Gear left in freezing temps?

Digger54 · Dec 4, 2006

A week ago I hung my rinsed out gear to dry in the garage including BC, regs and gauges.

The stuff was out there for several days at above freezing temps and surely got pretty dry during that time, but last night the outdoor temps got to the upper teens.

It is possible that the gear could have been exposed to freezing temps in the garage (but I don't really think it got that cold there).

There was certainly a little moisture in the BC bladder, but not pools of water, since I carefully drained it. It's possible there could have been a little water remaining in the nooks and crannies of the reg and other parts.

Do you think there's any real likelyhood of damage from minute amounts of moisture in this gear getting frozen?

If so is it an adequate test to hook up a tank, pressurize everything and just make sure inflator valves, regs, dump valves work o.k.?

Thanks.

UWupnorth · Dec 4, 2006

So far I haven't had any serrious problems with any of my gear after having been frozen. Last week I did a pool session and left my gear in the trunk and it got down below zero. the next night when I webt back to the pool again I had to put the reg and bc in the pool to thaw, but it all worked fine after aboit five min.

Green_Manelishi · Dec 4, 2006

During the winter I routinely let of some of my rinsed gear "freeze dry" in my garage. Not the regs or instruments but fins, masks, knife, wing, backplate, lift bags, reels, etc. even my drysuits. So far I've not had a problem.

Divedoggie · Dec 12, 2006

A modern regulator has a fail safe design which would cause it to free flow if a valve were stuck open. Your gauges are sealed with O-rings. Your wet suit or drysuit should be fine. Inflate you BC and make sure it holds air and the inflator and deflator work properly. Also check the dump valves. There really isn't any equipment that should be adversely effected by cold.
We occassionally leave gear in the van overnight in below zero conditions. Sometimes the weights all freeze together into a 200lb pile, and then there is a problem!
We also do plenty of dives in 60 degree water, and then come out for an hour or two surface interval in 18 degree weather, and then back into the water. Never a problem.

Boogie711 · Dec 12, 2006

If being below freezing was bad for gear, how do you think Canadians would dive other than in July?

ClevelandDiver · Dec 12, 2006

Bring the regs inside.

I have had simultaneous free flow problems on 2 cold water regs with environmental seals that were kept in the garage. One litterally iced over when I turned it on.

Granted, it was below freezing air temp at the dive site, but none of my buddies regs (stored inside) had the problem.

Oddly enough, my reg without the environmental seal (also stored in the garage) did not free flow. But it now gets to go inside with the others after a dive, just in case.

Oh yeah, my one buddy stores his inside because he had the same thing happen to him last winter. I guess I just had to experience it first hand to learn the lesson.

Boogie711 · Dec 12, 2006

Granted, it was below freezing air temp at the dive site...

There's a big difference between the vagaries of USING frozen gear versus whether or not it's bad for them. For example, the first rule any ice diver learns - never breathe a reg above water.

Thalassamania · Dec 12, 2006

Boogie711:
For example, the first rule any ice diver learns - never breathe into a reg above water. The water vapor in your breath can cause the diaphragm to freeze open.

The reason that you do not breathe before getting into the water has nothing to do with water vapor in your breath, or for that matter with your second stage.

When you take a breath there is a pressure drop at the regulator first stage from full tank pressure down to about 150 psi. This drop causes cooling of the regulator body. When the regulator first stage is then immersed, ice instantly forms. Ice continues to grow until the regulator body reaches the same temperature as the water, which may never occur since there is additional cooling with each breath. As ice forms in the regulator it expands (larger volume than the liquid water) and forces the first stage open. This is what causes the second stage to free flow.

If, on the other hand, you wait until the first stage is in that water, the regulator starts out at water temp (close to zero C) which is often warmer than the air and the water warms (hard to think of water that cold as warming) the regulator and keeps it from forming ice inside.

Boogie711 · Dec 12, 2006

Thalassamania:
The reason that you do not breathe before getting into the water has nothing to do with water vapor in your breath, or for that matter with your second stage.

When you take a breath there is a pressure drop at the regulator first stage from full tank pressure down to about 150 psi. This drop causes cooling of the regulator body. When the regulator first stage is then immersed, ice instantly forms. Ice continues to grow until the regulator body reaches the same temperature as the water, which may never occur since there is additional cooling with each breath. As ice forms in the regulator it expands (larger volume than the liquid water) and forces the first stage open. This is what causes the second stage to free flow.

If, on the other hand, you wait until the first stage is in that water, the regulator starts out at water temp (close to zero C) which is often warmer than the air and the water warms (hard to think of water that cold as warming) the regulator and keeps it from forming ice inside.

Darnit - I knew that too. This is why I shouldn't ever post before my 2nd cup of coffee. Thanks Thal...

Thalassamania · Dec 12, 2006

Boogie711:
Darnit - I knew that too. This is why I shouldn't ever post before my 2nd cup of coffee. Thanks Thal...

I have that problem often and it usually takes more than a second cup of coffee.<G>

Gear left in freezing temps?

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