Nitrox cleaned then using air?????????

[ECpirates96]

Ok my LD shop said they O2 cleaned my regulator for nitrox use. Will it be "contaminated" by using a couple of tanks of air I still have from last season? I have a training class coming up and cannot see bleeding these to fill them with $12 worth of nitrox for pool work. Thanks

 

[naick]

They'll be fine. But your LDS is screwing you over big time. Regulators do not need to be O2-clean for use with nitrox smaller than 40% as per industry standards. They only need to be O2-clean for use with deco gas (like 50% or 100%) I'd recommend you get a different LDS.

If I have mistaken your question in any way, feel free to ignore this. Or even if I didn't

 

[HowardE]

Ok my LD shop said they O2 cleaned my regulator for nitrox use. Will it be "contaminated" by using a couple of tanks of air I still have from last season? I have a training class coming up and cannot see bleeding these to fill them with $12 worth of nitrox for pool work. Thanks

Most air fills from a regular dive shop serve up "oxygen compatible air" meaning that the compressors and lubricants used are oxygen compatible. Your air is most likely clean.

Most regulators are already compatible for nitrox use right away, and no additional cleaning would be required, unless you know for a fact that your regs came in contact with a non-oxygen compatible lubricant or hydrocarbons.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Ok my LD shop said they O2 cleaned my regulator for nitrox use. Will it be "contaminated" by using a couple of tanks of air I still have from last season?

No, provided that you're talking about standard recreational nitrox mixes (less than 40% O2).

It's nice that the LDS used O2-compatible o-rings (EPDM or viton, most likely) and O2-compatible lubricant (ChristoLube or Tribolube 71). However, going to these lengths during a regulator overhaul is unnecessary unless you'll be breathing mixes richer than 40% nitrox. Most new regs are ready to be used with 32% nitrox right out of the box.

On a related note, there's a distinction between O2 cleaning a tank and a regulator. It's entirely possible that a diver needs to maintain an O2-clean tank but not an O2-clean reg for breathing recreational nitrox mixes. If the tank will "see" O2-rich gas (e.g., in instances of partial pressure blending), then it should be cleaned and maintained appropriately. If the LDS is doing nitrox fills from a 32% bank or a membrane system, then you don't need to maintain your tank in an O2-clean state. All this info should be covered in your nitrox class materials. I realize that you were asking about the regulator specifically...but I was anticipating a follow-up question on the tank.

 

[SDAnderson]

Ok my LD shop said they O2 cleaned my regulator for nitrox use. Will it be "contaminated" by using a couple of tanks of air I still have from last season? I have a training class coming up and cannot see bleeding these to fill them with $12 worth of nitrox for pool work. Thanks

Most regulators only need to be oxygen serviced if they are going to be used with greater than EAN40 mixes. If you're doing decompression diving and using high oxygen mixes, you shouldn't need to be asking this question. If you're a recreational nitrox diver and getting your regulator serviced on at least a semi-regular basis, you probably don't need to worry about it.

Most air fills from a regular dive shop serve up "oxygen compatible air" meaning that the compressors and lubricants used are oxygen compatible. Your air is most likely clean.

Around here, only a couple of shops "air" is OCA. A couple more offer a choice of air (Grade E) and OCA (hyperfiltered/ANDI/whatever) but charge extra for the cleaner stuff. Many (most?) don't offer OCA under any circumstances. Sucks, but that's our reality. Divers should never assume: responsible shops have their air tested regularly and will be happy to show off if you care enough to ask.

Most regulators are already compatible for nitrox use right away, and no additional cleaning would be required, unless you know for a fact that your regs came in contact with a non-oxygen compatible lubricant or hydrocarbons.

Actually, this should read "unless you have any reason to suspect that your regs came into contact with..." An important distinction.

The reality is, with use, hydrocarbons tend to build up in regulators, just like they do in cylinders. Periodic servicing is part of the safety protocol - though it bears repeating that recreational divers who get their reg serviced regularly probably don't need to worry about it.

 

[ereediver]

They'll be fine. But your LDS is screwing you over big time. Regulators do not need to be O2-clean for use with nitrox smaller than 40% as per industry standards. They only need to be O2-clean for use with deco gas (like 50% or 100%) I'd recommend you get a different LDS.

If I have mistaken your question in any way, feel free to ignore this. Or even if I didn't

I would worry about this, if the shop said we O2 cleaned your regs for you and it's gonna be this much extra. I would run away from this shop. If they do it as a matter of course with all their reg service and told you up front,, or did it because they knew you were taking nitrox class and did it free. Then that shop is a keeper. As mentioned as long as they don't have anything with a 40 percent concentration of oxygen going thru them you are fine.
Also as mentioned tanks are a different story.

 

[bigtim6656]

If I thought my reg had air not of a quality to be used with nitrox would be cleaned

Most air fills from a regular dive shop serve up "oxygen compatible air" meaning that the compressors and lubricants used are oxygen compatible. Your air is most likely clean.

Most regulators are already compatible for nitrox use right away, and no additional cleaning would be required, unless you know for a fact that your regs came in contact with a non-oxygen compatible lubricant or hydrocarbons.

 

[Charlie99]

You aren't supposed to use a reg on both regular air and nitrox.

You are never supposed to exceed the speed limit while driving.

Nobody I know observes either rule.

The regulator only sees intermediate pressure of around 130-140psi total pressure, and with even EAN40 that is less than 65psi ppO2. O2 cleaning isn't all that critical at that pressure level. If you are breathing air with enough oil to be a problem at 140psi, then you have bigger problems than O2 compatibility.

OTOH, O2 cleaning of tanks that will be filled using the partial pressure method is truly a serious concern, as is avoiding contamination of those tanks by using air that is not up to full nitrox blending standards.

I think the requirements for tanks and for regulators get merged in many people's minds, although the fraction O2 and ppO2 seen by tanks and regulators are far different.

 

[halocline]

You aren't supposed to use a reg on both regular air and nitrox.

That's simply not true. Any regulator (except some titanium regs) is fine for up to 40% nitrox. Further, it's not "air" that contaminates an O2 cleaned regulator, it's air that has not been filtered to O2 clean standards. Lots of dive shops, especially tech oriented shops, use air that's O2 clean.

There's so much misinformation and BS floating around about regulators and nitrox. It's really simple; for recreational nitrox, don't worry about your regulator. The only exception, and to be honest I'd be extremely surprised to hear about an actual problem, are some titanium regulators that are specified by the manufacturer to not be nitrox compatible out of the box.

I wouldn't hesitate to pack my MK10 with silicone and use it with nitrox.

All of the oxygen clean protocols involve exposure to higher than 40% O2 mixes.

 

[halocline]

Ok my LD shop said they O2 cleaned my regulator for nitrox use.

Ask them why they did this, because it's not necessary. Do you have a titanium regulator?