VIP mandated tank destruction ??

[william]

recently took my 'bottles' to be hydro'd and vip'd
when I returned to pick them up the store owner said I had a bottle pass hydro but fail the vip so it had to be destroyed..what regulation of the vip rules mandate the destruction(destroying the threads) of my steel scuba tank ??Any help would be greatly appreciated...thanks
william

 

[MechDiver]

william once bubbled...
recently took my 'bottles' to be hydro'd and vip'd
when I returned to pick them up the store owner said I had a bottle pass hydro but fail the vip so it had to be destroyed..what regulation of the vip rules mandate the destruction(destroying the threads) of my steel scuba tank ??Any help would be greatly appreciated...thanks
william

None. The VIP is not a law, nor is it required by law. If a shop destroyed a tank without my permission I would sue them for a new tank. They have no legal right whatsoever to do anything to the tank other than not pass it and inform the owner.

 

[Uncle Pug]

...is the word that comes to mind.

Demand a replacement tank (same size, type and brand) and if that is not immediately forth coming take them to small claims court.

Can I have the valve?

 

[padiscubapro]

william once bubbled...
recently took my 'bottles' to be hydro'd and vip'd
when I returned to pick them up the store owner said I had a bottle pass hydro but fail the vip so it had to be destroyed..what regulation of the vip rules mandate the destruction(destroying the threads) of my steel scuba tank ??Any help would be greatly appreciated...thanks
william

Failing a VIP is not a reason its not even required by law..
Some hydro facilities will drill a hole in a tank that fails Hydro others will stamp CONDEMMED on it... If your tank passed hydro especially if it was steel, the rust was probably from the hydro place (if it was flash rust)... The tank most likely could have been either whipped or tumbled, I'd demand another tank or sue them..
Beside I'd want to see the tank.. sounds like he may be covering up a screw up...

 

[Strick]

I agree with what everyone else says. Request a replacement tank since they had no right to destroy your tank. As mentioned, there is no law to back up what they say. If they refuse, seek council and sue them. Plain and simple. Hope things work out for you.

=-)

 

[trymixdiver]

sounds fishy to me

all the shops in my area use the same tool. They all drill a hole in a failed tank.

sounds like maybe they crossthreaded your valve and to cover thier as* they are trying to fail it hoping you dont know any better.

Andy

 

[roakey]

A visual is done BEFORE you hydro a cylinder, not the other way around. The vast majority of cylinders fail the visual, not the hydro.

There are a lot of unanswered questions here; before a hydro, a hydro shop (who you can usually put in the “knowledgable” category) WILL visual a cylinder before the hydro. What it sounds like is that the dive shop (which you can usually put in the “doesn’t have a clue” category) shipped the cylinder off to the hydro shop, the hydro shop vized the cylinder, hydroed it and then returned it to the LDS who did a visual and for whatever reason failed it.

Did you sign a release that allowed the cylinder to be condemned? A release should always be signed before accepting a cylinder from the customer to avoid problems such as this. If your cylinder comes back condemned (by Xing out the DOT numbers) you don’t have any recourse if you signed a release. If your LDS didn’t have you sign a release, that just adds another datapoint to the “doesn’t have a clue” category.

You might find out what hydro shop the LDS uses and go to them and talk to the inspector on the off chance they might remember your cylinder (it’s a long shot) and see what they thought of their visual.

If you’ve got any more information, no matter how small it might help us reconstruct what happened here.

Any time you hand in your cylinder for a visual you should ALWAYS be prepared for it to be failed. Two things to learn from this:

1) Learn to take a peek inside your cylinder before handing it off to the shop.

2) ALWAYS TAKE YOUR CYLINDER TO THE HYDRO SHOP DIRECTLY, DON’T GO THROUGH THE LDS!

Roak

 

[william]

thanks to all who replyed...yes the tank was vip prior to hydro passed hydro...re-vip'd and failed . I thought the lds owner was in error and refused to relenquish my tank.It was yanked from my hand as I was told to "turn loose SOB" "the law requires me to destroy this tank" not knowing the law I turned loose and the lds owner took a cold chisel and wrecked the threads.now I'm trying to gather needed data to go to small claims court.Oh yes he did say that if Ididn't like it I could have " my lawyer talk to his lawyer ".Again ..thanks to all for help..
William

 

[MikeFerrara]

hmmm...
Any time we fail a tank, unless the failure is real obvious we get a second opnion. We have always been able to show and prove to the customer that the tank was bad. We can't destroy a tank without the customers permission but we will work very hard to prevent an unsafe tank from getting back into service. Did they show the defect to you and explain the problem. We visual a tank before and after hydro.

 

[Uncle Pug]

Did the tank have the valve in it after the second VIP... before he forcibly took it back from you and destroyed the threads?

Why did they give the tank to you and then forcibly take it back?

Do you still have the tank and valve in your possession?

If so take the tank to another LDS and/or a hydro facility (fire extinguisher shop) and get an opinion as to why the tank would fail a VIP.

PM me with the Shop name and address.