How do you clean your equipment?

[dc4bs]

My buddy and I use "Action Packers" plastic tubs from WalMart.

Large, black, plastic storage tub. We store and transport the gear in them as they have lids so can be stacked and can even be locked and used as luggage on flights. After the dive, the gear goes in the tubs for the trip home.

Take them out of the truck, set them on the ground and fill from a hose. In winter, carry the whole tub to the bathroom and put everything in the bathtub. Let soak a hour or so and drain. Hang eveything up to dry.

Regulators, computers, watches, etc.. all go in the bathroom sink away from the heavier "bulky" items.

Rinse out the plasric tub while the rest of the gear is drying. When everything is dry, neatly stack it all in the tub again and put it somewhere out of your way.

My buddy has gear up to 18 years old (BCs from his teens) that, other than a little sun-fading and some wear on the webbing still looks and works perfect.

My gear, mostly about 2 years old now, still all looks new... Well, I do have a "clear" snorkel that has gone all funny yellow and brown, but you get my drift.

OTH: Like Uncle Pug, as long as it stays wet, I don't worry about it. Just rinse the inside of the GoldCore wetsuit between saltwater dives if possable as the salt starts to make the inner surface less slipery for getting it on and off after several dives in one day (it usualy dries in a few minutes).

 

[ebbtide]

just a topic ive thought of and was curious about what other divers use for cleaning there gear fresh water ... etc
me i use a little bit of vinagar in the water it seems to dissolve the salt crystal buildup in my reg. and as for the temp i am curious as to what the water temp is where you are and do you carry a thermomiter when you dive ?
as i said in another thread it is 34 Deg f at the surface here in southern Nova Scotia in the Atlantic .

 

[hphobbie@aol.com]

I wash in plain old fresh water ... water temps here locally in Indiana are in 30's, may get colder as we are having a cold snap, an inch on ground now and still snowing ... in summer gets as high as 87 some years on surface with t-cline at 20 ft or so ... not musch to see in the quarry below t-cline unless they have sunk something, then is fun to dive below that ... Gilboa has alot on bottom as does Mermet

 

[noshow]

Now that I'm aquiring my own personal gear I hope to take care of it and extend it's life as long as possible. I am looking for divers post dive equipment cleaning and storage routine. Do you rinse with fresh water right at the site> What if there is no frewsh water available at the site? Do you just rinse at home or do you soak in the tub? How is it stored? WHAT DO YOU DO???

 

[JamesK]

If fresh water is available at the site, I will rinse my gear there. That does not take the place of me wahsing it when I get home though.

I take all of my fins, regulators, masks, compass, computer, lights, backplate (if being used) and cutting devices to the tub. I rinse them all again in the tub, and let them sit to dry.

I take my wetsuit, boots, beanie, and gloves and put them in the washing machine with woolite and Febreeze. I let them soak for about an hour or so. Then I run them on the gentle cycle. I know you are told not to put them in the washer, but on the gentle cycle, I have had no problems with it. I then hang everything to dry. If I am at a hotel, I will put it all in the dryer on no or low heat until it is dry.

For my BC/wing (depending on what I am using) I place those in the utility sink in my house and soak them in woolite and or febreeze. How long depends on where I dove, and if I can detect any odor in them. I then give them a good rinsing, and they go in the tub to dry.

I store all of my gear in my closet and in tubs in my room. I do not put anything in the garage. The exhaust from your car can not only stink up the gear, it can damage it also.

That is about it.

 

[Welshman]

There is rarely any fresh water at the dive site but if there is then I'd use it.

Assuming there isn't any, then as soon as I get home I'd rinse mask, weightbelt and fins and hang them in the garage to dry Big James I take your point about car exhausts but my garage is more of a storage unit so this isn't a problem), I'd rinse the wetsuit out using a hosepipe and then soak it, plus boots for an hour or so in fresh water - periodically I'd use a wetsuit shampoo but not every time. Then they get hung up in the garage. I rinse my BC both inside and out. You rinse inside because a small amount of water often gets in and you need to get it out. So, using the hose press the deflate button and pour fresh water in through the inflator mouthpiece. Add some air and swill the water around. Use the deflate button to let the water out, and hang it up to dry.

After a day all my gear is dry enough to be brought inside.

 

[Uncle Pug]

All of our diving is in saltwater.

If the gear is going to be used the next day and can be kept damp/wet overnight (not hard in the PNW) then we will leave it sit... especially if we get back late and are tired.

If not the we throw everything in a stock tank (large rubber cattle watering trough) to soak... drysuits are drapped over a rack and rinsed with a hose.

After a soak the gear is hung up to dry in the garage on racks... never stored in in plastic totes... open air circulation is best... (the garage is ventilated and car exhaust is not an issue since the car is moved out immeadiately after starting.)

BTW... I am currently using a large (70 gallon) black rubber stock tank and I find that the water grows algae rather quickly outside in the daylight... the galvanized tank I have in my garage by the fill station doesn't grow anything at all. I am thinking that a galvanized tank might have been better than the black rubber. Either is better for your marraige than the bathtub.

 

[Dee]

Originally posted by Uncle Pug

BTW... I am currently using a large (70 gallon) black rubber stock tank and I find that the water grows algae rather quickly outside in the daylight... the galvanized tank I have in my garage by the fill station doesn't grow anything at all. I am thinking that a galvanized tank might have been better than the black rubber. Either is better for your marraige than the bathtub.

Daylight is the key word, Pug. If that galvanize tank had been out in the sun you'd be seeing all kinds of algae growing in it. Just check any stock tank sitting in a pasture somewhere!

The black rubber tub will absorb heat, making the water too hot for the livestock to drink. Makes for a good mid-day hot tub though, the cows don't usually mind.

 

[Spectre]

I take a 5 gallon bucket of fresh water with me, so I can rinse my small stuff [lights, regs, knives, computer, etc...] and so I can fill it with salt water to bring home any bugs.

 

[pipedope]

Lots of great posts on this one.

I will add that even a quick rinse right away will do a lot to prevent stinky suits.

I used to have a big problem with boots until I made a wetsuit boot drier. It is simply a PVC electrical box with a couple of 90 degree elbows coming out on either side and a 12 Vdc blower on the box. The boots are rinsed and then they hang on the drier so that the toe is up and the opening is down so water can drain. The fan is turned on so that a gentle flow of air goes all the way through the boots. They dry in a few hours this way and I don't have stink foot anymore.


A project for the near future is a wet suit washer but I am still working of that one.