Question Anyone ever had an incident because they serviced their own gear?

[Green Frog]

Well, I’ve read this thread with mixed emotions. After much reading on the Vintage Equipment Forum and repeatedly watching Bryan’s (VDH) You Tube videos, I’ve almost finished gathering parts and tools to service an old Aquarius 1st stage (piston), a Conshelf XIV 1st stage (diaphragm), and a 1085 (metal body) 2nd as would be used with both. All of my “patients” (victims?) were rescued from the bottom tiers of the market, so if I mess them up too badly, there will be little loss, and of course they will be bench tested thoroughly before pool testing before any real diving. I’m hoping that this will lead me in a productive direction. My regular dive regs are from the Conshelf series with 1085 second stages, which I have professionally serviced, so I wanted to become as familiar with the proper workings of this gear as possible

 

[JohnN]

I'll confess to a screw-up.

I serviced 5 HOG primaries in a batch (hey, it was the new year and I was bored) I forgot to check the IP on the one I use for warm water (my local diving is drysuit only), only to discover that at depth it was like sucking through a small straw.

The reg breathed great at the surface (I always breath test first), it turns out the IP was a massive 60 PSI OOPS.

The benefit of servicing my own regs, is that a low IP was the only possible explanation and I was able to borrow an IP gauge and easily fix the problem.

 

[ScubaBunga]

I've serviced my regulators (and those of my boys) for the last several years, not because I really wanted to, but because of two incitements from "professional" service. The first one was obviously never tested as the diaphragm was folded over on my second stage. The second was actually a good service, but what I was told is the o-rings (which he included after the service) were much older than the year since it had been serviced. It was suggested that they had not been replaced at last service. I do trust this guy but now that I service my own, I only talk to him about service. So now I KNOW what is my regs and how clean they are inside as I look at them myself when I feel they need servicing (usually every year). The only mishaps I've had have all been caught in post-checks - messed up a gasket (on valve), missed an o-ring on first stage - all were VERY obvious items. So far all has worked well once post-checks pass. If I do have an issue, it should be clear to me who messed it up and why over wondering if service was done right - or even at all!

Now if you are not comfortable taking things apart or you have a good LDS that does servicing - use a "professional" service provider - for my case I feel much better doing it myself.

 

[L13]

I'll confess to a screw-up.

I serviced 5 HOG primaries in a batch (hey, it was the new year and I was bored) I forgot to check the IP on the one I use for warm water (my local diving is drysuit only), only to discover that at depth it was like sucking through a small straw.

The reg breathed great at the surface (I always breath test first), it turns out the IP was a massive 60 PSI OOPS.

The benefit of servicing my own regs, is that a low IP was the only possible explanation and I was able to borrow an IP gauge and easily fix the problem.

Just for fun, not because I think it's needed, I check my IP's on all my regs just before the first dive of the day. I keep an IP gauge in my reg bag.

 

[Angelo Farina]

you can actually count the number of times you risked your life as a juvenile?

Yes, 5 times. Twice while training for free diving (apnea) in the pool, I had shallow depth blackout, and was barely resuscitated by the trainer, who luckily was watching carefully to me. I was also lucky not inhaling any chlorinated water in my lungs...
Third time was with this ARO unit, as described above.
Fourth time I was following my father, who was an hunter, during an excursion on the mountain. He saw a prey in the woods and did open fire, missing my head by a few centimeters...
Fifth time I was on my inflatable with my girlfiend, my brother and another friend. Porto Santo Stefano, near Argentario, in Tuscany. It was a cloudy, dark day, the sea was incredibly flat, so we decided it was perfect for water-ski. There were no other boats out...
While it was my turn on the skis, and I was enjoying a sequence of sharp S-turns, lightnings started to fall from the cloud, all around us.
My brother, who was driving the inflatable, speeded towards port as fast as he could, not caring of me attached behind. Luckily we were not hit by any lightning, I did not fall despite the top speed, and we arrived safe in port.
I was a quote prudent guy, when young, so I did not place my life significantly at risk in any other occasion.

 

[Tom_Ivan]

Those are five pretty incredible stories!

 

[cerich]

I think they just want to keep their dealers happy. They are often desperate to keep customers coming through their doors.

legal counsel

"So your honour, the deceased serviced their own gear and did so incorrectly that caused the failure that lead to their death"

VERSUS

"Yes your honour, our authorized dealer with manufacture approved training and endorsement serviced the gear incorrectly leading to their death"

The first is at trial and it gets dismissed.. The second is when asking for a settlement.

The myth that legal counsel is saying that brands should only let their dealers service gear is .. BS

Smart legal advice to a brand is that only the brand do approved service so as to not bear the responsibility of shops or divers doing it.

Just another lie of the dive industry in a long list of them

 

[cerich]

, is that a low IP was the only possible explanation and I was able to borrow an IP gauge and easily fix the problem.

Umm...there are other ways that can happen. Tank valve and also a couple ways regards first stage

But, on the uoside, a IP gauge is a great first step

 

[JohnN]

Umm...there are other ways that can happen. Tank valve and also a couple ways regards first stage

But, on the uoside, a IP gauge is a great first step

Ok. I should have mentioned, I always check the tank valve and pressure

What else for a balanced diaphragm could it be?

 

[cerich]

Broken spring, heavily corroded/blocked sintered filter