Advice on servicing my own regs....

[LeadTurn_SD]

The down side of DIY reg service is it removes the biggest barrier to acquiring and diving a fleet of regulators; a few for DIN valves, and a few more for yokes, a few novelty rigs just for kicks, and then a few more you rarely or never use but couldn't pass up at the price..

I'll second that. All of a sudden, regs become quite affordable (buying them used), and now I have to be ever more creative when explaining to my wife why exactly all those extra regs are necessary....

To the OP: Along with all the good advice in the posts above, what I did was buy a used reg on ebay and "practiced" on it before servicing my own regs.

Have fun!

Best wishes.

 

[Couv]

We need to start sharing our "reasons" why we have 6 times as many regulator set ups as we do divers in the family. Probably need a whole new thread for that though.

1. Well Dear, I bought three more regulators to have just for pool work....you know, something I can just grab and throw on a tank when the boys just want to get some pool practice and not have to go through the usual pre/post dive trip protocol.

 

[halocline]

I could buy ten ebay regulators and still spend less than one uninformed newbie will drop on a new reg at the LDS with a slick salesman. IOW, it's a cheap (relatively) vice and most smart significant others will gladly tolerate it in lieu of, for example, an addiction to sports cars, $200 scotch, sports gambling, you name it.

 

[ImUrPropofol]

Most of my regs are Apeks, and I do service my own regs.

On my second attempt, I forgot to put in a piece. When I turned the tank on, I was immediately able to identify what the problem was, not because I checked the troubleshooting section, but because I took the time to learn and understand how it actually worked.

This is why I want to learn to service my own regs. I really just want to know more about how they work....and then be able to figure out what is going on when it is not working properly. I had my reg serviced this year and got back a big bag of parts that were replaced in the proces, and that's really what sparked my interest. I had no idea there were some many things in there that could be replaced!

Thanks a bunch to BDub and LeadTurn for the encouragement and helpful tips. I'll be purchasing the recommended books soon. Also, love the idea of purchasing a used ebay reg for practice!

 

[herman]

Hey ImUrpropfol, just saw you were in NC, what part?

 

[tfsails]

I used to fix airplanes for a living. I did not know how a regulator worked. I figured the best way to learn how a reg works is to fix them for a living. I was also arrogant enough to think that if I could fix a fighter plane, I ought to be able to fix a regulator. I was right. I now fix regs as a get-out-of-the-house-and-do-something-productive job, and I know how they work.

Ain't life amazing???

 

[sambolino44]

...Just connect the reg to a full tank, check the IP, turn off the valve, then bump the purge a few times until the SPG reads whatever pressure at which you want to check the IP. Piece of cake...

I don't think the manual would spend so much space on the procedure to slowly bring the system up to pressure if there weren't some merit to it. However, maybe the reason has more to do with safety and liability than function. I think the idea is not so much that you cycle the reg at 500 psi at some point during the re-build as it is that you expose the reg to less pressure on those critical first few cycles while the seat is wearing in. Only after you establish no creep with an IP of 120 PSI on a 500 PSI cylinder do you switch to a 2500-3000 PSI cylinder and set the IP to 135 PSI.

 

[redacted]

I don't think the manual would spend so much space on the procedure to slowly bring the system up to pressure if there weren't some merit to it. However, maybe the reason has more to do with safety and liability than function. I think the idea is not so much that you cycle the reg at 500 psi at some point during the re-build as it is that you expose the reg to less pressure on those critical first few cycles while the seat is wearing in. Only after you establish no creep with an IP of 120 PSI on a 500 PSI cylinder do you switch to a 2500-3000 PSI cylinder and set the IP to 135 PSI.

I have had some problems with Scubapro Mk10s where it looks like HP o-ring friction (extrusion) was causing IP creep at high tank pressures but no problem a low tank pressure. But this was readily detectable using a full tank and then turning the valve off and working it down. Multiple tanks of different pressures would make it much easier to repeat the tests but I can't see why that is really necessary for the DIYer. Do you see any faults that would be detectable with 2 tanks but not just one full tank?

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

I don't think the manual would spend so much space on the procedure to slowly bring the system up to pressure if there weren't some merit to it. However, maybe the reason has more to do with safety and liability than function. I think the idea is not so much that you cycle the reg at 500 psi at some point during the re-build as it is that you expose the reg to less pressure on those critical first few cycles while the seat is wearing in. Only after you establish no creep with an IP of 120 PSI on a 500 PSI cylinder do you switch to a 2500-3000 PSI cylinder and set the IP to 135 PSI.

Hi sambolino44,

I believe the reason is mainly safety: In the off chance that you've really goofed the assembly of the 1st stage, or there is a defective part, you pressurize slowly and always make sure at least one 2nd stage is attached to bleed-off excess pressure (while you quickly shut off the tank valve :shocked2: ).

I don't know if all brands require a test at 500lbs (the two I've serviced don't), and if they do, believe the 500lb test is after the full-pressure test? Not really sure. I've only worked on two different brands and 4 models (the ones I own), so I can't answer for other makes and models.

Best wishes.

 

[halocline]

I don't think the manual would spend so much space on the procedure to slowly bring the system up to pressure if there weren't some merit to it. However, maybe the reason has more to do with safety and liability than function. I think the idea is not so much that you cycle the reg at 500 psi at some point during the re-build as it is that you expose the reg to less pressure on those critical first few cycles while the seat is wearing in. Only after you establish no creep with an IP of 120 PSI on a 500 PSI cylinder do you switch to a 2500-3000 PSI cylinder and set the IP to 135 PSI.

No, the reason for the IP check at both low and high tank pressure is to check for IP stability. Creep at high tank pressure is indicative of a less-than-perfect seal between the seat and the orifice (piston), and high IP at high supply pressure usually means there's some extrusion at the HP piston o-ring (in a balanced piston reg).

The reg that you're referring to (IP 120@500PSI, 135@3000) could only be an unbalanced piston reg. I suppose it can't hurt to first connect it to a 500 PSI source, if you have one, but there's nothing wrong with connecting a newly serviced reg to a full tank and simply opening the valve slowly while holding down the purge valve slightly. IOW, you can be gentle with a full tank. If there's a serious problem with the HP seat and you get HP air leaking into the IP chamber, you're going to know very quickly and be able to shut the valve off.