BCD Inflator Hose Blowing Off Vest Connection

[RossBCO]

Hello,

Converting from Lurker to 1st time poster

I have a <2 year old Cressi Travelight BCD with an odd problem. At the end of the last 2 trips to Bonaire after diving 15+ times each week with no issues, I had 1-2 incidents where the inflator hose blew off the vest side connection with a loud POP when surfacing at the end of the dive. In each case I was surfacing after a safety stop and playing around in the shallows with a nearly empty tank so my BCD was essentially empty. When hitting the surface I gave it a ~1 second blast to get positively buoyant and the hose blew off making the loud popping sound in the process. Fortunately my weighting was decent so I was able to tread water at the surface while my dive buddy pushed the hose back on the fitting, taking significant force to do so. After that the BCD functioned fine again.

I have taken the BCD to my LDS and they were unable to recreate the problem, which is not surprising given that it is very intermittent. I have also been emailing with Cressi and they have no suggestions other than to try the recommended annual maintenance. The dive shop staff appears to believe it is user error and asked questions like "Are you severely overfilling the BCD?" and "Are you tugging hard on the inflator hose during the dive" I am quite confident that neither of those scenarios is true. Even is I was overfilling the BCD it is designed to vent overpressure through the dump valves. And I can't even begin to imagine a scenario where yanking on the inflator hose while diving would make any sense at all.

What "seems" to be happening is that the air from the inflator hose is getting trapped in the hose instead of going into the bladder. I don't know what kind of fitting sits between the vest and the inflator hose but I'm guessing it's a simple pass through and not a complicated valve, but I honestly don't know. I suppose there could be something about how the BCD fits where my body is interfering with the air flow into the jacket?

Has anyone seen similar behaviors from a BCD before? Any thoughts or advice?

Thanks,
Ross

 

[tursiops]

Check whether the Schrader valve in the end of the LPI hose is tightened down. It takes a special tool to do it....which your dive shop will have or you can get at a bicycle shop or on-line. Examples:

 

[johndiver999]

If the shop suggested a possible cause is over inflation of bc, then they are clueless.


I

 

[rongoodman]

Replace the LP hose and if that doesn't work, the inflator mechanism.

 

[runsongas]

yanking is for the people that use the shoulder dump with pull cable. if you don't have a zip tie for some reason on the inflator hose, yanking can get it to detach from the inflator fitting. but in your case, it would be coming off at the inflator fitting? I can't see how it would be clogged that it would pressurize enough to blow off the inflator hose at the surface but work during your dive.

 

[happy-diver]

Mate soak the end of the hose in vinegar and water until you free up the balls in the hose mechanism

 

[tursiops]

Mate soak the end of the hose in vinegar and water until you free up the balls in the hose mechanism

A remarkably cogent and on-point post!

 

[RossBCO]

I appreciate everyone's feedback thus far!

Check whether the Schrader valve in the end of the LPI hose is tightened down. It takes a special tool to do it....which your dive shop will have or you can get at a bicycle shop or on-line. Examples:
View attachment 852912View attachment 852911

I checked the Schrader valve and it appeared to be tight. However since the BCD was at the LDS earlier, they *may* have tightened the valve before returning it to me if it was loose.

Replace the LP hose and if that doesn't work, the inflator mechanism.

This seems like solid advice but it would be nice to understand what's actually failing. Do I want to spend $200+ replacing parts on a $450 BCD that should be under warranty? Obviously no, but an even worse option is having this thing fail periodically on me.

yanking is for the people that use the shoulder dump with pull cable. if you don't have a zip tie for some reason on the inflator hose, yanking can get it to detach from the inflator fitting. but in your case, it would be coming off at the inflator fitting? I can't see how it would be clogged that it would pressurize enough to blow off the inflator hose at the surface but work during your dive.

Interesting point. I rarely (never?) use the shoulder dump as I typically either use my right hip dump when I'm horizontal or the inflator dump as I'm ascending in a vertical orientation. Also there is a zip tie on the hose to vest fitting but it may not be tight enough?

I agree with your point about the hose being clogged. I can't imagine how it would be clogged on a small fraction of my dives either, but something like that appears to be happening.

Mate soak the end of the hose in vinegar and water until you free up the balls in the hose mechanism

Happy-diver I assume you mean the quick connect fitting on the lpi hose to the inflator mechanism? That fitting seems to be working fine at the moment but then the BCD is not glitching right now either. I did 10+ ascents from 12 feet in the LDS pool today and didn't experience a single problem. However at the end of a week long trip I can see how that connection could start to get gummed up with salt and grime. I'm pretty consistent with freshwater rinses after dives but 10 minutes in a tank may not be enough to get the grime out of all the those types of places.

Thanks!
Ross

 

[happy-diver]

Just watch that DCS when you're making those tests man

Sometimes slowing from 100 approaching a roundabout I would brush the cruise control and the car would take off again like a bat out of there, much to the chagrin of the not amused crowd already driving in the roundabout

 

[happy-diver]

A remarkably cogent and on-point post!

Thanks boss that's some compliment, your posts also mean a lot to me, even when they apply to me