Cleaning/sanitizing/disinfecting your gear

[clownfishsydney]

Never sanitised any gear except my wetsuit (use a mild detergent every now and then) in almost 4,000 dives. Cannot see any reason to since I use it regularly.

 

[AfterDark]

I load everything (except tanks) in an open top 55 gal plastic barrel and fill it with freshwater. After marinating overnight, each item is removed and dipped/rinsed in a second smaller barrel of freshwater. Then hung in the shade to air dry. I fill the wing with freshwater using one of those filler hoses you attach to the inflator. The regs I soak / rinse with warm water and air dry. Once a year usually Nov. the wet suit gets washed in the washing machine with detergent and cold water.
Sanitizing, disinfecting, with personal gear is overkill IMO. I do like the denture tablet idea for the boots, going to try that; I can't even stand my boots!

 

[BoltSnap]

The most important thing to do is rinse your gear thoroughly with fresh water after diving, especially after diving in salt water. Disinfecting/sanitizing on a daily basis is not necessary, unless you are diving in known nasty waters.

There are even some rebreather divers who primarily rinse vs disinfect/sanitize, and once or twice a year will disinfect/sanitize (as needed or for the heck of it). As far as I can tell, the rinse-only crowd does not appear to get more sick than the religious disinfect/sanitize folks.

Just something to consider!

I am talking about a dive school's training equipment, not personal equipment! If you are taking a diver training course, I am sure that you would appreciate that the training equipment you are using including masks, fins, boots, snorkel, etc. has been cleaned and disinfected properly before you put it on and use it in a class.

My own personal equipment gets rinsed in fresh water after use and occasionally the neoprene parts gets soaked in fresh water with a disinfectant, Dettol.

 

[chillyinCanada]

I like it when the dive operation has added a little Dettol to the wetsuit rinse tank, even though I haven't peed in either of my most recent suit purchases. I think my kidneys are failing. It never used to be like this.

 

[lv2dive]

That totally makes sense, I just hadn't seen anything in your posts in this thread to lead to believe you were referencing a dive school. I tried to keep up with everyone but it is a little bit challenging to know where everyone is coming from

I am talking about a dive school's training equipment, not personal equipment! If you are taking a diver training course, I am sure that you would appreciate that the training equipment you are using including masks, fins, boots, snorkel, etc. has been cleaned and disinfected properly before you put it on and use it in a class.

My own personal equipment gets rinsed in fresh water after use and occasionally the neoprene parts gets soaked in fresh water with a disinfectant, Dettol.

 

[TMHeimer]

When I used to DM courses we had the students rinse everything after each weekend. They could do it at the shop or at home. But of course you don't know how thorough they did it, especially if at home (in which case, if at all). So I can understand someone using it could be concerned about sanitizing.

 

[BoltSnap]

sanitizing

"Sanitizing" or "disinfecting" it????????????????

 

[elgoog]

I just got a P-valve installed in my drysuit and I'm sanitizing that after every dive day because I'm absolutely terrified about getting a UTI.

At least I think I'm sanitizing it - copious fresh water rinse, alcohol/vinegar solution, more fresh water, blow dry with one those BC hose blower attachment thingamajigs. I just bought some Steramine and Hibiclens as well, not yet used it but the advice I've gotten is to flush with those once every couple of months. If all this gives the impression I'm being paranoid on top of being terrified about UTIs, it's because I am.

 

[BoltSnap]

When I used to DM courses we had the students rinse everything after each weekend. They could do it at the shop or at home. But of course you don't know how thorough they did it, especially if at home (in which case, if at all). So I can understand someone using it could be concerned about sanitizing.

It isn't only after the training dives in openwater, but also at the end of the pool sessions. I have students in full equipment including wetsuits, etc. as if they are in openwater during the confined water/pool training.

I have students rinse the equipment in their homes when doing the openwater work but I still soak the equipment in Dettol before starting a new class. I believe that it is a necessary courtesy for our students. If the rental/training equipment isn't good enough for me to use, for ANY reason, it isn't good enough to my students.

 

[tbone1004]

no need to do any of this for personal gear. Breather divers have to because they have to keep the loop disinfected because of "bagpipe lung". Scuba divers have gotten it after breathing out of their bcd's which is not good if you never disinfect.
This buildup occurs because it's basically a dark, moist, and closed system. Minimal airflow keeps it moist, and it's dark, so stuff likes to grow in there. Double hose regulators can get the same thing in their loop hoses, but less common since they are easier to flood and rinse all the way out.

With traditional regulators, just rinse them properly, dry them properly, and you won't have to worry about it.

you brought up bleach and silicone, but bleach attacks butyl rubber and nylong VERY quickly, so don't use it there. Steramine is perfectly fine to use for rinsing the bladder of your wing, but the question is why? Full the wing with some sort of inflator adapter, or just stuff the hose end on the end of the oral inflate opening to fill it. Fully orally inflate it and slosh the water around. Drain and leave fully inflated. Not much is going to grow in there and if you don't plan on breathing through the wing it's a nonissue