Reflective tape on tanks, etc - any pitting, issues?

ChimChim75 · Mar 16, 2009

Hi Guys,

I know several of you have put reflective tape on your gear. Have you seen any tank pitting or encountered other issues with wear and tear?

I just ordered some 3 1/2" x 9" 3M white reflective tape sheets to pop on the back of my (bare aluminum) tanks and maybe on the bottom of my tanks to help visibility.

I'm guessing i have to take it off for VIP in a year, but at $4 shipped for 4 sheets, who cares.

I noticed some Ebay vendors were selling helmet decals that were reflective that might work as well... Pirate skull anyone?

Mahalo!

Blackwood · Mar 16, 2009

No reason I can think of you'd have to take them off for VIP... unless you're putting them inside the tank

My stickers get beat up from exposure and from lying on my truck bed, etc., so I end up replacing them a couple of times a year. When I remove them I give it a nice non-abrasive rubdown to eliminate salt buildup and it's fine. Nothing like what builds up underneath tank bands.

CompuDude · Mar 16, 2009

One tip: Reflective tape is hell on photography... so if you want lots of nice looking photos of yourself underwater, your photographer friends are going to hate that reflective tape. Makes exposure nearly impossible without serious burnout and halos around the tape. That stuff kicks up strobe light like crazy!

k ellis · Mar 17, 2009

I have to agree with Compudude. Refelctive tape would be great for a night dives if you want to be seen at the surface but it comes with the cost of the reflection of light is horrible on photography.

But if you are going to use the reflective for night safety I would recommend trying the 9m Prizmatic tape. Its what we use on our cars and it can be seen for an amazingly long distance.

ssidiv3r · Mar 17, 2009

Hmmm, I've never heard of 9M. I've only ever been able to find 3M and Solas tape but I would like to get some kind of reflective tape for my tank and the top section of my DSMB

Monkey_Gland · Mar 17, 2009

ChimChim75:
Hi Guys,

I know several of you have put reflective tape on your gear.QUOTE]

How do you know? Have you been following us again? I'll have to phone the sheriff again...

My dry suit came with two strips on the arms - every photo I have taken of me looks like I am wearing glowing inflatable arm bands. Which is pretty cool now that I think of it.

k ellis · Mar 17, 2009

Your correct. LOL Our lightbars are 9m and the prizmatic tape is 3m. Its called Prizmatic and comes in a variety of colors. Its bright enough to where some people actually think the tape we use are actually lights in the bumpers when you hit it

jeckyll · Mar 17, 2009

So, the reflective tape's impact on _photography_ is the biggest consideration?

:rofl3:

My current hood has some attached. I'm not really concerned about what it may or may not look like in photos. I'm also not getting paid to model underwated, so I'm ok with it

spectrum · Mar 17, 2009

It's a fact of life that tape or paint will get beat up if you use the tanks. If daytime visibility is the goal yellow paint or tape or even a yellow boot may also be solutions. Tape, stickers and broken paint will promote corrosion, especially in sat water use. There is only so much that rinsing can do.

For the sale of visibility I have targeted other gear such as mask, snorkel, hood, lights and fins as yellow.

There are some interpretations of VIP rules that require the removal of all stickers. If your local shop is one such practitioner then you could be getting the blow dryer out to prep for VIP of shop for another shop.

Pete

dave4868 · Mar 17, 2009

If you find too many drawbacks to putting the reflective directly on the tanks, you could consider what some of our local lobsters divers do....mount the reflective tape to a flexible plastic placard which can be bungied to the tank when needed.

Dave C

Reflective tape on tanks, etc - any pitting, issues?

Please register or login

ChimChim75

Contributor

Blackwood

Contributor

CompuDude

Contributor

k ellis

Contributor

ssidiv3r

Contributor

Monkey_Gland

Contributor

k ellis

Contributor

jeckyll

Contributor

spectrum

Dive Bum Wannabe

dave4868

Old diver

Similar threads