Best source for tanks

[jamiei]

They should walk you through to show you that they know what they are doing and do quality work... it is our life on the line, not theirs... its called good customer service and how you earn a new customer. Do you trust strangers with your life?

No one accused any shop owner of cheating them on a tank Mike... its on everything else. We as customers have no obligation to supply you with profit. Supply and Demand. There used to be not much supply and dive shops prospered. Now there is a vast supply and that lessons the demand for all the LDSs all over the place. If you think the world will stop if you go under, think again. You have to give a little to get a little and as I pointed out and you demonstrate, most LDS's have a chip on their shoulder for no reason. Well, a lot of divers have a chip on their shoulder and they have a reason behind it. I can't help it you live in the middle of nowhere and try to run your shop. Filling a few tanks for free might get you a long way. You do have free time to do that don't you? A phone call is worth it even if you only make $3 profit on the whole deal. Its your business and you should go for every honest dollar you can come by if you want it to succeed. I may be an "idiot" but I know $3 is much better than $0. :bonk:

They want the extras because you charge them for it anyway... what is your price tag out the door on an Al 80? Is it filled? Do you have so many customers during the day that you don't have time to do an inspection? Dive shop owners aren't professional sales people, often dont have any special skills or educational background, aren't in big demand anymore (partly due to every dive bum around opening a shop or... your own fault), and for some reason feel like you deserve to make any more money than anyone else with a business such as yours. If theres no demand and you take that chance... its all on you.

 

[MikeFerrara]

Walking someone through a rebuild process won't show them what I know unless they are techs. Do you do this with the guy who does your breaks (or whatever).

However, if they are really interested they can take an equipment class.

I never charge someone for something they don't get. If they get a tank that's what they paid for.

I don't think we have near as much free time on our hands as you think.

I effectively make more if you buy the tank somewhere else and bring it in for a visual. At least that way I can charge for the visual without trying to squeeze it into what you folks think is a "fair markup on a tank. When you consider I avoid having my $110 sitting in a tank and paying extra tax on the inventory I come out ahead for sure. Yes I make a couple dollars on a tank but not as much as if I put my money and time somewhere else.

 

[Scubaroo]

jamiei,

No offence, but you seem to be the one with the chip on the shoulder when it comes to dive shops - how about we all back off a little.

The general consensus of the thread is that is generally more effective to buy a tank from the LDS, unless you live in Colorado

 

[jamiei]

none taken and I also agree that the lds is the best place to buy a tank most of the time. All new tanks need a visual and I don't mind paying for that on top of the price nor would most people. Its just when the shop says, $180 for the al 80 and $20 more for a vis that really bothers me.

also, I don't mean step by step, do the service in front of them, but if you do let them sit in on it or even part of it, they will really appreciate it and gain a lot of confidence in you. Equipment class? come on

 

[joens]

I dont think it is fair for a dive shop to sell a tank and not be allowed to either increase the cost of the tank to defray the cost of the vis or charge extra for it . and the first vis is an important one there are sometimes defects that are discovered in the vis that were missed at the factory. I agree that colorado's prices are a bit high but someone who charges 120$ for a AL80 is not making back what the vis costs .so they are either losing money on the deal or not performing the vis.
joens

 

[chris_b]

joens once bubbled...
...they are either losing money on the deal or not performing the vis...

How much does it cost to do a vis? I don't mean how much do shops charge for it, but how much does it cost someone in terms of time (i.e. how long does it take)? And how much does it cost to get "certified" to do visual inspections?

 

[joens]

chris_b once bubbled...


How much does it cost to do a vis? I don't mean how much do shops charge for it, but how much does it cost someone in terms of time (i.e. how long does it take)? And how much does it cost to get "certified" to do visual inspections?

the PSI course costs around 250$ give or take [and well worth it ]
talk about an eye opener. and an experienced well organized inspector might be able to do an inspection in under 15 minutes but most of us might take a little longer.
joens

 

[MikeFerrara]

We plan on spending about 20 minutes on a tank inspection. We charge $10 plus $5 for the fill for a total of $15. A clean tank can be faster while a beat up one may take a good bit longer. Sometimes we see something we are unsure of and get a second opinion or visual+ at no extra cost to the customer. The worst part are all the dings that are deep enough to take a second look at or the marks that look like cracks but aren't or are they? and trying to gauge the depth of internal corrosion. Some tanks are a breeze but some are a pita. If you do fail a tank get ready for a fight.

Some of our DM's took the course a couple weeks ago and the first thing they said is that we don't charge enough. They said the same thing after a blender class and cleaning some tanks and mixing gas into them.

I encourage divers to take a class. Like anything else the more a person knows the easier they seem to be to deal with. It's like working on a car just because someone knows how doesn't mean they want to do it.

If you had enough tanks to inspect and regs to rebuild to keep you busy full time you would never pay the rent.

 

[jamiei]

how much do you have to bring in an hour just to break even, not paying yourself of course. This is really an straight out question, i'm not leading you into anything. If you do a quality vis for $10, then I applaud you. Mine charges $25 with no air and they don't even want to touch an old steel one like mine. They say its junk even though its still well in hydro and has had several inspections from respected shops (not theirs). Leads me to wonder about their integrity... And this is the shop I like even... The other one doesn't even fill tanks... but he'll rent you a full one (or close to full) for $12 while the other shop rents them for $7.

 

[OkieDiver]

Jamiei,
I was looking at your website and was curious about a couple of your charges. What do I get for my $35 to "install" a washer or dryer? The last time I "installed" a washer, it involved hooking up 2 supply hoses and a drain hose, plugging it in and making sure it was level. 15 minutes tops. At that rate, $140 per hour, I need to quit my day job and install washers and dryers for a living. The dryer took even less time.