Gear Servicing

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aquaholic24
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Gear Servicing

Post by aquaholic24 »

I was wondering how often you diving folk have your gear (regs, gauges, BCs) serviced. There is so much conflicting information out there, it's hard to know exactly what to do. Or is it safe to assume that as long as it works when we do a safety check at the beginning of a dive, that we shouldn't worry about servicing? (i.e., keep an eye on the condition of our gear ourselves?)

I appreciate any info I can get on this.

Thanks!
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Burntchef
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Re: Gear Servicing

Post by Burntchef »

i do regs every year and try to space them out over a few months so i dont get whacked with a bill for doing 4 sets at once. some people do there own but for me its not worth it, some things are better left to the pros.
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Sounder
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Re: Gear Servicing

Post by Sounder »

Tanks and Regs serviced/pro-inspected once a year. All gear is visually inspected before every dive and bubble-checked by buddy in the at the surface before the dive.

Some regs say you can go 2 years between services, but many people here dive them hard enough that annual (or even more often) is definitely warranted. :salute:
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oregondiver
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Re: Gear Servicing

Post by oregondiver »

If I am diving at least once a month, then I get my regs serviced at least once a year. Note: my regs are 10 years old and still performing beautifully.

If I take a few months off diving, then I might do a pool check before risking losing a dive by going to a dive location only to find out problems.
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Pez7378
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Re: Gear Servicing

Post by Pez7378 »

I (*sniff*) used to (**Sniff sniff**) have my Regs serviced by Dan Warter............................ :crybaby:
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rcontrera
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Re: Gear Servicing

Post by rcontrera »

OK ... here is the skinny!

In the late 70s/early 80s (DANG ... I am really dating myself here!), the diving industry determined that regulators of the day went out of whack every 15-20 dives ... which is about what the average diver did in one year. So, they said to get the reg serviced once a year... PERIOD!

However, those of us that put regs into rentals/instructional inventory where they were being used all the time were told to service them every 25-30 uses ... more often if used in chlorinated pool water.

Now, fast forward to today, you will find that regs have much closer tolerances, much better compounds in the o-rings and hard rubber/plastic parts and far superior chrome jobs so they don't go bad as quickly.

However, in general, many divers today spend less time cleaning their stuff than the "old days" so the possibility of salt buildup is much higher as well.

My suggestion and opinion (which is really worth what you paid for it) ... if you use a solution of Salt-X every time you rinse your gear to break down salts, then get your reg serviced once a year or about every 75 dives ... whichever comes first. If you only rinse in fresh water, then service every year or 50 dives ... whichever comes first. If you are the kind of person that waits until the reg has dried for a day or two before getting around to rinsing then once a year or 20 dives is probably more appropriate.

Now, all that said, if you take your reg to an old time service tech that really knows regulators, he/she will be able to tell you that you should be bringing your reg in more or less often based on what they see. DO WHAT THEY SAY!

On the other hand, if you use a shop monkey that has to sit there with the manual open to find out where that O-ring goes that was in the kit, use my recommendation while you find a better service center.


Just my $.02!
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Pez7378
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Re: Gear Servicing

Post by Pez7378 »

This is very informational Ray thanks! I've got the McNetts stuff for removing salt residue from BC's and such. Is that stuff safe for regulators? I tend to soak my regs in the HOT water thinking that will help to dissolve the salt crystals, and then rinse them afterwards, but I don't do that everytime. Doing over 100 dives a year, you've got me thinking I should be servicing more often.

Where would we find "Salt X" ?
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Re: Gear Servicing

Post by Peter Guy »

I got an email from a friend who is going on a diving trip the end of this month -- he asked the question, should I get my gear serviced since it hadn't been serviced in 2 years, but only a few dives! I replied -- YES -- get everything in ASAP (reg and BC) for service -- and then when you get it back, go dive it before you leave.

IF you are going on that "great trip" it is NOT a bad idea to get your gear serviced before the trip BUT that you do it long enough before so that: a. You get it back in time! and b. You get to dive it to make sure it works (and you have time to get it fixed right -- something that happened to me last year, took two times back to the shop to get a reg properly tuned).
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rcontrera
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Re: Gear Servicing

Post by rcontrera »

Pez7378 wrote:Where would we find "Salt X" ?
Salt-X is stuff that didn't make it in the diving industry because it use words like "miraculous" in their advertising so nobody believed anything else they said. But it was originally developed and used in the charter fishing industry so you may be able to pick up a bottle at the local yachting supply. Or just do a Google and find someone you want to deal with. Amazon had it for $13.95 a quart. Since you mix this stuff 64 to 1, a quart will last a LOOOOONG time!

On tip ... I have an ice chest that I filled up half way with the solution and water. I soak all my regulators, cameras, knives, etc. that may be subject to corrosion. Of course, I make sure to wash the junk off my stuff before dropping into the chest to keep the solution clean longer.

Hope that helps!
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