L	PT-002 (splash resistant, 3 m./10ft.)
D400Z, D450Z	C-900ZOOM/C-920ZOOM	PT-003 blue handles
C20x0/30x0Z	C20x0/30x0Z	PT-005, PT-005S dark blue handles
D460/D490Zoom	C960Z/C990Z/C990ZS	PT-006 green handles
C20x0/30x0Z	C20x0/30x0Z	PT-007 red handles
Brio 100	C-1	PT-008 purple handles
D510Z	C-200	PT-009
C40x0/C20x0/C30x0Z	C40x0/C20x0/C30x0Z	PT-010 purple handles
Brio 230	C-2	PT-011
D40Z	C-40 Zoom	PT-012 SS latches, 40 meter/130 feet depth rating
Brio Zoom 150	C-1 Zoom	PT-013, 40 meter/130 feet depth rating
C5050	C-5050 Zoom	PT-015, 40 meter/130 feet depth rating

Updated: May 8, 2005