Live aboards & Equipment Care

tstormdiver · Jul 2, 2006

This is probably an obviously simple question to answer. I have seen some live aboards say that you put your BC on the tank, dive, & then only remove the regulator for a tank refill. No fuss, no muss. Like most divers I have invested a small fortune in my equipment and don't want to ruin it. I will be going on a one week live aboard that states this procedure. My question come from the fact that most BC manufacturers very strongly suggest that you rinse your BC inside & out after saltwater diving, because the salt crystals can damage the bladder, and can form within an hour or two of diving. How has anyone handled this situation? Do you leave the BC on the tank? Or take it off, rinse it out, & replace it? I realize I will be doing multiple dives daily, but I won't be doing it 24/7. I want to enjoy my diving to the most, but don't want to ruin my equipment.

cinder4320 · Jul 2, 2006

In the long term you should rinse your gear before storing it but one week isn't going to hurt it. Make sure you clean it well when you get home.

Miranda

mike_s · Jul 2, 2006

the salt crystals mostly form as the BC dries out. On a live aboard, your BC won't get a chance to dry much.

At the end of the day if you wanted to give your regulator a light rinsing it wouldn't hurt it, but you'll find that most folks won't do that until the last day when they pack up their gear to take home.

vladimir · Jul 2, 2006

You won't ruin your gear. Mine has survived 8 liveaboards with no mid-voyage maintenance and is none the worse for it.

tstormdiver · Jul 2, 2006

Thank you, very much for your replies. Since I have been certified & gotten my own equipment, I have done 99.9% of my diving in fresh water, so the saltwater is not an issue that I have had to deal with. This is a big weight off my mind.

Allison Finch · Jul 2, 2006

Where are you going? You will LOVE salt water. As a person who spends a month at a time on liveaboards, I worry little about this. I will take my BC off after the end of a week to dump any water inside and will give it a light rinsing, but the rinsing is not necessary. The deck crew will, usually, hose down the gear at the end of a dive day to rinse salt off the outside of the gear as it dries. Other than that, no worries.
After the last dive, disassemble gear and clean well. Hang it all over the boat to dry well. Do it again when you get home.
Other than that.....Just ENJOY!!

bennedc · Jul 2, 2006

Did Blackbeards for a week and had no problems with my gear. We gave it a good dunk in freshwater at the end of the week and cleaned it well when we got home, the way we normally clean our gear. Had no problems with it.

tstormdiver · Jul 3, 2006

I am going on a Blackbeards cruise in Sept. I got in 2 quick ocean dives last Nov. while on a large cruise ship, but had no gear of my own at the time. Living in KY, except for that cruise, I have dove exclusively in old quarries. I have recently completed my 25th dive since certification, and still consider myself very much the novice. Except for dealing with currents & the shear size of the ocean, I figure that if I can get used to diving in cold, murky quarries, the Caribbean should be much easier. bennedc- I have read your reports on your Blackbeard's cruise, and found it to be extemely informative- thank you, thank you, thank you! Any other suggestions? This will be my 1st live aboard cruise.

adrisen · Jul 6, 2006

I did a Blackbeards cruise in Feb 06 and had a great time. I was not concerned with the gear being rinsed. I rinsed what I could when we got bact to the dock the night before we got off the boat to head home. When I got home I rinsed out everything, I still did some diving while I was in the US. When I got back to Toronto I had the LDS clean out everything properly for me.

Live aboards & Equipment Care

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