Registering non AS 1777 tanks here's how

[Briney Deep]

I asked this question myself: Answer is for your sales people
Can you Import a SCUBA tank into Australia and get it certified "YES"

The Answer is YES and you arrive there by insanity now follow the bouncing ball
All tanks Steel or Aluminum worldwide must meet the appropriate international standard issued by the United Nations
All countries issue their own Standard Number which is the equivalent of the UN Number (why bother)
CIG produced steel tanks and applied for an Australian Standard (they are long out of business)
No one in Australia has produced SCUBA tanks (for more than 20 years)
According to standards Australia they do "No testing they just issue a standard if you apply for one" sounds safe to me
Until I advised them of how old AS 1777 was for Aluminum tanks they did not know exactly
The National Testing Authority has no one here who knows anything about testing or certifying tanks
They gave me a contact he scurried to a dark corner and made feeble crying sounds when asked if he would do it
There is no one in Australia who tests or certifies new tanks that do not meet an existing standard
Work Safe who do Industrial Inspection & Certification ( your Dept Labour & Industry) recite the mantra must meet AUS Standard
When I explained that Standards Australia, do no Testing just hand out certificates and their head (CEO) stated AUS standards are not legally
enforceable as they are only voluntary. He was totally stupefied they have probably been prosecuting people citing AUS standards.
I assume their legal boffins went insane at that.

Eventually I got on to a man from Work Safe in New South Wales who knew the answer.
I have confirmed this answer for Victoria with Work Safe
I assume a similar set up applies for other States.
I have checked with an older man who certifies SCUBA tanks he also verifies this.
The form attached above must be filled out (section on Pressure Vessels only) the tank must be pressure tested by an authorized SCUBA test station the form submitted to Work Safe
for their approval once approved the SCUBA tank can then be stamped AS 1777

Oh how I love bureaucracy as they say I'm from the Government I'm here to help
As far as I know virtually all tanks originate from two sources Catalina Cylinders in the US and Faber in Italy so why all the standards B!S! countries trying to protect their turf
with bogus standards I guess.
I also found out but the person could not discuss it openly AUS and New Zealand are re writing all their standards to new AU/NZ Standard most likely as a non tariff trade barrier.

PS in AUS SCUBA tanks are pressure tested and visually inspected annually they have no service life or expiry date as in the US they can be used till they explode no kidding!
it happened last year (2010) during a test with a 20 year old tank tester was injured. But just remember for safety it must be AS 1777 certified this took nearly 3 weeks of phone calls to get an answer. Enjoy

 

[ronbeau]

I asked this question myself: Answer is for your sales people
Can you Import a SCUBA tank into Australia and get it certified "YES"

The Answer is YES and you arrive there by insanity now follow the bouncing ball
All tanks Steel or Aluminum worldwide must meet the appropriate international standard issued by the United Nations
All countries issue their own Standard Number which is the equivalent of the UN Number (why bother)
CIG produced steel tanks and applied for an Australian Standard (they are long out of business)
No one in Australia has produced SCUBA tanks (for more than 20 years)
According to standards Australia they do "No testing they just issue a standard if you apply for one" sounds safe to me
Until I advised them of how old AS 1777 was for Aluminum tanks they did not know exactly
The National Testing Authority has no one here who knows anything about testing or certifying tanks
They gave me a contact he scurried to a dark corner and made feeble crying sounds when asked if he would do it
There is no one in Australia who tests or certifies new tanks that do not meet an existing standard
Work Safe who do Industrial Inspection & Certification ( your Dept Labour & Industry) recite the mantra must meet AUS Standard
When I explained that Standards Australia, do no Testing just hand out certificates and their head (CEO) stated AUS standards are not legally
enforceable as they are only voluntary. He was totally stupefied they have probably been prosecuting people citing AUS standards.
I assume their legal boffins went insane at that.

Eventually I got on to a man from Work Safe in New South Wales who knew the answer.
I have confirmed this answer for Victoria with Work Safe
I assume a similar set up applies for other States.
I have checked with an older man who certifies SCUBA tanks he also verifies this.
The form attached above must be filled out (section on Pressure Vessels only) the tank must be pressure tested by an authorized SCUBA test station the form submitted to Work Safe
for their approval once approved the SCUBA tank can then be stamped AS 1777

Oh how I love bureaucracy as they say I'm from the Government I'm here to help
As far as I know virtually all tanks originate from two sources Catalina Cylinders in the US and Faber in Italy so why all the standards B!S! countries trying to protect their turf
with bogus standards I guess.
I also found out but the person could not discuss it openly AUS and New Zealand are re writing all their standards to new AU/NZ Standard most likely as a non tariff trade barrier.

PS in AUS SCUBA tanks are pressure tested and visually inspected annually they have no service life or expiry date as in the US they can be used till they explode no kidding!
it happened last year (2010) during a test with a 20 year old tank tester was injured. But just remember for safety it must be AS 1777 certified this took nearly 3 weeks of phone calls to get an answer. Enjoy

Worthington in Canada makes steel cylinders. Luxfer makes aluminum cylinders in addition to Catalina.

