Clean mold from equipment?

[divebrasil]

Everything looked dry after many days out and hanging but unfortunately I found the entire box of gear with mold. I will get regs and BC properly serviced, but what's the best way to clean other parts such as mask, snorkel, fins, etc...? My wetsuits were not in the box.

I heard everything from just using warm soapy water, to using vinegar, sporicidin and steramine.

- Yes, next time I will be certain everything is dry before putting box, and will also keep dehumidifier in the box.
- It's mold, not salt or something else

Thank you

 

[tbone1004]

Pretty much everything can go through the dischwasher. Mask/fins/etc.

If regs were not sealed in there you may need to get new hoses for everything since they aren't cleaned during service and it may be inside the hoses....

 

[TMHeimer]

Just curious why you put it in a box and close the box?

 

[Fibonacci]

Hmm... nasty!
I'd recommend a Steramine soak in warm water, rinse followed by a scrub with a soft bristle bush using an anti-bacterial soap or detergent to physically dislodge some of the more tenacious mouldy residue, then rinse again..
Then dry in strong sunlight to hope the UV kills off any remaining bugs

 

[Boarderguy]

Moisture inside your BC bladder and pockets is probably what got you. Disconnect the corrugated hose and dump valves next time and leave to dry for a week or two before boxing or storing in an enclosed space. Mine live in a spare closet with corrugated hoses and valves disconnected when not in use. I also flush my bladder after each use so everything is removed anyways.

Get new hoses including your corrugated. That will be maybe $100 from DGX. Get regs fully serviced. Dishwasher for anything else after scrubbing with hot water and mild detergent.

 

[johndiver999]

Scrub it with Tide detergent, nylon brush and a weak bleach solution. I would not expect contamination of the inside of the hoses. If you are worried, remove a second stage, stick a Q tip in there and see if it comes out dirty. After scrubbing, an overnight soak in a VERY weak bleach solution or some pool water. Then soak in fresh water and hose down. Probably not a big deal.

 

[Blackcrusader]

We had a thread on cleaning BCD here

BCD CLEANER

Diving with a friend in Bali soon and we were discussing our preparations of our dive equipment. As many of you know I like to clean my BCD bladder in case I may need to use it for redundancy features as well as basic maintenance. My dive buddy bought this in the UK...

scubaboard.com

 

[divebrasil]

Thanks everyone. I ended up using first soapy water with mild detergent. Then used diluted bleach 1:50 as recommended by Dan. Then rinsed with water. Hopefully will take care of it.

 

[divebrasil]

Just curious why you put it in a box and close the box?

That's how I always stored my gear. I thought after many days hanging and drying it was fully dry. What I can do is put Damp-rid inside next time. I only use it once a year at best, need to store somehow.

 

[Boarderguy]

That's how I always stored my gear. I thought after many days hanging and drying it was fully dry. What I can do is put Damp-rid inside next time. I only use it once a year at best, need to store somehow.

Dry rid AND remove the dump valves and hose from your BC. Prop open the pockets on your BC and give it a few weeks to fully dry out.