maintenance

[Jasoncassanova]

i live here in the tropical country of the Philippines, rain or shine we dive. which brings me to this idea, i have all my gear in one wheeled plastic crate box, would it be better if i put silica gel inside to avoid moisture? is it also okay to spray wd-40 to snap bolts and anything that is prone to rust over time, like for example the metal part of my jet fins?

what do you guys think?

 

[emoreira]

I would avoid WD40 for the metal parts. I would recomend instead coat them with silicone grease. This gave me excellent results for my dive knife for example.

 

[rcs9250]

As always a good thorough rinse or soak is the best thing you can do. Especially your second stage interior. We see some really great scum inside regs.
The buckles on your jets are chrome plated brass. They won't rust but could start corroding where the pin is riveted onto the U shaped part.
As far as the bolt snaps , a good rinse, and if you wanted to go to the trouble blow it off in the area of the moving parts with the nozzles that connect up to the BCD QD.
Or just flip it off with a good snap of the wrist. The good bolt snaps use stainless springs. Just depends what yours are. A little silicone spray sure would not hurt it though.
Don't leave your wet gear locked up inside the box, it will mildew and smell ripe. I know in humid environments it's a challenge. Move to the Great Lakes region in the US to avoid that. We have super wrecks to dive.

 

[Jasoncassanova]

I would avoid WD40 for the metal parts. I would recomend instead coat them with silicone grease. This gave me excellent results for my dive knife for example.

first time i've heard of these, well i'll look it up, thanks

 

[Jasoncassanova]

As always a good thorough rinse or soak is the best thing you can do. Especially your second stage interior. We see some really great scum inside regs.
The buckles on your jet are chrome plated brass. They won't rust but could start corroding where the pin is riveted onto the U shaped part.
As far as the bolt snaps , a good rinse and if you wanted to go to ther trouble blow it off in the area of the moving parts with the nozzles that connect up to the BCD QD.
Or just flip it off. The good bolt snaps use stainless springs. Just depends what yours are. A little silicone spray sure would not hurt it though.
Don't leave your wet gear locked up inside the box, it will mildew and smell ripe. I know in humid environments it's a challenge. Move to the Great Lakes region in the US to avoid that. We have super wrecks to dive.

moving to the great lakes region sure is a better alternative in maintaining gear

 

[knowone]

WD-40 stinks, grease and spray gets on everything and attracts dirt and sand. Drill some holes in your box and spread some newspaper on the bottom with a grate on top so there is no contact between gear and paper.

 

[emoreira]

grease and spray gets on everything and attracts dirt and sand.

Well, right, but after each dive, I rinse everything in fresh water, dry for a day, apply silicone grease where required and store the parts in nylon bags to protect from air, dust and light.
If diving from beach, silicone grease can get sand, so should be taken care.

 

[knowone]

I thought you went diving with all your new gear.

 

[Jasoncassanova]

I just found out from a friend that he uses silicone grease for rubber, on door sidings and other parts of the car, he says it prevents the rubber from being brittle, i guess this will be good on my jets huh?