 

[bracko]

>so why all the standards B!S! countries trying to protect their turf

the short(ish) answer is this.

for safety and design standards to be effective in regional areas, they usually require modification from other areas. would you buy an air-conditioning unit designed for use only in Europe?

that is the general argument for non-global standards, and in most cases other countries standards have been mostly copied from either American or European standards with some local adjustments. Standards Australia is getting there, but they have a long, long way to go. for example until recently all sensors in explosive environments had to be Australian certified AFTER they had been US and EU certified. Australia being such a small market meant that anything AU certified cost a bomb. now there exists a tiny part of a large standard which accepts ICE-EX (EU certification)... but i digress.

most changes to Australian Standards and most other countries come usually out of unfortunate (fatal) accidents and inquests. over time they get convoluted & no-one understands them. Industry gets the sh!ts and they get re-written. for something like SCUBA tanks where the EU/US standards would be generally accepted a pressure test would be all that's required based on the outline of the Australian standard.

the forum you have attached is designed for use under AS 1210 plant pressure vessel design and possibly not applicable.... I have to ask the question, why would you bother to go to this effort? I'm assuming for commerical operations all they need to do is keep their tanks yearly tested and have the records available. registering the attached workcover form for each SCUBA tank I would assume is not required.

 

[Ghanguss]

I recently purchased a cylinder from the US and had difficulty getting it tested and stamped. "It doesnt have an AS standard on it, therefore we cannot test it". I tried 3 testers all had the same response.

tank must be pressure tested by an authorized SCUBA test station

so I dont think this step is applicable.

I got around the problem by contacting Catalina, who gave the details of the Australian importer. I took the cylinder to them and they gave me the test stamp and also stamped in the Australian approval number for that cylinder. So now Im good to go.

 

[Briney Deep]

I recently purchased a cylinder from the US and had difficulty getting it tested and stamped. "It doesnt have an AS standard on it, therefore we cannot test it". I tried 3 testers all had the same response.


so I dont think this step is applicable.

I got around the problem by contacting Catalina, who gave the details of the Australian importer. I took the cylinder to them and they gave me the test stamp and also stamped in the Australian approval number for that cylinder. So now Im good to go.

Obviously the testers you tried were not up to speed most aren't didn't read the post! did we.
By by passing using the proper registration technique you could be in a spot of bother if the tank blows. Technically the tank was not stamped by the Manufacturer!
Your reply simply stated the obvious the tanks are all made to the same standard
there is no need for countries to use their own standard number the crux of my post
I have spoken to Catalina Cylinders about this problem they obviously came up with this fix after my contact
I tried to keep the post short if I wrote the whole thing down in detail you would be tempted to jump off a tall building.
For those not in the know Steel tanks fragment explosively, Aluminum tanks split.
That was one of the reasons Ally tanks came into being the current thinking is buoyancy, steel = less lead the trade off is a hand grenade on your back.
Stick to Aluminum

 

[Briney Deep]

Read the post correctly the tanks are all made to the identical UN standard
Here is how a standard works in Aus you draw up a document outlining your product submit document to Standards Australia they "Look at it " and voila you have a standard issued no testing required. And no one else has to make a similar item identical to your issued standard. As they are not legally required to do so. So unless someone asks for an item you make made to the other persons standard. It is a pointless exercise in turf protection. CIG Commonwealth Industrial Gases held the original AS for Scuba tanks they are currently at the same address as the DODO
As no one here makes tanks why not just use the international standard.
They roll off the production line like cookies with either US DOT, Canadian CAN or Aus AS stamped depending on destination yet can't be filled here without AS1777 on it.
You must submit the form and test to have the tank "Officially Stamped" failure of the tank would no doubt have some turkey from the Government after your buns to deter other perceived miscreants you know how these idiots work and the fines aren't chicken feed either.
A tester would if injured no doubt seek compensation thats why you have to do it formally there is only the one form for doing this.

Post below to another contributor
Obviously the testers you tried were not up to speed most aren't didn't read the post! did we.
By by passing using the proper registration technique you could be in a spot of bother if the tank blows. Technically the tank was not stamped by the Manufacturer!
Your reply simply stated the obvious the tanks are all made to the same standard
there is no need for countries to use their own standard number the crux of my post
I have spoken to Catalina Cylinders about this problem they obviously came up with this fix after my contact
I tried to keep the post short if I wrote the whole thing down in detail you would be tempted to jump off a tall building.
For those not in the know Steel tanks fragment explosively, Aluminum tanks split.
That was one of the reasons Ally tanks came into being the current thinking is buoyancy steel = less lead the trade off is a hand grenade on your back.
Stick to Aluminum

 

[BB1]

There has to be an easier way doesn't there??

I'm in QLD and am looking for Luxfer tanks for deco and stage use.
I can get an AL80 at a good price but not AL40's.
I know where to get them at a great price in the USA but how can I get them legal in QLD??

 

[Kern]

There has to be an easier way doesn't there??

I'm in QLD and am looking for Luxfer tanks for deco and stage use.
I can get an AL80 at a good price but not AL40's.
I know where to get them at a great price in the USA but how can I get them legal in QLD??

You can get a Catalina Ali 40 at a reasonable price from WA. Just to stay a little on topic, they all have DOT 3AL3000 spec stamps.

diveimports.com » Cylinders + Tanks

 

[Kern]

For those not in the know Steel tanks fragment explosively, Aluminum tanks split.
That was one of the reasons Ally tanks came into being the current thinking is buoyancy steel = less lead the trade off is a hand grenade on your back.
Stick to Aluminum

Aluminium tanks seem to go off explosively enough to take off hands, damage legs so badly they need amputation, & blow holes in brick walls.

Man loses hand in scuba tank explosion - Local News - News - General - Macleay Argus

Man loses leg after gas blast - Local News - News - General - Macleay Argus

 

[Goferrin99]

You can get a Catalina Ali 40 at a reasonable price from WA. Just to stay a little on topic, they all have DOT 3AL3000 spec stamps.

diveimports.com » Cylinders + Tanks

Does this meal that a cylinder marked as DOT 3 or 3AL will be tested and filled in Aus as-is?