A borescope is an optical inspection instrument with a long, slim probe that is passed through a small opening to look inside equipment or structures that cannot be seen directly, such as engine cylinders, turbine stages, gearboxes, pipes, wall cavities and castings. A light source at the tip illuminates the area and an eyepiece, camera or screen shows the image, so defects can be found without dismantling the equipment.

Borescope is the general term for any industrial instrument inserted through an opening to inspect a hidden space. A videoscope is a borescope with a miniature camera at the tip that sends a digital image to a screen, so it can record photos and video and usually steer its tip. Endoscope is the medical term for the same idea, but some manufacturers such as Wöhler also call their industrial inspection cameras video endoscopes. In industrial use the three words often describe the same type of instrument.

Choose by job. For occasional checks in walls, ducts, vehicles and machinery, a handheld Extech or Wöhler borescope is usually enough. For regular engine, turbine, gearbox or heat-exchanger inspection where you must steer around corners and document findings, choose an articulating videoscope such as the 4-way articulating borescope or an Olympus IPLEX. For drains, sewers and long pipe runs, choose a push-rod pipe camera such as the 30 m Bor-GT30 or 100 m Bor-GT100. For very long reach through bends, the Olympus IPLEX GAir offers an 8.5 mm tube in 20 m or 30 m lengths.

Measure the smallest opening the probe must pass through and choose a probe that is clearly smaller than it. Then measure the distance from the access point to the furthest point you need to see and add a margin for bends. As a guide, Olympus IPLEX G Lite and GX/GT tubes come in 4.0 mm or 6.0 mm diameters, with 6.0 mm tubes available up to 10 m; the IPLEX GAir uses an 8.5 mm tube in 20 m or 30 m; and the Bor-GT pipe cameras use a 23 mm head on a 7 mm push cable in 30 m or 100 m lengths.

An articulating borescope lets you bend the camera tip from the handset to look sideways or backwards once the probe is inside. A 2-way scope bends in one plane, while a 4-way scope bends up, down, left and right, so it can point in any direction without twisting the whole probe. You need articulation when the defect may be on a side wall or behind a component, for example on turbine blades, gear teeth or tube sheets. For straight pipes and simple cavities a non-articulating camera is usually enough.

Yes, but a push-rod pipe inspection camera is the right tool for that job rather than a slim engine borescope. The Bor-GT30 has a 30 m, 7 mm fibreglass push cable for building drains and shorter runs, while the Bor-GT100 has a 100 m cable, a self-levelling camera head that keeps the image upright, an IP68 rating and a built-in 512 Hz transmitter so a locator (optional accessory) can find the head from above ground. See the industrial borescope page for the full comparison.

Olympus offers the IPLEX G Lite-W specifically for wind turbine inspection. It uses a 4.0 mm insertion tube with a sealed, oil-clearing tip adapter, an oil-resistant tube coating and forward-view optics with a 120° field of view, in a handheld unit light enough to carry up the tower. See the Olympus IPLEX page for the full comparison.

Professional videoscopes can. Every Olympus IPLEX G Lite includes scaler measurement, which sizes a defect against a reference of known length in the image, and stereo measurement is an optional upgrade on the G Lite for distance, depth and area. Basic handheld borescopes show and record the defect but do not measure it.

It depends on the model. The Olympus IPLEX G Lite and GX/GT main units are rated IP65, and their insertion tubes can be used underwater with a viewing tip adaptor fitted, to about 3.5 m depth for 4.0 mm tubes and about 10 m for 6.0 mm tubes. The Bor-GT100 pipe camera is rated IP68 and the Wöhler VE 400 is rated IP67. Always check the rating of the probe and the handset separately.

Yes. Olympus moved its industrial inspection business into Evident in 2022, and in 2025 Wabtec completed its acquisition of Evident’s Inspection Technologies division. The IPLEX G Lite, GX/GT and GAir are now sold under the Evident name, but most buyers still search for them as Olympus IPLEX. Ecotao supplies them across South Africa and neighbouring countries.

Prices range widely, from compact handheld borescopes to professional articulating videoscopes, and depend on probe diameter, length, articulation and accessories. Check current pricing and stock on the Ecotao store or contact Ecotao on +27 21 911 5835 or sales@ecotao.co.za for a quotation on the configuration you need.

Yes. Ecotao supplies borescopes and videoscopes from its Cape Town base to customers throughout South Africa, including Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, the Eastern Cape and the Northern Cape, and to Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Lesotho and Eswatini.