Contents of Scuba Sport Magazine - MAR-APR 2012

Scuba Sport Magazine is the only scuba magazine that offers diving news, dive travel, scuba gear, diving destinations and underwater photography that caters to the recreational diver.

Page 47 of 51

salt. This is remedied by soaking for 24 hours in fresh water.
After all the water has been drained from WKH %&' WRWDOO\ LQÁDWH LW DQG DOORZ LW WR VLW IRU DQ KRXU ,I LW GRHVQ·W VWD\ ÀUPO\ LQÁDWHG for an hour, you have a problem that QHHGV WR EH À[HG I'm sorry, but I've changed my mind. My vote for the most neglected piece of diving equipment is: The tank and tank valve.
Why am I changing my mind? After servicing thousands of cylinders and valves, I realized that many divers did not understand the importance of inspections and servicing of the air delivery system. And in many instances, do not know how these items function.
I am not faulting the diver. Their diving education may have been completed years ago, and like most everything else, is forgotten if not reviewed periodically. It's easy to forget. Also if a person never
a small, but persistent leak. The same small stream of bubbles may also indicate that the valve is leaking internally. Some scuba divers get distracted, and in some cases, scared and unsure of a tanks safety when they realize that air is leaking from somewhere it isn't supposed to leak from.
All dive cylinders are required to be
Ask any mechanic, any item that has moving parts needs regular maintenace...
visually inspected at least once a year. A relatively new device compliments the visual inspection by using a sensor WR ÀQG FUDFNV LQ WKH WDQN WKDW FRXOG go unnoticed through just a straight visual inspection. The DOT wants a tank hydrostatically tested once every ÀYH \HDUV
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working pressure. So the most common WDQN DQ DOXPLQXP
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The reason it is conducted in water is to avoid an explosion should the tank fail.
completed advanced diving classes, it is possible that they were never made DZDUH RI WKH LPSRUWDQFH RI VSHFLÀF pieces of diving equipment. This is a clear case where lack of knowledge can cause problems.
Many tanks that are used regularly are dirty on the outside. Many have worn R ULQJV ZKHUH WKH UHJXODWRU·V ÀUVW VWDJH LV attached. The poor seal created causes
48 ScubaSport
0RUH RIWHQ WKDQ QRW D GLYHU ZLOO EULQJ KLV her tank in for a visual inspection. Which is the internal inspection of a cylinder and valve that delivers to air or gas mixture being used. They will state that the valve does not need servicing.
O Rings
Tank Valve