Blow or not to blow

[spectrum]

You have to be kidding.

Why so?

 

[300bar]

I rinse the connection with 1/2 liter of water. Then I try to give it a little time to drip & dry,
before breaking it, DIN or yoke.

I do keep the regulator inlet clear while blowing the dust caps dry. That works a lot better after the salt has been rinsed away.

Pete

Just hope you don't rince without the dust cap

otherwise...you must be joking

 

[paulwlee]

Back in the dark ages when I got certified I was taught to blow some air from the tank to get any water off of my 1st stage valve where it fits against the tank O ring as I was removing it.

Blowing air directly onto a wet first stage inlet is a bad bad idea.
OTOH, drying the dust cap this way works OK without problems if done properly with the first stage inlet facing away from the resulting air flow.

I have to wonder whether blowing air onto the first stage came from people who saw people drying the dust caps and mistook this procedure.

Of course, drying with a dry towel or cloth would be best, but you don't always have a dry towel with you as you disassemble your gear.

 

[Couv]

Blowing air directly onto a wet first stage inlet is a bad bad idea.
OTOH, drying the dust cap this way works OK without problems if done properly with the first stage inlet facing away from the resulting air flow.

I have to wonder whether blowing air onto the first stage came from people who saw people drying the dust caps and mistook this procedure.

Of course, drying with a dry towel or cloth would be best, but you don't always have a dry towel with you as you disassemble your gear.

Ding! Give that man a cigar....right on all counts.

 

[spectrum]

Just hope you don't rince without the dust cap

otherwise...you must be joking

In context all of it is done while mounted to the cylinder and still pressurized. My phrasing of that post may have not been my most eloquent but it's there.

Mounted and pressurized for clean-up at home as well. Especially with my double hose regulator this is likely to include full immersion soaking of the rig in a deep enough barrel.

Pete

 

[spectrum]

You know whats really scarry...I instantly reconized where that photo was taken.

I experienced deja-vu of breakfast at Buddy Dive. Is that it? I don't remember those seat cushions but the rest rings true.

 

[spectrum]

Back in the dark ages when I got certified I was taught to blow some air from the tank to get any water off of my 1st stage valve where it fits against the tank O ring as I was removing it. I recently had my regs looked at and was told that this was a No No because it would force water into my unsealed 1st stage.
Blow or not to blow, that is the question.

The practice you were initially told about involves cracking the tank valve open just as you begin to loosen the yoke screw. Lightly applying airflow as the connection parts is intended to create positive pressure and send any wetness anywhere but into the regulator. The trick is initiating the airflow just in time. If you are too late with the air the water droplets may fall into the connection and if you fire too early the yoke screw will lock up with thrust load. It's also a good way to dislodge a tank o-ring if you don't do it smoothly.

If you must break a wet salty connection and don't have anything to rinse or wipe with it's better than nothing. If you have the knack it works well.

Pete

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Pete has it right, at least according to what I was taught, and the valves of old opened a bit slower than the current crop which seem to let forth an near instant blast of high pressure air, so it was easier then to accomplish without blowing an o-ring out of its seat.

Paulwlee is also correct that I think many divers have over the years also mistaken the action of blowing the dust cap dry with blowing the water off the inlet. Both are in the same general area, and if you do not look close or understand what is being done, you will misunderstand - and probably also fail to observe that most divers who did this, did it with a finger or thumb over the inlet to prevent any stray water from getting blown in there.

Cracking the valve briefly after the reg is put away is still a good idea as it will blow any water out of the valve. It's also a good idea to do this just before a fill to ensure any water in the valve is not blown into the tank. This, rather than the often blamed "breathing a tank dry", is how 90% of the water gets into tanks and the other 10% comes from faulty compressors.

I agree completely that critical thinking as to why something is done is on order and that questioning why it is done is in order if the application of critical thinking cannot produce a reasonable answer. This is preferable to diving as it is practiced by many divers with a certain monkey see monkey do emphasis, often because they are afraid to ask for fear of looking ignorant.

 

[herman]

I experienced deja-vu of breakfast at Buddy Dive. Is that it? I don't remember those seat cushions but the rest rings true.

Yep, that's Buddy Dive....I would even bet it's breakfast time.

 

[Web Monkey]

Yep, that's Buddy Dive....I would even bet it's breakfast time.

Yes it it, and it was.

Those are some of the happiest days I've ever had. Waking up in a nice soft bed, walking down a flight of stairs, right into a freshly-made breakfast overlooking a beautiful light blue ocean.

Wish I was there now, but it's going to have to wait until 2009, since our 2008 vacation is already set and it's not on Bonaire. Oh well.

Terry