Thought I would post this here just cause it was aggravating and interesting at the same time...
So I get quite a bit of used gear on eBay to incorporate into student gear for my shop. I check all gear and service it before putting into use. A while back I got a steal on three Mares Airtrim BCs. I personally use an Airtrim and needed a larger size so it was excellent. Use one, sell the other two as used gear. No biggie.
The auction showed pictures of all of them. They look almost new.
They arrive via UPS. Great day! I look over all three and they are beautiful. No wear, tear, etc. BUT, on two of the three I blow into the oral inflation hose and can't get air into them. Thinking there was an issue with the check valves I investigate further. Feeling the hoses I find obstructions. The worst one was about an inch long inside the tube and completely solid.
Assuming it to be rock salt I took the hoses off and broke the obstruction using a hammer (first time I've ever used a hammer on a BC...). This is what I got:
Three piles, three BCs.
Rinsed out the bladders and they were fine. Apparently this salt was accumulating in the bends in the hose when it was in the pocket.
My question is: how much sea water could it possibly take to create THAT much salt? I think about boiling a pot of sea water off and seeing how much salt would remain. I can't see it being such a vast amount.
Anyway, always check used gear, even if it LOOKS fine. After fixing the salt problem they were flawless. But still
So I get quite a bit of used gear on eBay to incorporate into student gear for my shop. I check all gear and service it before putting into use. A while back I got a steal on three Mares Airtrim BCs. I personally use an Airtrim and needed a larger size so it was excellent. Use one, sell the other two as used gear. No biggie.
The auction showed pictures of all of them. They look almost new.
They arrive via UPS. Great day! I look over all three and they are beautiful. No wear, tear, etc. BUT, on two of the three I blow into the oral inflation hose and can't get air into them. Thinking there was an issue with the check valves I investigate further. Feeling the hoses I find obstructions. The worst one was about an inch long inside the tube and completely solid.
Assuming it to be rock salt I took the hoses off and broke the obstruction using a hammer (first time I've ever used a hammer on a BC...). This is what I got:
Three piles, three BCs.
Rinsed out the bladders and they were fine. Apparently this salt was accumulating in the bends in the hose when it was in the pocket.
My question is: how much sea water could it possibly take to create THAT much salt? I think about boiling a pot of sea water off and seeing how much salt would remain. I can't see it being such a vast amount.
Anyway, always check used gear, even if it LOOKS fine. After fixing the salt problem they were flawless. But still