Palm O2 Sensor failed that quick?

[Thunder Struck]

So before taking off to Fiji I tested my less than a year-and-a-half Palm O2 analyzer (factory tested on April 24. 24, purchaed from on May 4, 24) on a 33% bottle at the house. Calibrated and read just fine. I get here to Fiji a few days later, now it only goes up to about 6.- or 7. - something, sometimes as high as 9, but that’s it.

Try to do a calibration and it reports “Err”. Change the batteries, same thing. No signs of damage or leaking to the cell. Unit had never seen much use, perhaps. Dozen or so cylinders analyzed I. The last year. With the cell being a little over a year and 3 months old, it seems like it should have plenty of life left.

It’s possible the power got turned on to it somehow and it stayed on for some time, but my understanding is that the sensor just huma along outputting its value regardless if the unit itself is on or off. Or is that not the case?

Unit lives in a little nylon case, not thrown off the boat or such. I’m pretty sure it was in my carryon bag, but if it was checked all my gear was in a Pelican 1615 so it was well protected. Can’t say for certain as once I started to unpack it was a flury of unpacking and sorting.

Of course warranty ran up after a year.

 

[inquis]

It’s possible the power got turned on to it somehow and it stayed on for some time

Power on wouldn't have impacted the cell, they are essentially like a battery themselves. Some cells just die early. (I had one crap out after 6 months.) Replacement should run $80-$100.

 

[Thunder Struck]

Power on wouldn't have impacted the cell, they are essentially like a battery themselves. Some cells just die early. (I had one crap out after 6 months.) Replacement should run $80-$100.

Thanks. I’m hoping that’s all this is. Don’t want to buy a new sensor when it’s something else.

Just strange how it went from hunky-dory reading 33% to less than 10. And in the time originally posted this I had the sensor and batteries out, it’s now barely reading 4%.

 

[NothingClever]

I think the Palm O2 Analyzer is great when it works but I’m finding it’s a bit unreliable.

I’d get the Divesoft DNA pill but I don’t want to have to connect to my phone to see the results.

Probably going to spring for the Nuvair O2 QuickStick.

 

[Thunder Struck]

Ok, so after a phone call to Analytical Industries Inc (AII), the maker of the Palm O2 reader I was in contact with Juan. Even though the unit had gone a few months out of warranty he still had me send it in to get taken care of. He even provided me with their UPS # to ship it under. I reiterated that it was out of warranty but that was ok as he was concerned on how it failed so quick, where within a weeks time it went from fine to not fine.

Ultimately the O2 sensor was bad, I was able to measure the voltage at 3.4 mV (2.9 mV under load) when it should be 4-8 mV per the spec sheet.

It was also determined the PCB needed updating which required a replacement of the front case and overlay.

Juan did a great job of letting me know via email when they received it and what the engineers found with it. It was returned to me with the updated PCB and a new O2 sensor at no cost to me. That’s excellent service considering that despite not getting a lot of use it was a few months past warranty.

Now then, I did notice a problem in the design of the battery mounts of the Palm O2 unit in that if the unit receives a hard shock/knock/shake, the inertia of the battery can bend the tabs at the end that are responsible for making the electrical connection to the battery cell. As such, they lose connection to the battery and the unit will not power on. I found a quick and easy fix for this was to take a couple of foam earplugs and cut them down such that they can fit in between the tabs and the screw bases. Viola, no more bent tabs on the battery connectors. The foam is still spongy enough to allow removal of the batteries as needed as well as giving the tabs something to rebound against when bouncing around in a gear bag.

 

[missionmtb]

I've had similar cell behavior after dropping an analyzer (Trumix 4001). This combined with your contacts suggests this may be either a cause or contributing factor. Nice customer support from AII.

 

[Thunder Struck]

Wo

I've had similar behavior after dropping an analyzer (Trumix 4001). This combined with your contacts suggests this may be either a cause or contributing factor. Nice customer support from AII.

Worth cracking it open and seeing what it’s like in there.

If anything someone who knows their way around creating 3d printer objects could model up some sort of brace/frame support. Buddy of mine has me set to buy a 3d printer after the 1st of the month. It’d be nice to have something useful to print other than articulated sharks and pill dispensers. Although I did find a file for a piece for a friend’s boat that will be one of the first things to do.

 

[Thunder Struck]

One thing I like about the Palm is the automatic calibration. No turning a knob and trying to chase a zero. Makes it easy to demonstrate and for the students to use. Coupled with the BC inflator adaptor it makes it super easy to check cylinders.

 

[MikeHoncho]

O2 sensors are very susceptible to sensor toxins in the form of alcohols and silicones. I typically see O2 failures due to crews using ArmorAll type materials in the cabs of our units and using hand sanitizers in the cab. To combat most of this we store our meters in Ziplock bags. O2 sensors age regardless of being "on"or not but high quality brands used in atmospheric meters typically last 3-6 years with hard use in very "dirty" atmospheres. Long story short.......don't use alcohol products around them, don't store them anywhere where they can be exposed to silicone vapor (Pelican boxes) and store them in Ziplock bags.

 

[NothingClever]

don't store them anywhere where they can be exposed to silicone vapor (Pelican boxes) and store them in Ziplock bags.

Good to know - thank you for posting.