New Tanks
- Thread starter ScubaCat33
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Ouch, put the screws to 'em why don't ya?
My LDS (Bill Jacksons) has al80's on sale frequently for $109 vip and fill included. I sure wish they had deals on steel tanks... alas "normal" pricing there.
I've never had a (local) vip sticker refused, and I've got my tanks filled at probably 10 different shops. My primary shop blends, so I have to bring 'em back empty or stand in the shop while they dump for 20 minutes. If people are rejecting stickers just because they're from a store that also sells online (DRIS or scuba.com come to mind) then it's just sour grapes.
That said, I believe I would expect to buy a VIP somewhere if I bought tanks online.
Wait...support your local dive shop but if you go out of town and happen by Oly's dive shop and your local dive shop sticker isn't accepted by him then suck it up and rent?
Oly, it's easy to add an address and phone number to a sticker, and not all shops put that info on anyways. Do you guys call the phone number? Perhaps write a letter certified mail and wait for a reply on dive shop letterhead along with s copy of the shops training certificate, proof of who checked the tank, calibration results on any testing equipment and their liability insurance policy?
And then just to be safe you never know, better remove the old VIP sticker that is still valid to check for any rust or pitting underneath the sticker and whoops then you have to sell them a new one.
And after all that the VIP sticker only says the tank was in s condition at one time. Only takes a single bad fill to destroy s tank and make it unsafe.
So forget VIP stickers why don't you just remove the valve and check every time. If you do partial pressure blending (ugh. Why do people still do that?!? Waste of energy, waste of money, waste of time.) you are draining anyways and neck o rings are cheap in bulk.
Oh, that's too much trouble? So you end up trusting the condition of s tank arbitrarily based on an address printed on a sticker. But no address, that's the part that makes it crazily unsafe to fill.
Right.
That's not to say I trust all stickers but any time I was worried about it the VIP was on me! I won't arbitrarily make a customer pay more because I've got a case of the willies.
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Scared Silly
Contributor
I have never actually heard of this however i take it to be a sticker that is on a mail ordered tank.
---------- Post added June 12th, 2015 at 01:31 AM ----------
I agree, I have several times bought NEW tanks and recieved them with a fresh vip sticker on them. After all the already come with the manufacturer sitcker saying that the vip done ar hydro is good for a year and requires no sticker. I would not question the practice at all. However, if i bought a used tank from say a private owner or a shop online that was either rotating old tanks out to buy new tanks or from a closing shop i would have the valve removed and have a look see.
,
---------- Post added June 12th, 2015 at 01:42 AM ----------
No matter what sticker is on the tank,, there is no system that one can use to say this sticker is any better than another. I am a PSI guy and when looking at most stickers they say nothing more than they passed a visual inspection. some say pass per scuba standards ect. which there is no such thing as scuba standards in the legal world. dot gsa osha yes but scuba standard no. Even if a sticker has a shop name and phone number on it . one has only to aquire one and go to kinko's to have them made on bumper sticker material. That is, to some extent, the beauty of scuba as it runs on integrity and self policing. I cant fault a shop for refusing to take some stickers so long as it is a legitimate effort to insure safety and not a revenue generating policy. BTW John N's list is one of perfect examples of say nothing stickers. Thanks John.
---------- Post added June 12th, 2015 at 01:45 AM ----------
I can remember when you had to have a shop name or cert to have an order processed to get them.
---------- Post added June 12th, 2015 at 01:31 AM ----------
I agree, I have several times bought NEW tanks and recieved them with a fresh vip sticker on them. After all the already come with the manufacturer sitcker saying that the vip done ar hydro is good for a year and requires no sticker. I would not question the practice at all. However, if i bought a used tank from say a private owner or a shop online that was either rotating old tanks out to buy new tanks or from a closing shop i would have the valve removed and have a look see.
,
---------- Post added June 12th, 2015 at 01:42 AM ----------
No matter what sticker is on the tank,, there is no system that one can use to say this sticker is any better than another. I am a PSI guy and when looking at most stickers they say nothing more than they passed a visual inspection. some say pass per scuba standards ect. which there is no such thing as scuba standards in the legal world. dot gsa osha yes but scuba standard no. Even if a sticker has a shop name and phone number on it . one has only to aquire one and go to kinko's to have them made on bumper sticker material. That is, to some extent, the beauty of scuba as it runs on integrity and self policing. I cant fault a shop for refusing to take some stickers so long as it is a legitimate effort to insure safety and not a revenue generating policy. BTW John N's list is one of perfect examples of say nothing stickers. Thanks John.
---------- Post added June 12th, 2015 at 01:45 AM ----------
I can remember when you had to have a shop name or cert to have an order processed to get them.
How is it putting the screws to them? Here in NY that is below what others sell it for. Much different market than Key Largo where you are. Why empty tank for partial pressure fill? Are they not organized enough to figure out how much O2 to add and then top off with clean air ? As to the generic type sticker you get with online purchased tanks we look at it as there is no way to transfer or share liability if something goes wrong. At least if a LDS hopefully they have insurance. Same reason we do not usually honor PSI sticker, unless the inspector can show us that they have liability insurance.
R
redacted
Guest
The primary value of the USA's Scuba industry VIP requirement is that it provides an income stream to LDSs. Any safety benefit is very slight, at best, and of secondary importance. Therefor, the shop that simply has the tank monkey dump out the dirt and water before tagging the tank is doing almost as good of a job as the shop that has a fully qualified inspector who drags out his tool kit and spends 15 minutes making sure that tank is up to standard.
I'm not sure honestly. Maybe he's just lazy. Since he doesn't charge by cuft for o2 I have never cared enough to ask. I tell him what percentage I want, and wait while he fills em up. A few minutes later he gives me full tanks. I test, log, and he punches my fill card.
OK. . .
So if I really wanted to get "real" stickers, I would take the inspector # off a VIP sticker and order PSI "official" stickers online.
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