Regular salt water divers, how do you maintain your gear between dives?

[brianstclair]

I dive salt water pretty infrequently, and I go through a fairly lengthy process of rinsing all of my gear each time I dive salt water. I dive fresh water pretty regularly (a few times a week, most weeks), so the few times I do dive salt water, I usually get a pretty good fresh water rinse shortly after, too.

My question is for people who do salt water dives frequently (once a week, once every couple of weeks, or more). What do you guys/gals do after all of those dives? I pull back hose protectors and rinse in there - do you guys do that every time? I rinse around the tank boots of my steel tanks, pressurize my regs and rinse the first stage and second stage, soak my wetsuit and other gear in fresh water... Do you guys/gals go through this after every dive, or am I going overboard? Any other good tips for keeping my gear well maintained after a salt water dive?

I realize this has probably been asked a million times before - links to previous posts are fine, but I'd like to get the perspective of people who are doing regular salt water dives, not just once every three months or once a year.

Thanks!

Brian

 

[Wayward Son]

I soak & rinse everything after every dive trip. If I'm diving 2 days in a row, I just take care of stuff that salt is bad for, ie my regulator. I dive an old brass & chrome Scubapro, so I make a point of giving it a FW rinse ASAP after the last dive of the day. This is true whether I'm heading home or not. It gets rinsed & then put in a reg bag to keep the SW from the rest of my gear off of it.

 

[Green_Manelishi]

This time of year my rinsing is a bit different because my wife will not allow the dive gear to be placed in the brand new tub/shower. :huh:

I place a tub of water in the front yard and soak the gear for a few minutes. Then I swish it around and hang it on a rack. Then I spray it with a hose and allow it to "drip dry". The tank and regs are rinsed as "a unit" standing in the snow. They are then moved into the cellar after the majority of water drips off. They are allowed to warm up prior to disassembly. After the "soft gear" has dripped dry, and is usually frozen more or less stiff, I carry it to the cellar where I hang it to dry after it thaws and softens. Oh, I have wood burning stove in the cellar to keep it warm and toasty.

My drysuit is kept on during the rinse process; it is rinsed with me wearing it.

During the summer I rinse the gear more or less the same way except I am not so concerned with keeping the water off the driveway.

P.S. the last time I rinsed gear this way the air temp was just over 20 degrees F.

 

[chewie]

i let my gear soak in the sinks & showers of the resort & let it drip for a while before packing it up to go home. once home, i have another quick rinse & let it drip dry in the bathroom. i open up my second stage regulator to dry & clean out any sediment that was trapped & make sure that the diaphram is clean & dry. I then lube up the different threads to make sure that the o-rings are still in proper order. if i'm not diving for quite some time, i would store my bcd inflated just to maintain its shape.

 

[shugar]

a rinse or soak (depends on what piece) after each dive (if it's not 2 or 3 tanks out) and a good rinse and soak at the end of the dive day...

usually air-hung to drip dry... this is regardless if you're packing it 1/2 hour later or diving the resort the next day

at home it's another soak or rinse through then air-hung to dry before storage - for boots and wetsuit i try to sun dry them to avoid any damp-gear-stink

then it's fold and store away and pray they get wet again soon

Jag

 

[Xanthro]

Quick fresh water rinse at the site, then at home a soak in a 50 gallon trash can (used just for this) with Simple Green in it. Gear soaks for about half an hour to an hour while I shower and change. Then gear drip dries in storage shed.

Regulator is attached to pony and pressurized while it is soaking.

 

[Wayward Son]

Oh, be sure to fill the BC with fresh water & dump it. Do this multiple times, taste the water as it comes out to be sure it doesn't taste salty.

SW leaves salt crystals when it dries. These, while tiny, have sharp edges & over time will damage the bladder until one day it won't hold air any more. I remove a dump valve & use a hose to fill it up, slosh the water around & pour it out. I also make a point of discharging water through every dump valve as well as the power inflator.

Hang the BC upside down, partially inflated. This does 2 things. It allows the water to drain to the lowest point so you can dump more out the next day, and it keeps the insides of the bladder from sticking together. I leave some air in it while stored, only dump it all out when I'm packing my dive bag for the next trip.

 

[gratefuljames]

I throw it in the closet...rinsed, not rinsed, partially rinsed...never have had a problem with my equipment over many years....

 

[Nic160]

The best way to rinse your gear is to go cave diving with Nic. Asap !!!
Sorry I missed last night. Did you and Chris have a good dive ?

 

[chip104]

like the rest, I rinse all my gear in fresh water after the dive. I also rinse the inside of my wing to get the salt water out of there (just what Wayward said). And I'll open and close the clips of the brass/SS bolt snaps when soaked in water to get the salt out of there as well.