renting regs on vacation

[TommyG74]

Two things come to my mind especially with regs, who used them before, and how well are they actually cleaned! Then you have to ask yourself, has someone pikes in this reg!

 

[Frosty]

my personal experience with rental gear was during my OW and frankly knowing what I know now NEVER AGAIN.
We are heading to Rarotonga for a week at easter and are taqking our own dive gear with us.

 

[BKP]

As common as it is, there's some gear I've never rented, and never will...
People hurl in their regs, pee in the wetsuits, and snot in their masks... I'm sure it's all cleaned, or shampooed... however...

I take *all* my own gear wherever I go... if I can't, I don't dive...

 

[Wolfie]

Here is the list of everything that I would rent.

TANK.

I always check for pressure and smell(taste) at the shop. I also take a peek at the fill station to get a feel of proper maintenance.

 

[tengsr]

Here is the list of everything that I would rent.

TANK.

I always check for pressure and smell(taste) at the shop. I also take a peek at the fill station to get a feel of proper maintenance.

Thats quite an extensive list

 

[retro-steve]

thanks for really good tips so far.

we're actually going to Beaches at T & C. Website has Scubapro regulators included as part of the package. My local LDS has Atomic Zx as their rental regs so haven't feel pressing need to purchase just yet, and was interested in trying some different brands.

Anyone with really bad experiences renting regs? Might help justify to nondiving wife need purchase more gear !!

As I've posted somewhere else I had a bad experience with a rental reg. It was my second dive after being OW certified back in 2007, the jist of it was I was down in Cuba using rental gear, hit the purge under water about 40ft down, reg kept "purging" and didn't stop. It was determined to be improper maintenance as the cause and after that I said I would not dive until I had my own gear. Fast forward to this year where I can finally afford my own gear (no longer a student) and I'm starting from scratch with the OW course again.

I will not dive on another rental reg again, I don't care if it's from a reputable shop who has it serviced every couple months, I feel much better knowing where my reg has been, when it has been serviced and how it has been treated since last service. I also like the reduction in levels of the "blame game" that can be played with your own reg, a fault in the reg is either my fault or the last service tech, not yesterday's renter, the renter before him/her, the shop, the tech, etc... BC did not really matter for me as I was in the learning stage, but I bought one anyways so that I keep my learning consistent. Mask, fins and snorkel everyone will tell you to buy, so no real debate there.

 

[lsorensen]

In contrast, my husband's priority was to get a reg. The rental regs/octos almost always had a slow leak somewhere, and the mouthpieces were always too big.

I bought my own reg because everywhere I have rented from seem to use sherwood brut for rentals. They are reliable and pretty much indestructible, but boy are they awful breathing regs which I really hate. So I now have an XTX200 of my own, and it sure is a lot better breathing at depth. No one ever seems to rent apeks regs. I did use an old metal mares in the pool during my certification once and it was vastly better than the brut.

As for slow leak, well that's a feature of sherwood regulators at least on the first stage. That is how they environmentally "seal" their regs. They call it dry bleed. My wife owns a sherwood blizzard (which I think breathes just about the same as the brut, but at least it tolerates cold water and is reliable), and it has a constant stream of tiny bubbles from the first stage. Nothing significant, but amusing to see.

 

[Mike]

I was following 'first time travelling' thread and didn't want to hijack that thread. The subject came up about renting regs on vacation. I understand there are pro's and con's to owning your own regs. As a newbie just starting out I haven't yet purchased my own and was planning on renting for vacation but taking my own BC.

Are there places I should be concerned about the quality of the rentals, and if so where?

What are you're experiences with renting scuba equipment while on vacation?

Thanks.

safe and fun diving to all.

I'd have to venture that if you took the caribbean as a whole that on any give day at least 75% of the divers going out on a given day will be going diving on rental equipment. No doubt there will be a very large variation based on location and dive op.

A good genral rule of thumb will be the more popular the dive location and the less you choose a dive op based on pricing the better your chances of finding good to great rental gear to use. This has held true for me.

Personally, for me I'd bring my own reg before BC if I had to choose only one.

 

[elan]

I was following 'first time travelling' thread and didn't want to hijack that thread. The subject came up about renting regs on vacation. I understand there are pro's and con's to owning your own regs. As a newbie just starting out I haven't yet purchased my own and was planning on renting for vacation but taking my own BC.

Are there places I should be concerned about the quality of the rentals, and if so where?

What are you're experiences with renting scuba equipment while on vacation?

Thanks.

safe and fun diving to all.

Just the fact that someone might have puked into the reg before made the decision simple for me

 

[Charlie99]

One of my Maui neighbors lives there about 6 months a year. She has all of her own gear except tanks and regulators.

Her attitude is basically "if I can't trust their regulator, then why would I be renting tanks and trusting them to have good air?"

Good point.