Oceanic bcd inflator repair

[Liberty01]

Hi,
my Oceanic bcd tends to self-inflate, even after cleaning. The technician of the shop where I bought it about 10 years ago said that opeining it to repair it would not make sense. He suggested to buy a new mouthpiece and inflator hose to replace the whole thing, cost about 160USD

Unfortunately, I only dive on holiday and cannot test the equipment before.

Any advice?

 

[herman]

While most are fairly easy to service, it is often easier to replace it but there is no need to replace the complete hose, just the inflator itself. The price you were given is way too high, the average cost of a generic inflator is in the $25-20 USD range. Here is an example Shopping Categories Piranha Dive Shop | I am sure there are similar stores on your side of the pond. Replacing them is simple
Here are a couple of youtube videos that may help.

 

[JackD342]

Hi,
my Oceanic bcd tends to self-inflate, even after cleaning. The technician of the shop where I bought it about 10 years ago said that opeining it to repair it would not make sense. He suggested to buy a new mouthpiece and inflator hose to replace the whole thing, cost about 160USD

Unfortunately, I only dive on holiday and cannot test the equipment before.

Any advice?

If it is the same inflator they were putting on Aeris 10 years ago (Alliance Inflator?) then it was designed for annual replacement rather than service. Almost impossible to disassemble without breaking it. If it is that one, I am surprised it lasted 10 years.

 

[NCadiver]

JackD342 is correct. It's a replacement not a service. It more efficient to replace it then service base on time and parts.

 

[Divegoose]

I have an Oceanic Excursion BCD that is in its 10th year of use. Had to replace the inflator once, but the current one has been in use for several years. The inflator gets rinsed after every dive, but sometimes is still sticky. When it gets a bit sticky I spray some silicone spray into it, then operate it a few times. That seems to solve the stickiness issue. Perhaps give it a try and see if it works for you.

It is unfortunate that you can't open the inflator and service it properly. Seems to be the way in today's throwaway world... If its not working properly, just throw it away and get a new one seems to be the new normal, and not just with dive equipment.

Divegoose

 

[tursiops]

I have an Oceanic Excursion BCD that is in its 10th year of use. Had to replace the inflator once, but the current one has been in use for several years. The inflator gets rinsed after every dive, but sometimes is still sticky. When it gets a bit sticky I spray some silicone spray into it, then operate it a few times. That seems to solve the stickiness issue. Perhaps give it a try and see if it works for you.

It is unfortunate that you can't open the inflator and service it properly. Seems to be the way in today's throwaway world... If its not working properly, just throw it away and get a new one seems to be the new normal, and not just with dive equipment.

Divegoose

Be very careful never to breath in from your BCD....the silicone spray is not at all good for your lungs!
You should not be breathing in from your BCD anyway....lots of chance for mold and crud, also not good for your lungs...but some people do as a way to get all the air out of the BCD before packing or doing a "hot drop." Don't be like them.

Rather than fixing an inflator AFTER it is sticky, the best -practice is to keep it from getting sticky; one of these or these will help a lot.

 

[CT Sean]

They sell the inflator alone for 30 bucks or so on ebay here's one example (on the chance this is the right style)

Oceanic Reliant Power Inflator Handle Kit Dive Regulator Scuba Diving 08.4030 | eBay

I believe the Oceanic BCs use a 3/4" I.D. inflator tube so the industry standard stuff that a lot of places sell don't fit - as they are designed for a 1" I.D. tube.