Which tanks to choose

[Damselfish]

An AL80 might not always be the best choice for various reasons, but getting only 10 min at 60 ft is not one of them They're either trying to sell you a more expensive/profitable tank or clueless, either way I'd be skeptical of their advice.

 

[SlugLife]

Educate yourself on SAC, RMV, and Minimum Gas / Rock Bottom. Then you'll realize they are full of BS.

...or just do a 60ft dive. I suspect that LDS employee may not even be SCUBA certified, or has almost no experience. I get that retail employees often BS, but doing that with SCUBA is simply dangerous.

"Support your local dive shop." Hearing that over and over in my dive classes always annoyed the **** out of me. and then I got screwed by a local dive shop. Support businesses that treat you well, whether local or online.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

If everyone had a choice.. money didn't matter. What would your choice in tanks be?

I feel like if anyone plans to do any real diving, and @Ross19966 has shown interest in local cold water diving, then steel is the way to go. Could you do a dive with 77cf and a floaty tank? Sure.. but why would you want to?

Get used steel 100's. You can't go wrong, more air and better buoyancy. You can pretty much buy and sell 100's for the same price all day long. I'm averaging paying about .82 cents per cf buying used. Don't like them? Trade up. More people want 100's then any other tank.

Be prepared for the scuba tax (VIP) and hydro every 5 years. You'll spend more on that then you do the damn tanks.... unless you buy the compressor

I would wait a year or 2 before buying a compressor.. tanks you can recoup, a new compressor will hurt if you resell. Make 100% sure this is your true love before being locked in.

And most importantly, enjoy the ride. We all get gear crazy.. remember to have fun and actually spend time underwater.

 

[SlugLife]

If everyone had a choice.. money didn't matter. What would your choice in tanks be?

Sidemount 2x HP120. Maybe HP133, but I'd need to do a test-dive to see if I mind the weight.

Agreed that HP100s are very "liquid" the sweet spot for resale.

Be prepared for the scuba tax (VIP)

I'm considering taking the course. Or just printing some stickers.....

 

[Ross19966]

Thanks guys. I'm 6' 230 muscular build. I'm fine with big heavy tanks. If I can carry less lead, even better. I knew the 10 minutes on the bottom thing was not right based on past experience. My main concern with HP tanks was getting a proper fil, but it looks like that is a non issue. So as far as owning tanks, I'll stick with HP100 - 120. 100's are -pretty easy to find used. When we travel we'll be using whatever the charter operator provides.

 

[Ross19966]

Be prepared for the scuba tax (VIP) and hydro every 5 years. You'll spend more on that then you do the damn tanks.... unless you buy the compressor

It's all relative. When we owned an airplane, annuals were $20K+ if nothing was wrong. The convenience of refilling at home is almost worth the cost of a compressor. The one I'm looking at will do a AL80 to 3000psi in around 20 minutes and runs about $3500. I can DIY a nitrox stick.

 

[inquis]

The HP100 is just 23% more capacity than the AL80 (77cf actual)

100cf actual from 77cf actual is 30% more.

 

[Cthippo]

If everyone had a choice.. money didn't matter. What would your choice in tanks be?

I have 2 x steel LP72s for when I want to just hop in the water and dive for half an hour and 2 x steel HP130s for when I want to not have to worry about running out of air, plus an AL40 pony. None of these are doubled, though I have the hardware to double the 130s as that is how the guy I bought them from was using them. Generally by the time I have done two dives in a day I am ready to be done and I have access to a fill station so I can fill tanks either at the site or on the way home.

If I didn't have easy access to fills I would be tempted to go with AL80s from a cost perspective. I would see if an LDS in the area could do the eddy current inspections and if so hoover up all the 6351 alloy tanks I could for cheap. The cost for the extra inspection is about $25 every 5 years, but if you can get the tanks for free or nearly so because people believe they can't be used then you are still coming out ahead for at least a decade.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

It's all relative. When we owned an airplane, annuals were $20K+ if nothing was wrong. The convenience of refilling at home is almost worth the cost of a compressor. The one I'm looking at will do a AL80 to 3000psi in around 20 minutes and runs about $3500. I can DIY a nitrox stick.

I love my compressor. Convenience of time saved and mixing my own gas has been a treat.

If I had $3500 to spend on a compressor I'd look at a new Alkin. There is local support in this area, I believe out of NJ.

You can buy used, but its a roll of the dice. I bought used and am happy with mine (is a Rix, not an Alkin), but it very easily could have gone the other way.

 

[Boarderguy]

I would see if an LDS in the area could do the eddy current inspections and if so hoover up all the 6351 alloy tanks I could for cheap. The cost for the extra inspection is about $25 every 5 years, but if you can get the tanks for free or nearly so because people believe they can't be used then you are still coming out ahead for at least a decade.

Lighthouse Dive Center fills and services the voodoo tanks. The eddy-current is an annual along with the VIP. The added cost to maintain them adds up quick if you have multiples. I have 2 that I've since let lapse on VIP since I don't dive the AL anymore. At some point my 3 AL 80s will become dedicated 40%+ deco / O2 bottles.