Anyone have a supplier for 'generic' VIS stickers ?

[scubafanatic]

Here's my dilemma:

1) I own a bunch of tanks (16)

2) I don't want to spend $ on new annuals on 16 tanks every year (but want to still keep them all 'legal' so I can use them whenever I want, if the need arises.

3) I don't want to dump expensive NITROX fills just to empty them so they can be visualled.

4) My tanks are in pristine condition, and most of them just spend long periods parked over in a corner of the garage, with zero wear-an-tear (stored full just in case I need to ever call upon them)

5) Some shops have MAJOR issues seeing the VIS stickers from competing dive shops (especially Scubatoys) on tanks, and I'm a little tired of worrying about the politics/drama of all that.

.....so, anyone ever found / used some 'generic' VIS stickers that are highly likely to be accepted at most dive shops/ops ?

 

[spectrum]

What are you suggesting?

It sounds like you want to skip inspections to save gas and because cylinders are dormant. For the record, legal has nothing to do with VIP, it's an industry practice, not a law. One reason it's not a law is that the industry has worked had to self police these things and I can tell you that thinking a cylinder is pristine does not make it so. Nobody intentionally trashes the inside of a cylinder but things do happen and that's why inspections are conducted.

If you want to do this right you can get certified by PSI or others to do your own inspections. This can be a cost effective way to cover a lot of cylinders. However beware that just as some shops don' like to see the competition (that's berserk) they will be even less enthusiastic to see your stickers as not only are you not supporting them but you are not an insured business entity.

The best self inspection results I know of usually involve either compressor owners or divers who have good working relationships with the LDS.

Pete

 

[rstofer]

Tanks are only due for re-inspection when they are refilled. If you don't use the tank and it's full of high $ Nitrox, just wait until you need to get it refilled. But high $? Really? We're talking $6 for Nitrox versus $3 for air. Completely meaningless in the context of the cost of diving.

Around here, a viz costs about $10. An acquaintance and I both took the PSI VIP course. He went on to have very professional labels printed, bought all the tools and will do a VERY credible job of inspecting his 30+ tanks. I, OTOH, will NEVER bother to inspect my own tanks. For $10, I won't even bother to lift the tank much less drain it.

I have about 16 tanks as well. I keep a little spreadsheet on required inspections but I basically don't worry about it. When the tank is empty I get it refilled. If it is due for inspection, I will have that done at the same time.

Another thing about the VIP: all of my Nitrox fills are partial pressure blended. I expect the shop to be VERY concerned about the condition of my tanks. Considering the risks, they have every right to demand a credible inspection.

Richard

 

[Peter_C]

rstofer, who is doing partial pressure blending in NorCal? What city? Curious minds want to know.

Even though visuals are not a law, I feel they are an important part of owning tanks. At least with steel tanks. Most of my tanks are HP steel tanks. I have found rust in them a few times (Probably from a wet fill whip) and so far just been able to use a whip to clean them out. We bank nitrox and very rarely do I ever go to a dive shop for fills, but when needed always get fills from a shop that banks nitrox. The vis stickers I use state that they are not O2 cleaned, but safe for up to 40% oxygen. Every year my tanks get a vis, just like the industry requests.

FWIW nitrox is $10 a fill in Monterey. $8.00 if you buy a card, and only for tanks 100cf or smaller. As said before after the tank gets used, and it is due for a vis, then it gets performed.

 

[Troutmaster]

Not everywhere are VIP inspections so affordable. My "local" LDS is 45 minutes from my house, kinda the only game in town without driving over an hour. $18 for a VIP and fill. $50 for O2 clean the first time and $25 for a repeat. So $43 a year for VIP and O2 re-clean. Not crazy to want to do my own and would not take much to cover the cost of the PSI class.

I really like my shop, but tank service is costly here and shops spread out. PP blending is the norm so any tank you might want nitrox or trimix in needs to be clean for 02 service. My LDS only accepts 02 cleaning from a reliable source (a competitor is OK, as long as they are reliable) which seems reasonable since its there shop/employee that is going the get blown up if the tank fails.

