Is this possible 3 dives after having equipment serviced????

[Lorraine Mooney]

I am seeking some advice. I put my reg and BCD into a shop in Geneva, Switzerland in June for repair / service. My BCD had started to inflate underwater, requiring me to disconnect the hose. This was the initial reason for the service and my reg was due to be serviced anyway.
I left my bcd / reg in the locker outside their shop with a deposit. Normally a business will WhatsApp or message to say that they have received the items and monetary deposit. I had to message this shop numerous times to ascertain that they had my kit.
A couple of weeks later they messaged me to collect my equipment and the price, which was super expensive (much more than when ai have had it serviced previously).
The woman at the dive shop who is also apparently a dive instructor had called me in the meantime and tried to keep me chatting on the phone, asking me all sorts of irrelevant questions (what I did for a living etc.)During this call she also boasted about her shop’s reputation so much, it was ridiculous p, I felt.
I went to the shop to pick up my kit (more than 70 miles in each direction), I paid the money and just wanted to get out of there. She kept talking, talking, talking and again asking me too many questions. She was also asking me where i had bought my BCD. I told her I had bought it in 2019 and she told me that it was old! There is not a mark on it…..
Anyway, I did not get to dive until September when I went on a liveaboard in The Sea of Cortez and dive 4; I noticed that my BCD was self inflating again.
I couldn’t believe it! The dive professionals onboard and two other guests were perplexed as to why the same issue should be happening again, but didn’t want to interfere with my equipment as it was only dive 4 since service. I quite understand.
I messaged the shop as soon as I had internet access and they asked me to bring it to them, reiterating how good they were again…..
I told them that ai would not be able to bring it until I had finished my travels (no further diving), which will be November 1st.
They are now being so awkward regarding my leaving my kit with them on Monday as it is a public holiday in Switzerland on Monday and ai just want to drop it off in their lockers rather than make yet another 140 mile round trip again.
Any advice please? Thanks in advance and sorry for the long post!

 

[Edward3c]

Your profile says U.K. why use a shop in Switzerland.

 

[ekremer]

Also what bcd? This ordeal seems a little much to replace a $20 inflator that takes 15 minutes at home the first time.

 

[lowwall]

I recommend either of the following:

1) E-mail them that you are going to mail in the BCD, that you will be tracking the package and you expect an e-mail confirmation when they receive it and when they have correctly completed the work you have already paid for. State that you only want to communicate via e-mail.

2) Chalk it up as a loss and take it somewhere else.

 

[runsongas]

yes, if the dive shop did a shoddy job. they should have attached the used parts they replaced in the overhaul when you got the gear back to show evidence of what was replaced and serviced. this is why some go the DIY route. you should complain for a refund or leave negative feedback on google.

 

[elmo]

I can’t comment about the dive shop or what they actually serviced. But sure it is possible your inflator is stuck. It often happens due to build up of salt, calcite, or some other gunk causing it to stick. Usually that takes dozens/hundreds of dives but it does happen. It can be cleaned by soaking in a 50:50 mix of vinegar and water for an hour or two, which works most of the time in my experience. But if you know how to use a screwdriver it’s really easy to replace, and generic inflators can be ordered online for not much and fit *nearly* all BCs. That gives you an inflator that is new and likely to last for a good while.

 

[kinoons]

I had this issue. Shop told me they couldn’t rebuild or replace the inflator and offered a 10% discount on a new BCD.

I sourced an inflator for about $25 and did the change myself. Won’t use that shop any more.

 

[The Chairman]

Did they replace the valve, or the o-ring in the valve?

 

[boulderjohn]

Lots of people get their gear serviced annually, even though they only did a relative handful of dives. The manufacturers push that hard, and people follow that push. Most of the time the service really isn't needed, but it doesn't hurt, does it?

When I had a regulator go bad during a liveaboard trip trip years ago, right after getting it back from its annual servicing (which I never missed), I was surprised. The shop I used did not service that brand of regulator, so they sent it back to a guy in another whop who did those for him. It came back and failed again. We sent it to the manufacturer (Mares), and they said the problem was that it had been far too many years since it had been serviced. They wondered if it had ever been serviced.

Eventually the problem became clear. Knowing that most regulators coming in for annual servicing do not really need it, the technician at that other shop routinely held on to regs for a couple weeks and then returned them without doing a blessed thing to them.

 

[happy-diver]

I couldn’t believe it! The dive professionals onboard and two other guests were perplexed as to why the same issue should be happening again, but didn’t want to interfere with my equipment as it was only dive 4 since service. I quite understand.

No I don't quite understand at all

Next time find some more professional professionals and guests that are more perplexed
and you can all get down and dirty, and learn, how to diagnose and repair your own stuff