Regulator care and cleaning.

[herman]

Herman ;

dust caps are not engineer with the tolerances of the tanks or made out of a rigged material like metal. they are dust caps.

as I have stated, I have seen the scaring inside the first stage of some customer regs who have a habit of putting on the dust cover and then dunking the regs at the dockside dunk tanks or out home to clean them.

it's a bad habit if not pressurized, it will effect the fist stage and second stage and over time they will need to be replaced.

this has become a religious discussion, so rather than keep ratcheting it up. this is my final post on this thread.

T.


Sent using Tapatalk HD

No need for the connections to be metal for such low pressures...although one of the ones we are talking about is metal...the exact same one, the reg. There are plenty of non metal oring sealed surfaces used in diving....computer batteries, camera housing and lights to name a few. All of those handle much greater pressure differentials. Tolerences are not an issue, the gland in the dust cap is plenty close for such a small pressure differential....I machine that type of seals all the time.

 

[Scared Silly]

dust caps are not engineer (sic) with the tolerances of the tanks or made out of a rigged (sic) material like metal. they are dust caps.

Yeah no kidding, I have never seen a dust cap that had more than a mm or two difference. But I will damned if any my cylinders have that close of tolerance. To whit the guy trying to double up two cylinders and finding approximately 5-10 mm difference in height.

As for rigid materials. The dust cap does not need to made from a rigid material to form a proper seal. To whit a condom, they are quite flexible and form an excellent seal against rigid member not withstanding a modest amount of dynamic pressure. A dust cap is no different and serves the same purpose - keeping liquid from where it does not belong.

I love posts by guys who don't put enough information in there profile to verify there (sic) background or knowledge level.

Edit to add nice profile. Lots of certs, not many dives. That said, I would be more interested in the "Bear" dry suit are you diving. Now would that be a griz suit or the more common black suit. Did ya skin it yourself pilgrim?

​

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcsXC2xFis4

​

 

[Agility]

there are dust caps and there are dust caps.
floppy rubber caps will only keep dust out.
threaded plastic caps with o-rings can be watertight, that can be tested as halocline described. if no air enters the first stage with the dust cap screwed on to the DIN thread then water will not either.

 

[Dr. Lecter]

Ilove posts by guys who don't put enough information in there profile to verify there background or knowledge level.

dust caps will not prevent water from entering the 1st stage. period. water will get into your second stages if not pressurized.

I tend to agree with not trusting dustcaps (my AA regs do have the seat saver gimmick/feature, so keeping pressurized is safest), but I did get a chuckle out of the highlighted part. I mean, 100-199 and a DM...seriously?

As to the OP's question:

I have an out of hydro AL20 that I've stuck a yoke/DIN H-valve on and I transfill around 1000psi into it. After a dive, I take my reg(s) and put them on there and slap them in a tub full of warm water. I take the cave rings off the M1 seconds and gently pull the diaphrams, so getting flow over the valve tube and lever is easy. Soak for a few hours to overnight, swishing the regs occasionally. Stage regs get soaked attached to the O2 clean bottle they were on during the dive.

Unsurprisingly, many of my regs haven't had a full service in years (don't need it) but still look brand new inside.

 

[ams511]

there are dust caps and there are dust caps.

I agree with this 100%. I would never trust a dust cap unless it was tested first. Some are as Herman described, in good shape an o-ring. Some have no o-rings. For example Apeks regs use a ball as a dust cap for the yoke versions. If the balled is scratched up from the dive then it could leak. It depends on what you are using.

Also I with Jim on not using the dip tank at the boat or on the dock unless absolutely necessary. These tanks are an excellent way to spread germs. Do you really want to dip your reg in water where someone could have dipped a peed in wetsuit?

 

[j2s]

If you really care about your gear ie reg's...Get the manuals/schematics (frogkick.com) and a few tools, learn how easy it is to take them apart, thoroughly clean and lubricate if/where necessary and you'll never have to worry about whether they'll work or if an LDS did the job correctly....Even if you're an infrequent diver.....The understanding of your gear (and the cost of a few tools) will make you a better diver.....Just don't let your friends know you know how.....They'll be coming over to use your tools and/or asking you to fix their 'stuff'........'Dive Groupies'.......they're every where !!!! ;P......

 

[EL Pistoffo]

If you really care about your gear ie reg's...Get the manuals/schematics (frogkick.com) and a few tools,

Is that site correct?

 

[kelemvor]

If you really care about your gear ie reg's...Get the manuals/schematics (frogkick.com) and a few tools, learn how easy it is to take them apart, thoroughly clean and lubricate if/where necessary and you'll never have to worry about whether they'll work or if an LDS did the job correctly....Even if you're an infrequent diver.....The understanding of your gear (and the cost of a few tools) will make you a better diver.....Just don't let your friends know you know how.....They'll be coming over to use your tools and/or asking you to fix their 'stuff'........'Dive Groupies'.......they're every where !!!! ;P......

You sure that's the right url? frogkick.com appears to be a generic marketing site with nothing related to scuba or equipment.

 

[fdog]

In my first regulator repair class in the late 70's at US Divers, the head repair tech flatly stated he could tell the difference between regs that were just dunked by themselves, and were rinsed while attached to a tank. As he said in a heavy southern accent, "there ain't no water that's gonna get past 2000 psi".

Sounded good to me. Enough that that's what I do to this day, although I cheat and use an airgon bottle.

Yes, yes, I know times have changed...I'll stick with something that I know will keep my regs healthy, though.



Go ahead and kick me. I can take it.


All the best, James

 

[docmartin]

it's www.frogkick.dk