 

[Scared Silly]

Some shops have problems with generic evidence of inspection stickers so do not be mislead into thinking that generic stickers will solve the problems.

As others have said, take a class from PSI / PCI, order your labels, and get to know the shop owner(s). I can take my cylinders to one of three shops and have them filled they do not question my generic stickers cause they know me and trust that I am doing them correctly.

If No 5 is a problem at a shop ask for the owner and have them explain why they seems to have a problem with a competing store's stickers. Maybe they have valid complaint. If not then vote with them $$ and tell them that unfortunately you feel that you need to take your business else where and you will let others know why.

 

[JahJahwarrior]

Here's my dilemma:

1) I own a bunch of tanks (16)

2) I don't want to spend $ on new annuals on 16 tanks every year (but want to still keep them all 'legal' so I can use them whenever I want, if the need arises.

3) I don't want to dump expensive NITROX fills just to empty them so they can be visualled.

4) My tanks are in pristine condition, and most of them just spend long periods parked over in a corner of the garage, with zero wear-an-tear (stored full just in case I need to ever call upon them)

5) Some shops have MAJOR issues seeing the VIS stickers from competing dive shops (especially Scubatoys) on tanks, and I'm a little tired of worrying about the politics/drama of all that.

.....so, anyone ever found / used some 'generic' VIS stickers that are highly likely to be accepted at most dive shops/ops ?

It sounds like you are attempting to put stickers on tanks without looking in them, or having them inspected, just to save yourself some time and money. In a few years, when hydro is due, are you going to ask us how is the best way to use tools from Harbor Freight to make a fake hydrostamp so you don't have to dump your precious nitrox fills to get the tanks hydroe'd and re-cleaned and re-filled?

Have you thought at all about the many repercussions of your actions? There are two basic problems. The first is simple, your tanks haven't been looked inside, and you are claiming that they have been. This not only puts "fill monkey's" at risk if there did happen to be some problem with the tank that a vip would have caught, but it is fraud/lying/misrepresentation on your part. If something does happen, this leaves you in trouble, not the VIP guy.

Secondly, this will only tend to make dive shops become less trusting of stickers that aren't there own. They might be pissed that you have LDS X's vip sticker now, but if they realize you are printing your own stickers and faking VIP's, they might institute a policy of "if it's not our sticker, we don't fill it," and then everyone is doubly screwed, as they have to get their tanks vipped by every shop that might fill them.

On a third note, I find it incredible that you would be willing to lie like this. Now, I think many of us have been frustrated to find a tank out of vip when we needed it, and I know none of us like paying money to have things like vip's done, but at some point you just have to man up and realize that diving has some inherent costs that you can't realistically avoid, and that it is better to pay those costs than to lie and bring a bad reputation to our sport.


Now, if you were just asking about making your own stickers so you can do your own visual inspections as a certified inspector through an agency like PSI, I am sure PSI will help you get a template to use, and any screenprinting shop should be able to make you some basic stickers. You want the backs kiss cut in or near the middle so it's easy to apply. I don't like it when they use numbers for the year and month, takes longer to make sure you know when it was vipped.

 

[scubafanatic]

Tanks are only due for re-inspection when they are refilled. If you don't use the tank and it's full of high $ Nitrox, just wait until you need to get it refilled. But high $? Really? We're talking $6 for Nitrox versus $3 for air. Completely meaningless in the context of the cost of diving.

Around here, a viz costs about $10. An acquaintance and I both took the PSI VIP course. He went on to have very professional labels printed, bought all the tools and will do a VERY credible job of inspecting his 30+ tanks. I, OTOH, will NEVER bother to inspect my own tanks. For $10, I won't even bother to lift the tank much less drain it.

