Proper care for scuba gear?

[phenom]

Hey guys, I'm a newer diver and I bought new gear from a local dive shop before I got certified to dive so I would have the ability to learn with it (plus I'd rather breathe through my own regulator and pee in my own wetsuit ) upon completing my open water dives ect. I realized that I had no clue how to take care of my own equipment because everyone else used rentals and didn't need to. After getting some tips from a few people here is what I do. . .

Rinse my regulators out for a few seconds with fresh water after each dive with a hose.
Every so often I get a little bit of rubbing alcohol and simply rub a slight amount on my regulator mouthpeice to disinfect it then I rinse it for about 30 seconds making sure there isn't any left on.
Rinse my BCD off and make sure the bladders have no water inside.
Rinse my fins, snorkel wetsuits ect off as well.
I have a dive bag (mesh) that vents and seems to dry the gear well after I wash it.

Anything else I should do? I heard soaking regulators helps clean them but most people don't do it and its unnecessary.

 

[requin02]

Thats about it. Rinse with freshwater is pretty much all it takes. You can also rinse the inside bladder of the bcd with some freshwater once in a while. Service your regs once a year. Dont dry anything in the sun. With care like this your gear will last you for years.


r.

 

[drrich2]

I've heard it said don't store gear in the garage if you use that garage to park your cars, as pollutants from car exhaust (I assume) can cause some damage. I do not know the specifics.

BCD's can benefit from servicing at times; I was mystified at my lack of buoyancy control on a trip & subsequently learned sand had gotten in the rear dump valve so evidently it wasn't sealing well (and I don't think I was using the rear dump valve, and I don't know why sand got in it, either).

Richard.

 

[supergaijin]

I give my mouthpiece a workover with toothpaste and a toothbrush- same for my mask.
Try to shake the water out of the reg second stage.
Don't forget to rinse under the hose protectors if you use them (hose protectors slide up next to the 1st stage to stop hose kinking)
Keep air in the BCD to avoid the bladder sticking.
Be anal about drying your dust cap before putting it on the second stage- a towel works much better and is safer than trying to blowdry it with the tank air.

 

[Searcaigh]

Only thing I would add is a capful of mint Listerine + capful of freshwater in the second stage leave it in a sink overnight if on a dive trip or a few hours if packing up gear later, just makes for a nice fresh taste when doing the next dive.

I also pop a capful of mint Listerine + capful of fresh water into my BCD through the LP inlet.

If I am not going to be diving for a few weeks I leave my BCD inflated on a hanger, along with my wetsuit wardrobe.

 

[mac.calder]

Since I own my own cylinder, I usually get home, fill my rinse tank with fresh water and dump the second stages and SPGs in and let them soak - I hold down the purge button whilst it is pressurised too. I also put fresh water into my wing and give it a good swish arround a few times to get rid of any salt inside the BCD.

Then it is all my small hard stuff (mask, snorkel, spool and dSMB, thigh pocket etc) into the dunk tank to soak for 10 minutes.

If it was a really scummy shore dive, I empty the water frequently. Nothing I hate more than sand and debris on my gear next time I suit up.

Then gloves, hood, fins and booties.

Finally, I put a dash of baby shampoo into the tank and give a quick hand wash to my wetsuit. Finally, everything is hung up inside to dry.

 

[drrich2]

I don't know your reg. brand. Atomic Aquatics reg.s are piston reg.s that have a longer than normal service interval, but you want to either rinse them while hooked to a tank & pressurized, or else don't put the 2'nd stage & 1'rst stage in the water at the same time; you don't want water flowing into the mouthpiece & 2'nd stage, then up to the 1'rst stage, from what I understand.

If you have a reg., and it's a piston reg., check your manual & see whether that's a concern with it or not.

Richard.

 

[DivemasterDennis]

It's been covered above, mostly. I would add that after a drive trip, it is a good idea to let everything have a good soak in fresh water, so that all salt or other things that might corrode equipment is thoroughly removed. Then dry or let gear totally dry in the air before storing. Store in a dry dark place, preferable with fairly constant temperatures- a basement room , for example. Occasional soaking of neoprene with sink the stink or similar product will also preserve the life ( and eliminate odors ) of the neoprene gear. And finally, have all gear serviced regularly. I include your BCD in that servicing as the low pressure inflater and other dump valves should be serviced and parts replaced periodically.
DivemasterDennis

 

[GrumpyOldGuy]

Rinsing the gear is about all the maintenance you need to do.

I would also set up a routine to inspect you gear though in addition to the quick clean. Examples:

If you fully inflate your BCD while it drys, if if develops in pinhole leaks you will know before it gets worse or ruins a dive.

If you check for fin straps and mask straps on a regular basis and you spot cracking you can replace it before it breaks and messes up your dive.

Connect an IP gauge to your reg and check it for a consistent pressure. Record the baseline pressure when new and in perfect condition and how it behaves when you breath off it. If the reg starts to wander from this standard then get it serviced, if its stable then you can "stretch" the service easy to a 2+ year interval assuming you have not fallen for the "free parts for life" marketing ploy.

 

[Bigd2722]

Rinsing for a few seconds is nowhere near adequate. soak for a couple of hours and then rinse, dry, blow out, etc.