Looking for Eco-Friendly Ways to Clean Dive Gear

[Nathan Doty]

Leave it out in the rain?

Man... I was cleaning the day before yesterday, everything's in the driveway drying, and the sky flat out opener up for 6 hours. It was wetter than when I got out of the ocean. I could have saved myself all kinds of work...

 

[davehicks]

Just use a garden spray hose or shower spray handle. There is no need to soak every single item every time in 20 gallons of water. I usually fill a small utility sink for my camera, computers and small items and spray off the drysuit, tanks, regs, rebreather, fins, etc with a spray hose.

Alternatively fill a plastic tub near your lawn or driveway and use the water afterward to water the plants or dump on the lawn.

 

[doctormike]

Soaking is better than spraying for most complex gear (rebreathers, cameras, regulators), or stuff like neoprene. I mean, it's your gear, take care of it how you like.

But I think that just going scuba diving has a non-trivial environmental impact from compressors, your car, your boat, or your air travel if you don't dive locally. So be careful going down that road.

And if you REALLY care about water conservation, you might want to read this. If you give up a single pound of beef, just once, you will save about 2,000 gallons of water. That is not a typo.

 

[delacrue96]

Try Aqua Suds JAWS Aqua Suds Aqua Wear Shampoo, 4 fl. oz. (118 ml)

 

[Gjoyce3]

I have an ancillary question. I get out diving at least one a week and tend to soak my gear in a plastic tub. About every third dive I dump the water on the lawn / garden. I am wondering if I am, in effect, salting the earth - thereby stunting the growth of the grass and plants. Anyone seen any ill effect of dumping the brineish water on their greenery?

 

[MaxBottomtime]

My camera rig gets soaked for 2-3 minutes. The rest of my gear gets a quick squirt with a hose. I've been doing that since the 80s and never had salt buildup on my gear.

 

[CT-Rich]

Surprisingly easy to rinse gear. I have a wet box for all my gear except the really heavy, bulky stuff like tanks and weights. Everything that was in the ocean goes directly in. Easy to load and unload from the car. I take it over to the garden hose and start filling the box with water while I fetch the the rest.

When it is full, it has maybe 10-15 gallons in it plus all my gear. I take out stuff that won’t be affected by salt first, like fins and gloves. As it comes out of tub it drains for a few minutes and then hung in the garage to air dry.

If you are diving a lot, cover the water and use it the next day. I wouldn’t keep it around too long, though. It will let bacteria grow and become gamey pretty quick.

 

[MichaelMc]

And if you REALLY care about water conservation, you might want to read this. If you give up a single pound of beef, just once, you will save about 2,000 gallons of water. That is not a typo.

I’ve been vegan for a few decades. That is a LOT of water saved.

 

[happy-diver]

I have an ancillary question. I get out diving at least one a week and tend to soak my gear in a plastic tub. About every third dive I dump the water on the lawn / garden. I am wondering if I am, in effect, salting the earth - thereby stunting the growth of the grass and plants. Anyone seen any ill effect of dumping the brineish water on their greenery?

are you current with your cholera shots

 

[Hatul]

I'm no expert but soaps, shampoos and detergents are used to wash away oils and grease, and the only grease in scuba gear is one that is supposed to be there. So I don't think it's a good idea to soak scuba gear in soapy water.