How do you clean your equipment?

[k4sdi]

...........into the hottub. I found this works pretty good, although you have to be careful how much soap you put in. Unless you LIKE bubbles filling your bathroom.
(we dont put regs in there)

Mark

 

[Genesis]

In the gear goes; tanks get rinsed with the hose outside, paying particular attention to the boot area. Every month or so I knock off the boot and check underneath for any incipient corrosion or trapped gunk.

I have "plugs" that screw into my DIN valves, making the valves water (and gas) tight, and hard Delrin caps for my regs. I NEVER leave either a valve or reg uncapped (either with its mate or a plug) on the boat, so saltwater can't get in through that route. My primary rig goes in the bathtub that way (capped), with care to insure the purge isn't pushed; my sling-style pony goes in the bathtub rigged and turned on.

Drysuit gets a "shower" in the boat (along with my head and hands - this way I am de-salted as well as the suit) before I doff it after the last dive of the day, so its clean outside. If I had any seepage of significance at the wrists (sometimes I do when I'm spearing due to the interesting range of motion necessary for that) I will do a more thorough rinse inside and out, then two-stage dry (dry outside, turn inside out, dry inside, etc)

Occasionally, when things get really grody, I'll take the regs out after the soak, put in a capfull of listerine, and turn on the "spa jets" in the tub (it has a "whirlpool" built into it) The agitation along with the listerine - just a BIT - not much - gets the "grody" out very effectively.

Then I hang it all up to dry in the shower stall, usually overnight, and the next morning put it away in the closet.

 

[catgirldiver]

Thanks for all of your advise. We do not own our own tanks so we will have to clean our regs as best we can without pressurizing them.

As far as storing the BCs half inflated, I am assuming this will help them to dry quicker and prevent the insides sticking together.

RICHinNC I am assuming BTW is me although I can't figure out what that stands for. I do not know of any diving in GA. We mostly have murky lakes. I am sure on the coast there is some dive sites, I do not know of any fresh springs either. Sorry I can't be of any more help. I would'nt mind knowing of some dive sites in GA myself. We normally just go to FL, since it is only 6 hours to PC or Pensacola from where we live.

Thanks again everyone,
Angie

 

[FredT]

A small horse trough or large oval muck bucket are large enough to get all your loose and assembled gear into it at once. Once this is filled leave the hose about 1/2 on and allow the tub to overflow. You'll need the hose later and the water overflow reduces salt build-up when doing multiple sets.

Dump all rubber products except suits and all "hard" unbreakable bits like stringers, lift bags, reels etc in as the tank is filling, then add the BCs with your used tanks and regs installed and the air on. Dunk the empty BCS several times and direct the hose to get the nasties out of the tiny places in your regs.
Disconnect the fill hose from the BC bladder and fill the bladder with water, while the water in the rinse tank supports it. Dump this water by slowly lifting the BC with the hose connection down (so you are not lifting the water in the BC) and then reconnect the hose. Inflate and purge the BC bladder with the OP valve down until you stop getting water from the OP valve. NOW disassemble the rig, set the full BC off to the side to dry, add cameras lights and masks to the tub. Cameras etc can be pressure rinsed with the hose in the tub much like the reg first stage was. Fish your "small" gear out of the tub and add the suits with STS to similar product and hold submerged with weight belts. Rinse any tanks not dunked in the tub to clean regs/BCs and open the valves a bit afterward to blow any water out of the valve passages. Determine if any tanks need VIP or other service before filing at this point. Turn off the hose.

Total time to this point could be as short as 15-20 minutes for up to 3 gear sets.

Butcher any fish or other collected groceries and then go take YOUR shower.

Once you are cleaned up pack your now dry gear away ready for the next trip, drain the tub, and hang the suits up to dry. Please note that suits in STS can soak overnight with no problems. (A bottom drain valve is a handy thing to have in the rinse tank.)

Spearguns etc are rinsed between the main gear and the suits by dunking in the tub.

This can all be done in your bathtub or a large garbage can, but the trough or muck bucket is easier to work with and much less stress on your back.

Also be aware that regulator caps are DUST caps, not seals! IMNSHO A lot of internal damage to regs comes from thinking these things actually provide a reliable seal. The first stage should be rinsed pressurized if at all possible. My preferred routing (though I don't always make it) is truck to rinse tub to storage. Tanks in VIP go be filled the next day and are always stored full. Tanks needing VIP or other service go to the repair queue for service before filling.

FT

 

[scubawife]

While we're on a dive trip we give everything a really good fresh water rinse daily. I usually have a small bottle of mild antibacterial soap and a small spray bottle. After our last dive, I mix some soap and warm water in the bottle and spray everything. Also put a bit inside the BC before we fill it with water and rinse it out. We then give it a fairly good but gentle scrub and hose it down and leave it out to dry as much as possible before packing.

At home, everything goes into the tub with some "Sink the Stink." A little extra effort to clean things as well as you can after the last dive makes it all easier to deal with at home. I learned that the hard way.

 

[Ber Rabbit]

catgirldiver once bubbled...
RICHinNC I am assuming BTW is me although I can't figure out what that stands for.

BTW = by the way
IMNSHO = in my not so humble opinion (I think)
LDS = local dive shop

Cheers!
Ber

 

[catgirldiver]

BTW = by the way

OOOH! I would have never guessed. I was trying to figure out a technical term

 

[annie]

>.>As far as storing the BCs half inflated, I am assuming this will help them to dry quicker and prevent the insides sticking together.<<

I've been told it's to stop creases forming as they can lead to cracks.

 

[QKRTHNU]

Pressurizing sounds like a good idea.

But what about those of us who rent tanks? How should we clean our Regs without getting water in them? And why would water harm them anyway? As long as it dries I would think it'd be fine.

 

[Irishdiver]

QKRTHNU once bubbled...
Pressurizing sounds like a good idea.

But what about those of us who rent tanks? How should we clean our Regs without getting water in them? And why would water harm them anyway? As long as it dries I would think it'd be fine.

I wash the reg depressurised. Just make sure there's a good seal on the dust cap and immerse the lot in the bath/sink/whatever. Fill the second stage with water and rinse well. There's no problem getting water into the second stage (do NOT press the purge button), once the first stage is kept bone dry, even when depressurised. You don't want to get water into the first stage: the result (water corrosion) is not pretty - nor is the bill when you send the reg in for service.

As for the rest of the gear, I tend to wear the dry suit into the shower at the club house after the dive and then rinse it again at home afterwards with a hose or in the shower. The BCD and the rest of the gear is put into the shower and washed out well before being hung out to dry. Latex seals and torch are then sprayed with silicon before being stored and zipper is treated with beeswax.