I think I have been "had" just a bit

So I got a used scuba tank that had just been hydro'd and Visual within the past couple weeks. The only thing was it was made is 84, other then that it was a good deal and in great condition

Well, I took it a dive shop to have it filled and the guy told me they wouldn't fill tanks made before 88' because of some material in the tank that they have heard of issues with. OK fair enough, I wanted to say whats the point of hydro then, but I quickly took my tank to the next shop and the last shop lost my business.

Well when I got there, I asked them if they would fill a tank made before 88', and they said probably not. They checked out my tank and said they would in fact fill it, but it would need to have another Visual Inspection, they said because they didn't trust the other agency.

I thought, ok, whatever I need this thing filled, so when I came back to pick up the tank, I assumed it passed the visual because they filled it for me.

I really wanted to ask the guy "You essentially just charged me for something that I already knew"

Especially since they didn't even put some sort of visual inspection sticker on it...

Anyways, has anyone heard of this, or was I just taken advantage of a little

I take it that your tank is aluminum. If you do a search for old aluminum tanks there are several threads which address the issue. What it comes down to, is back in the early 80's there were some tanks being made from an aluminum alloy that is not as strong as the one currently used. This alloy is know to have problems with developing cracks in some of the tanks. As long as you keep it inspected and aren't making a habit of overfilling it, the tank should be just fine to use. Some shops choose to not fill these tanks because they fear the tank will fail.

There was no real need for your LDS to do an additional inspection. I hope they didn't charge you much to do it. I would suggest that you continue to take your tank to the shop and keep getting it filled there and be glad that the tank passed their VIS.

they probably ran an eddy current test on it for you; and yes depending on the bottle, mfg. and mfg dates this would be required.

MichaelRyanSd:

Well when I got there, I asked them if they would fill a tank made before 88', and they said probably not. They checked out my tank and said they would in fact fill it, but it would need to have another Visual Inspection, they said because they didn't trust the other agency.

I thought, ok, whatever I need this thing filled, so when I came back to pick up the tank, I assumed it passed the visual because they filled it for me.

I really wanted to ask the guy "You essentially just charged me for something that I already knew"

Anyways, has anyone heard of this, or was I just taken advantage of a little

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Yes, you've been 'had'. If there was a genuine concern, they would have asked for a new hydro, or simply declined to fill it, AT ALL. At least the first shop did that. This is nonsense.

The first shop has lost your business, although I might be inclined to give them another chance as a customer. If they declined to fill it, told you why, and didn't charge you anything, I would commend them for being straightforward. You should 'lose' the second business / shop, however. They are either idiots or charlatans. Two lessons: 1) why buy an AL tank made before 1990, unless it was free? They are pretty cheap to begin with and if you paid more than $0.00 you were had on the tank as well. 2) Ask the question on SB before agreeing to pay suspicious charges like this one.

I realize I may sound harsh about this, but my annoyance is directed at the second shop, not at you.

Yeah it was only 15.00$, so it didn't break the bank, and likewise, the first shop didn't lose my business all together, I meant just for that day.

I had heard of the problem with the older tanks, but I figured since it has been hydro'd within the last month, it should be good to go...

It is up to the individual shop to determine if they will fill the tank or not. If the first shop declined, it's well within their right. As for the second shop, anyone can throw a VIP sticker on a tank, I've heard of tanks that were VIPed then sent to Hydro, passed Hydro but the pressure caused a hairline crack in one of the said tanks necks but based on the 1st inspection a VIP sticker was slapped on it. Lesson learned, each shop is different, and has their own procedures and discretions. In the future you now have the comfort that shop 2 will fill your tanks without question.

MichaelRyanSd:

Yeah it was only 15.00$, so it didn't break the bank, and likewise, the first shop didn't lose my business all together, I meant just for that day.

I had heard of the problem with the older tanks, but I figured since it has been hydro'd within the last month, it should be good to go...

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If they did a visual inspection you should insist they put their sticker on it. Otherwise the next the next time you go in there the next tank monkey will refuse to honor the other shop's vis sticker and you'll pay another $15

...there are so many 'issues' with those 'old' AL tanks that the original manufacturer even had a trade-in program designed to get them out of circulation ASAP. Honestly, that $ 15 purchase price was still $ 15 too much...maybe you can take it in for recycling...it's probably worth that much as scrap aluminum. This tank will always have a shadow hanging over it, and will be an ongoing source of headache/frustration....too many dives shops have blacklisted these tanks and life is way too short to screw with all that....do you REALLY need THIS tank THAT bad ?

These tanks can pass the hydro even if they have the sustained load cracks in them, i know this because i have done it, two years ago the shop i work for stopped doing anything with these tanks from filling, visuals, and hydros, we even offered a 50 dollar trade in credit towards a new tank to get these tanks off of the market. Before we stopped testing the tanks i had one in the shop in for a hydro, it failed as soon as i opened it as the threads had cracks in them, because it was the only tank in for hydro that week i decided to do the hydro anyways and guess what , it passed the test just fine, however it went in the book as a failure due to cracks. Also did this tank have VE stamped after the hydro, if it did not then the place that did the hydro is not following the new procedures for testing.

The second shop was following protocol by doing a vip on a tank that you brought in empty, but if you pay for a vip then it should have their sticker....