Just got a pony bottle shipped to me...

[diverdude74]

That's not right. A compressed air cylinder filled with more than 40.6psi is considered a hazmat, specifically Class 2.2 Non Flammable Gas whether it goes by air or ground.

So does this mean you have a CDL with a Hazmat endorsement an placard your vehicle every time you drive to and from the dive site with your scuba tanks?

 

[zoom5]

So does this mean you have a CDL with a Hazmat endorsement an placard your vehicle every time you drive to and from the dive site with your scuba tanks?

CDL = Commercial Drivers License. A private vehicle is not a commercial vehicle. Different rules apply.

 

[Hanlol]

Look, if you want to preach to this person you've never met, go ahead. It's not your business to enforce DOT regulations. Don't go and ask us to support you.

 

[Splitlip]

Look, if you want to preach to this person you've never met, go ahead. It's not your business to enforce DOT regulations. Don't go and ask us to support you.

Huh?

 

[captain]

CDL = Commercial Drivers License. A private vehicle is not a commercial vehicle. Different rules apply.

Exactly why the logic is false, is a scuba cylinder less likely to be a danger in a private vehicle than in a commercial one. And I don't hear of scuba cylinders causing incidents in either vehicle full or empty.

 

[zoom5]

Exactly why the logic is false, is a scuba cylinder less likely to be a danger in a private vehicle than in a commercial one. And I don't hear of scuba cylinders causing incidents in either vehicle full or empty.

The main idea behind labeling a package as a hazmat is to tell the driver and first responders, should there be an incident, what is in the vehicle that may be harmful. The driver is given a copy of the hazmat shipping papers which are prepared by the sender and the carrier maintains an electronic log of any hazmats in the vehicle. In a passenger vehicle the driver likely knows what is in it. A tractor trailer loaded with two thousand packages is anybody's guess. In addition, hazmat are handled differently to help reduce damage; e.g. loaded below waist level, separate from other hazmat classes, and blocked and braced in the load.

DOT seems to know what a burden it can be to ship a normal everyday item as a hazmat which is why certain items can be shipped as 'Other Regulated Material - Domestic.' Unfortunately, that doesn't apply to scuba cylinder since DOT doesn't differentiate what is inside a compress gas cylinder just whether the pressure is high enough to be considered a hazmat (over 40.6psi) despite how safe they are. Items that can be shipped as ORM-D Ground don't need expensive hazmat shipping just an ORM-D sticker on the side of the box. They are handled the same as normal hazmats but there are no hazmat shipping papers given to the driver since their hazardous properties are seen as being so low. Ammunition, for example, is a Class 1.4S (Explosive) hazmat but in small quantities can be shipped as an ORM-D for no extra charge.