I have about 16 tanks as well. I keep a little spreadsheet on required inspections but I basically don't worry about it. When the tank is empty I get it refilled. If it is due for inspection, I will have that done at the same time.

Another thing about the VIP: all of my Nitrox fills are partial pressure blended. I expect the shop to be VERY concerned about the condition of my tanks. Considering the risks, they have every right to demand a credible inspection.

Richard

Locally, an AL 80 NITROX fill is $ 12.00, and a HP 120 NITROX fill is $ 15.00...I can't imagine how you're getting a $ 6.00 NITROX fill, wanna show me the www site where a LDS is advertising a $ 6.00 NITROX fill ? Same thing about the 'vis', locally it's $ 14.

I don't need my tanks O2 clean.....my shop of choice has EAN32 banked.

 

[scubafanatic]

It sounds like you are attempting to put stickers on tanks without looking in them, or having them inspected, just to save yourself some time and money. In a few years, when hydro is due, are you going to ask us how is the best way to use tools from Harbor Freight to make a fake hydrostamp so you don't have to dump your precious nitrox fills to get the tanks hydroe'd and re-cleaned and re-filled?

Have you thought at all about the many repercussions of your actions? There are two basic problems. The first is simple, your tanks haven't been looked inside, and you are claiming that they have been. This not only puts "fill monkey's" at risk if there did happen to be some problem with the tank that a vip would have caught, but it is fraud/lying/misrepresentation on your part. If something does happen, this leaves you in trouble, not the VIP guy.

Secondly, this will only tend to make dive shops become less trusting of stickers that aren't there own. They might be pissed that you have LDS X's vip sticker now, but if they realize you are printing your own stickers and faking VIP's, they might institute a policy of "if it's not our sticker, we don't fill it," and then everyone is doubly screwed, as they have to get their tanks vipped by every shop that might fill them.

On a third note, I find it incredible that you would be willing to lie like this. Now, I think many of us have been frustrated to find a tank out of vip when we needed it, and I know none of us like paying money to have things like vip's done, but at some point you just have to man up and realize that diving has some inherent costs that you can't realistically avoid, and that it is better to pay those costs than to lie and bring a bad reputation to our sport.


Now, if you were just asking about making your own stickers so you can do your own visual inspections as a certified inspector through an agency like PSI, I am sure PSI will help you get a template to use, and any screenprinting shop should be able to make you some basic stickers. You want the backs kiss cut in or near the middle so it's easy to apply. I don't like it when they use numbers for the year and month, takes longer to make sure you know when it was vipped.

...about those hydros...in Australia, for example, hydros are done ANNUALLY !!! Here in the US, they're done every 5 years.....so just because some government or other self-appointed entity pulls a hydro limit/requirement ouf of it's *SS doesn't mean by not following a completely arbitrary 'standard' I'm being unsafe or endangering myself or anyone else ! Are you saying tanks in the US are 5 times more dangerous than an Australian tank because they're hydroed 5 times more frequently in Australia ??? By the same token, who says a 'vis' annually is the magic interval ??? I encounter AL80 tanks all over the world in rental applications that I doubt are ever given any sort of regular 'vis', I don't see anyone losing sleep over that !

 

[scubafanatic]

Some shops have problems with generic evidence of inspection stickers so do not be mislead into thinking that generic stickers will solve the problems.

As others have said, take a class from PSI / PCI, order your labels, and get to know the shop owner(s). I can take my cylinders to one of three shops and have them filled they do not question my generic stickers cause they know me and trust that I am doing them correctly.

If No 5 is a problem at a shop ask for the owner and have them explain why they seems to have a problem with a competing store's stickers. Maybe they have valid complaint. If not then vote with them $$ and tell them that unfortunately you feel that you need to take your business else where and you will let others know why.

..as I mentioned, some local shops consider WWW powerhouses (Scubatoys/Leisure Pro) to be the evil empire and don't want to see that you've been shopping over there, it has nothing to do with questioning if Scubatoys actually knows how to do a visual.