Wing Drainage to Save You or your Crew's Back

[CuzzA]

Whether you're climbing the ladder or pulling the rig up over the gunwale, the less water in your wing the lighter it is going to be. And if you're properly weighted, your bladder is nearly empty at the end of a dive which means the wing is likely full of a gallon or two of water. That's 8.5 to 17 lbs.

My DiveRite wing has just two small drainage grommets, and noticeably full of water when my rig hits the deck. These appear to be 316 stainless steel since there's no signs of rust. I couldn't find any 316 grommets nor did I want to take the bladder out to avoid the risk of puncturing it using blunt conventional grommet installation methods.

So I found these plastic snap grommets that go together with a good amount of thumb force. One review showed a tarp cover beat to hell by a storm, yet the grommets held. That was good enough for me. $5 and Prime was also good enough.

So now I have lots of wing drainage.

 

[happy-diver]

and some really funny ideas

 

[CuzzA]

I will add that if I were manufacturing the perfect wing, I'd use mesh on the bottom. Most likely the same mesh used for lift bag sleeves.

 

[JMBL]

Would it be possible to have the exact link to the gromets in a PM, please ? One of the stainless steel gromets on my DR Rec Exp just disappeared recently after years of service and I fear the fabric of the wing will tear but I can't find any replacement easy to fit to the wing.

 

[BoltSnap]

How did you force the grommet through the fabric, thumb force or is there a tool for that?

 

[happy-diver]

Some manufacturers did that with a coarse coated fibreglass mesh that deteriorated

So you lift plastic snap grommets from the text, you look and by magic, you get this

Server Busy

after this

plastic snap grommets - Google Suche

www.google.com

Currently I'm pushing a few of these

and moving some of my own excess water around

Builds extra strength enabling me to lift all the excess wing water over the gunwales even with doubles

 

[BoltSnap]

Would it be possible to have the exact link to the gromets in a PM, please ? One of the stainless steel gromets on my DR Rec Exp just disappeared recently after years of service and I fear the fabric of the wing will tear but I can't find any replacement easy to fit to the wing.

I think this one:

asy Gardener 70035, Snap Grommets, Sun Screen Accessory, 10 Pieces

 

[-JD-]

When climbing the ladder, I pause for just that reason - so I don't bring buckets of water on deck.

Unfortunately, seems to annoy the folks still in the water ...

 

[CuzzA]

I think this one:

asy Gardener 70035, Snap Grommets, Sun Screen Accessory, 10 Pieces

That's them. I just used scissors to cut the holes and hit them with a quick torch to melt the cut edge. Pinch the fabric and cut a half circle. It doesn't need to be perfect. About a 1/2".

 

[johndiver999]

Rigging your gear with DIY solutions that involve non diving related products is dangerous.


I would have just popped a few more holes with a red hot phillips head.