Fills over 80 Cuft

[TSandM]

As you know, Bob, I do the same thing -- a set price for a year's Nitrox, no matter how many or what size tanks I put it in. LOVE that program!

 

[RJP]

I pay a flat rate ... $100 a month.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I paid for a Tec Gas Blender course... and haven't paid for a fill since.

 

[CamG]

Greetings SB faithful.
Man I love compressors and especially when I can do my own fills!
I try to help with filter costs and O2 the rest is actually pretty easy and on me!
This is the normal procedure at home.

While traveling it is usually included or by the cubic foot in cave country where you never get a short fill!
Some local shops and or quarries are really putting the price into focus this season.
I have heard of $10 tank rentals, then $8 air fills on a single AL80! That is crazy!
I immediately offered to rent my AL 80 for air fill tokens only!
Our fears will be realized very soon as the economy catches up with all the LDS / dive sites.
It is all going up!

CamG Keep....Diving....Keep Training....Keep Learning!

 

[Colliam7]

Is this a growing trend? Never seen a difference on fills based on tank size.

Then you are fortunate. My southeast experience over the past decade has generally been 1) adjusted flat rates based on tank size - most common, followed by 2) CF used to fill - less common, except in cave country, and only rarely c) a single rate for tank fill, irrespective of size. Maybe, I 'don't get out enough', though.

I don't have a problem with the adjusted flat rate, and I most often see it structured as a) a rate for tanks 80cf and smaller, and b) another rate for tanks bigger than 80cf (less common for me is see it broken down to i) 80cf, then ii) 81-119cf, then c) 120cf and greater, as you describe), and c) another rate for doubles, irrespective of size or residual volume at the time of fill. The differentials are usually somewhat arbitrary (i.e. don't make a great deal of sense based on the math), but they are probably easier for most shops to apply than to caculate on a per cf basis. What would probably make the most sense would be a (flat) labor fee for filling a tank to which would be added a charge per cubic foot of whatever gas was put in. But that would also be a bit more cumbersome.

For me, the cost doesn't matter for local diving - air fills are free for shop staff, and we pay on a per cf basis for whatever else we put in our tanks (if we fill and/or blend ourselves). On the road, I go for convenience over price. I have some buddys who will drive an extra 10 miles (each way) to a different shop, to save $2 on a fill. That really makes no sense to me.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I paid for a Tec Gas Blender course... and haven't paid for a fill since.

I ran the numbers for a compressor, booster, bank bottles, maintenance, and time ... and decided that even at $1200+ a year, the payback on getting my own fill station just wasn't worth it ... I usually go through 20+ tanks a month (95's, 119's and 130's) and very few of my dives involve trimix at this point.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)