A reminder to check your hoses - and remove the strain reliefs!

[gcarter]

Last night I did dive 11 of this season, dive 11 since my regs were serviced. In spite of the fact that the service was very recent, I had a failure. Don't be complacent! In prepping for the dive I found a large crack in the outer casing of my high pressure hose approximately 1/4" / .64cm from the crimp fitting.

As I had a spare hose in my kit, I changed it out, did not miss my dive, and most importantly, did not experience an in-water failure.

Here are my take-aways:

• If I were not in the habit of checking my hoses every time I setup my tank, I may have missed this and may have had a burst hose underwater
• Had I not removed the strain reliefs from my hoses when I bought my regs, the strain relief would have covered the split / crack and I would be unaware of the issue until the hose failed
• It doesn't matter how often you check your gear or when it was last serviced - you need to check it over again every time you dive

Check your gear and dive safe!

 

[diversteve]

or it's possible the hose cracked because you removed the strain relief exposing the hose to stresses it would not normally see.

just a thought...

 

[gcarter]

I don't know how you treat your hoses, but mine don't get kinked enough to warrant using strain reliefs. I take care of my gear.

Do you use strain reliefs on all of your hoses? How often do you pull them back to check the hose?

 

[Bob DBF]

I don't put stain reliefs on new hoses I put on, as I, like @gcarter, avoid kinking hoses. I do have some with existing strain reliefs on, which I pull back and inspect periodically.

Gear wears out, whether by use, age, or abuse, and every diver should inspect their gear in an ongoing basis regardless of what configuration they prefer.

I rarely have a hose go bad, and many are decades old, granted I don't use those regs often, but my go to regs are not looking bad and have five to ten on them, as I was looking for my proper reg configuration.


Bob

 

[diversteve]

Mine get checked when the regs get serviced. I've never had a problem with corrosion - ever. Ti is pretty inert so there shouldn't be any electrolysis.

I have yet to see a hose crack or need or be replaced. In reality until my current reg - I generally turned them every 1/2 dozen years or so.

I'm sure we've all seen divers pickup and carry their gear by the reg - not the tank valve so some people put a lot of stress on them.

 

[LordElrond]

I use a strain relief on the first stage side of every hose, doing this for looks and in order not to have my hoses cracked and bulging.

I check it after every diving day, since I rinse even the hoses all the way to the fittings with a sponge and soapy water and I need to move them to clean (A bit of OCD I know)

 

[EireDiver606]

or it's possible the hose cracked because you removed the strain relief exposing the hose to stresses it would not normally see.

just a thought...

That is simply not true.

The only thing a hose protector does is prevent visual contact with corrosion. The same with hose “protector” boots.