Buying new set of tanks - Looking for advice

[wolflegresley]

Good Morning fellow Scuba Boarders, I'm currently in the market to purchase some scuba tanks (2-4) and I want to ensure I'm getting the best bang for my buck.

Some background information:

• Although I am not looking to exceed NDLs (yet), I am looking to maximize my bottom time on Nitrox (with a MOD of around 100-130 feet).
• I am not into tech diving yet..but will be looking to transition in approx 2 years.
• Although not opposed to purchasing the industry standard AL80 tanks, from what I can gather reading online/books by Steve Lewis and co is that I might be able to make a better purchase now, rather than purchasing again in the future.
• I have concerns of moving around (I'm in the military) and landing in a place that won't be able to fill an HP tank to the appropriate PSI I.E. only able to give me shortfills (or is this more of an issue outside of Canada?).
• These tanks will be normally for local diving in fresh water with the occasional trip to the ocean.
• I have measured from the floor to just the top of my shoulder blades and am around 28 inches and my wife is around 27 inches from floor to top of shoulder blades.
• I am looking to drop some lead from my BCD as I normally dive in either a 7mm wetsuit or a 7mm wetsuit with a 7mm step in vest (for 14mm core protection) and as a result am carrying a fair bit of lead.
• Will require a tank that can fit a Pro-K valve (as my regulator is DIN, but my wife's is yoke)
• Ideally I would like a tank that is either neutrally/negatively buoyant at the end of a dive (500ish PSI)
• I've looked initially at the following tanks...what would your recommendation be...or is there another tank that I haven't looked at?
• Would potentially like something that I could transform into a back mounted set of doubles (but not a deal breaker).

AL80
+ all round good tank for singles diving
+ will be useful as stage cylinder in the future (I already have an AL40 to begin my early deco career)
- Poor buoyancy characteristics
- limited on bottom time

HP117
+ Will allow me to stay down longer and benefit from diving nitrox
+ Large enough that it meets my air requirements even if short filled
-Can wear out regulator components faster (is this really an issue for a APEKS/ZEAGLE reg set that is serviced every 50 dives/year)

The shop I am considering purchasing from only has the following steel tanks available - Faber HP 80/100/117/133/149. I'm considering this shop because they will include 40-80 free fills depending on which cylinder I purchase (adds up if I'm buying 4 cylinders).

Do steel cylinders require any extra maintenance over AL cylinders other than the normal drying etc?

Ultimately I want to avoid purchasing tanks now, that I won't use in 5 years.

Thank you for any advise/tips/regret stories you can share...

 

[kombiguy]

• I have measured from the floor to just the top of my shoulder blades and am around 28 inches and my wife is around 27 inches from floor to top of shoulder blades.

Man, even small AL63s are gonna be pretty big on you. 28 inches from floor to shoulder blades means you're what, maybe 3 feet tall?

 

[OtherHalf]

If you go tech, a big single tank isn't going to be the way to go. Look at buying two Al80s. Get them with a manifold and plugs. You can plug them for diving as singles for you and your wife, or band them when its time to start your tech career. If you get a big single you'll be looking for doubles to tech dive which means youre either going to have to search for a matching steel and buy a manifold, or it gets relegated to a backup. Or is dedicated to your wife. Doubles aren't just about more gas, its about having redundancy in case of failure.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I am really confused. Who told you HP tanks will wear out reg components faster? And why would you rebuild your regs every year with that few dives on them? 50 dives a year, if they are taken care of, a reg should not need rebuilt for two or three years.

If you're worried about short fills get LP tanks. Don't even mess with HP. Look for a couple LP 95's or 108's for yourself and LP 85's for the missus. Or if her SAC rate is really good a couple LP 72's. You'll always get a good fill. A great fill turns those 95's into 120's.

If you plan on doing this a long time don't even look at al80's. Waste of money in the long run unless you plan to use them as stages down the road.

 

[wolflegresley]

Man, even small AL63s are gonna be pretty big on you. 28 inches from floor to shoulder blades means you're what, maybe 3 feet tall?

My apologies lol, its 28 inches from the top of my shoulders to the ground...WHILE I'm sitting.

 

[eelnoraa]

why don't you tell us how tall you are? Seat height can be very different

 

[wolflegresley]

why don't you tell us how tall you are? Seat height can be very different

I'm 5 foot 11 and my wife is 5 foot 7.

 

[Mcarlson]

You do not need to worry about maintenance. Tanks should last forever with even a minimum of maintenance. I still have a 72 cubic ft steel tank with an operating J-valve that we purchased in 1972.

You shouldn't hesitate to purchase used cylinders if they are a bargain. You should have them inspected and the valves serviced, but the only differences from new will be cosmetic.

I prefer the larger steel tanks. You can never have too much air available.

 

[sea_ledford]

You shouldn't hesitate to purchase used cylinders if they are a bargain. You should have them inspected and the valves serviced, but the only differences from new will be cosmetic.

Just to clarify, used STEEL tanks can be a bargain. Used AL tanks are usually not worth it. I tell people not to spend more on used AL80's than they are willing to lose. But steals on AL tanks come up...

Anyway I would also recommend steels for you. I am the same height as you and I have a pair of "HP" 119's and they are okay, height wise, a little short. They are not really HP (3442 psi), but if you cant get any thing close to 3000 psi, they'll still be a good amount of gas. Chart for comparison is here: XS Scuba Worthington Steel Cylinder Specifications

Of those Fabers, the 100s are the ones I would go with. My 119's are just too heavy for my preference, and unless I'm cave diving, I don't need that much gas. Doubled up and with an AL plate, regs etc, they come in at just shy of -40 lbs at 3200 psi.

 

[NAM001]

I have to agree with Jims post in #4.
For me LP steels are nice especially in your case with the 7mm suit. lp85's are light and have neg buoyancy to offset the suit. If you are going to doubles then its up in the air with al or steel. If you can carry the steel then fine. otherwise use al tanks. Rule of thumnb is al for fresh water are steel for salt because of the buoyancy factor and more buoyancy in salt water. I use lp 85's, 95's and 120's they often get filled to 3000. steel lasts forever. I suspect that the highly discussed streamline effect of hp steels is not a major concern to you and in my opinion you can make up for it with a streamline wing attached to an 8" tank. lp95's are short tanks 120 is really tall but with an overfill you get 150 in them. 85's are light like an al80 and when filled to 3000 give you about 95 cuft. If I were to get 4 tanks I would look at 2 lp85's and 2 lp 95's. These tanks are rated at 2640 (the plus rating) so in 5 years when you get them hydro's and they do not do the plus you will have basically 75's and 85's at 2400. Still just as good if not better than al80's. If you go to doubles in the future then the 85's doubled is a manageable set to use. 20-30# lighter than many other doubled steel tanks. as bottom time extending goes any of these will do this for you when doubled. if you are thinking single then for me I love my lp120, filled to 3k its basically doubled al80's in gas and the same basic weight but a very tall tank. I am 6" and when sitting my head hits the valve. I dont remember the specs but its a 50# tank with 10# more of air in it. Depending where you go will depend what the shop will fill the lp tank to. if its al then its 3k hot and no more. On the hp side of things, if you get the larger hp tanks then a short fill is still better than an al80 in the worse case. a hp20 would than be about a 100 with a short fill. So I guess that with lp tanks you normally get more than the reating and the hp tanks you normally get less than the rating so the real difference is the buoyancy, weight and height issues. Once again if I had to wear a 7mm suit,,,, al tanks would be off the table and I would use the buoyancy of the tank to replace lead.

Regards