smelly air

[CamG]

Greetings again and Soakedlontra I surely hope no one allows their tanks to be filled under those conditions. The filters might do their job and take care of the issue but even then I would not do it. The filters are not cheap and depending on proximity to over-spray vs. compressor intake. I would just wait or move to another location.
Obviously I am very picky about my gas but can one afford not to be? It has been proven to me that there are many honest great fill stations out there. And I am not trying to harm or slander anyone but there are times when air quality for BREATHING, "LIFE SUPPORT" needs to be evaluated. It would be interesting to take a sample under the conditions you described and test it to see. In fact there are probably tests posted on a compressor filter site somewhere that would give us an idea to what to expect.
Safe diving all and please check the air analysis sheet at your LDS to be sure it is current. IF air smells bad it probably is, lungs are tough to replace!
CamG Keep diving....keep training....keep learning!

 

[Cudabait]

I'm intolerant when it comes to smelly air and comprerssors that are not performing as they should. I have aborted complete boat dives when a number of divers complained about smelly air, La Cuda included. On one occasion it was found that the compressor had been leaking oil and that the filter was oversaturated. The compressor had to be completly disasembled, pistons replaced, new filters installed and 100% of the dive ops tanks had to be drained, cleaned and turned. This is something that is not to be taken lightly.........multiple deaths have occurred on a single dive because of faulty gas problems.

 

[Soakedlontra]

Now I've had several more tanks to try, and several refills of my tanks, and I still sometimes smell that same smell, very slightly. This is directly out of the valve on the tank. It's so slight that I really have to pay attention to smell it, but I THINK it's there. Anyway, a smell that light is not something I would worry about. But the smell that got this thread started was so strong I have no regrets not finishing that dive.

What are you getting at? We dive breathing air that has a hint of contamination? If so should we go to the local dive shop and check the compressor? I don't even know where and what to look! Shall we grill the shop owner about his standards regarding keeping the compressor, filter etc. in good working condition? Shall we take a tank to a lab to have the air being analyzed without telling him anything? Shall we go to the doctor and have our lungs checked out? Or shall we keep breathing that air and don't bother asking any questions?

 

[ohmdiver]

sambolino44, Sorry if I repeat more info from other posters as I gave it a quick read. I recently had this very problem /issue from a well known dive site. Not only is in in your tank, but once you connect it to your rig, it is in your hoses, and regulators. I got my tanks cleaned, my regs re-serviced, and the k-valves replaced on my tanks. This is a life safety issue. Oil in the lungs is nasty. Draining your tanks is not enough, they need to be cleaned. All your gear should be checked by a reputable shop.
I was very fortunate, the Place that accidently gave me the bad air stepped up and took care of my needs. I wih you the same luck. But I would strongly recommend you take all your contaminated gear in for servicing.

 

[docbonezz]

Be VERY careful with your air! The air should never have a smell....... ever!

Also keep in mind that if air has contaminates in it and you dive with it you are increasing the effects of that contaminate. Do you remember partial pressures. For example...... if by accident the air you are breathing has 400 ppm or .04% carbon monoxide. Not a huge problem. Yes it can give you a headache with prolonged exposure at that level but not death. BUT when you dive with that same tank and go to say recreational limits (5 ATM)....... now you are effectively breathing 2000 ppm or .2 % and this is toxic. This is how bad air in a scuba tank kills you.

Make sure that your local shop has regular analysis of their air.

PLEASE be very careful!

 

[Soakedlontra]

I guess you guys think that even a hint of a smell is unacceptable?

Sambolino44 doesn't seem to be worried about it after all!

 

[sambolino44]

I guess what I'm saying is I won't start being worried about the smell of the air from my LDS until I'm sure I'm actually smelling something, and not just imagining it. The bad air was used on my regs, briefly, but I've been smelling directly off the tanks.

 

[Doc]

.... a strong smell in the air from my cylinder.... it smelled like plastic or something.

I think the problem is most likely to occur immediately after the filters were changed because maybe it wasn't done quite right.

Close enough.

When the filters exceed their operating temperature limit (for any number of reasons), "dieseling" of lubricant can occur and the filter material "flashes". The resultant product is often described as having "a plastic smell".

 

[Wookie]

The specification for odor in breathing air is "none/slight", and is totally up to the nose of the inspector performing the test. I would say that if the air I was testing had so little odor that I described it as "a hint, so little I couldn't tell for sure if it was there or not", I would check the box for none/slight.

Frank

 

[Soakedlontra]

The dive shop from were we got the smelly air did check the filter and found out that something was wrong and fixed the problem. However I am still wondering how efficient these filters are...I mean if the shop is near a boat workshop can the filter remove all the chemicals produced in that next door workshop?

As for the air compressed in our local dive shop, we have been smelling it and it is almost odorless.