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

[Doc Harry]

Once I didn't adequately tighten my 2nd stage reg on the low-pressure hose.

The reg loosened during the dive and went into free-flow. Hand-tightening did not stop the free-flow, and neither did any of the tricks to stop a free-flowing reg.

My tank went empty in about 2 minutes.

 

[The Chairman]

Hand-tightening did not stop the free-flow,

No, that would merely cut the o-ring in two. That 2nd stage has to come all the way off, the pressure turned off and then screwed back on. It's easy on a twin set, or with a buddy.

 

[Pearlman]

I have people come in complaining about how they almost died or that their regulator had extreme free flow issue underwater after their friend/spouse/father, etc. worked on it.

Any stories worthy enough for crime series documentaries?
For ex., husband serviced wifes regs just before the dives … or wife serviced husbands regs etc??

 

[SlugLife]

Once I didn't adequately tighten my 2nd stage reg on the low-pressure hose.

The reg loosened during the dive and went into free-flow. Hand-tightening did not stop the free-flow, and neither did any of the tricks to stop a free-flowing reg.

My tank went empty in about 2 minutes.

Similar story here. I was able to surface quickly and close the tank. But I didn't figure out what was actually wrong, until I discovered my 2nd stage was missing, after swimming to the boat.

 

[Nemrod]

I was servicing my regulators the other day and at the bottom of every page in the service manual is a full paragraph repeating the same lecture about how untrained divers should never attempt to service their equipment, its a great way to die, your an idiot if you try etc etc.

Is there any data to actually support this? I did a search online and there are plenty of stories about equipment failure but they all are new equipment, equipment recently serviced by a dive shop or rented equipment. Couldn't find a single story of a dive incident that was a result of poorly DIY serviced equipment.

I'd have thought if the manufactures were really interested in keeping people safe they would make the service manuals public and include more detail on how to test your equipment post service.

No, but I have had a few incidents, but mostly just damaged and poorly done, when my gear was serviced by so called trained service techs.

 

[Gone for diving]

Similar story here. I was able to surface quickly and close the tank. But I didn't figure out what was actually wrong, until I discovered my 2nd stage was missing, after swimming to the boat.

7ft hose and a necklace.

You usually will not lose the second stage....

 

[SlugLife]

7ft hose and a necklace.

You usually will not lose the second stage....

Necklace, would have made that near impossible, and I have since made that change. My regulators are always retained in some way.

7ft hose wouldn't have made a difference in that scenario. By "missing" I mean it's somewhere on the bottom of the lake sleeping with the fishes, because it came unscrewed.

 

[BoltSnap]

Any stories worthy enough for crime series documentaries?
For ex., husband serviced wifes regs just before the dives … or wife serviced husbands regs etc??

Nothing like that I can remember now but once a wife kicked her husband out of the house and sold his fancy car and very expensive dive gear for few thousand dollars after she found out that she had contracted VD from him. She beat the crapp out of him too. He was never to be seen in our neighborhood for a very long time.

 

[SlugLife]

Nothing like that I can remember now but once a wife kicked her husband out of the house and sold his fancy car and very expensive dive gear for few thousand dollars when she discovered she had contracted VD from him. She beat the crapp out of him too. He was never to be seen in our neighborhood for a very long time.

You might say "he got his gear serviced at a local dive spot (LDS), when he should have had it serviced at home instead"

 

[Bigbella]

Nothing like that I can remember now but once a wife kicked her husband out of the house and sold his fancy car and very expensive dive gear for few thousand dollars when she discovered she had contracted VD from him. She beat the crap out of him too. He was never to be seen in our neighborhood for a very long time.

"Herpes," said the Bard, "and not love, lasts forever"; or was it Tennyson?