Confidence in a rebuild?

[editmojo]

Just bough a used reg and took it to a new LDS for service. (My old shop closed.) There's a pool on site so when I picked up the reg I jumped into the pool to check it out. I noticed a very small air leak at the hose fitting to the octo. The nut was loose. When I tried to finger tighten it I hear a small pop and now the leak is substantial.

No problem. I'm at the shop so I take the freshly refurbished reg to the tech. He puts in a new o-ring. Back to the pool-- all is good. When I'm home rinsing my gear I noticed the hose nut on my primary second stage is also loose. I snuged it up. I have given the reg a good look over and can find nothing else obviously wrong.

Now I'm starting to wonder. It's a new shop for me. It has a good reputation. But was the tech having a bad day?

My question is: Could there be an issue with the regulator that wouldn't arise during a 10 ft pool dive but only show up at greater depth? From the little I know about regs (mostly from lurking here) I'm assuming that if I get air at 10 ft I should be good.

Thanks.

 

[redacted]

The tech is not just having a bad day, he is sloppy. The loose connection is a tech error that should happen rarely at best. When his error was pointed out and he failed to check for similar errors on the rest of the reg, it starts to get to be negligence. There are a number of connection on a regulator that need to be properly torqued. Unless you are up to doing it yourself, I'd talk to the shop owner about what you found and that you are not comfortable diving with that reg and see what he proposes. If he doesn't have anything to propose (like have another tech thoroughly check it out, tell him you want a refund as you will need to have it serviced again elsewhere.

 

[NeedABiggerBoat]

I would tend to agree with awap. This guy sounds like a joker to me.

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

The tech is not just having a bad day, he is sloppy. The loose connection is a tech error that should happen rarely at best. When his error was pointed out and he failed to check for similar errors on the rest of the reg, it starts to get to be negligence. There are a number of connection on a regulator that need to be properly torqued. Unless you are up to doing it yourself, I'd talk to the shop owner about what you found and that you are not comfortable diving with that reg and see what he proposes. If he doesn't have anything to propose (like have another tech thoroughly check it out, tell him you want a refund as you will need to have it serviced again elsewhere.

What awap said... I'd say dangerously negligent.

If I'd been the tech, and you had handed me that reg, I'd have been extremely embarassed, and I would not have given it back until I was damned sure I had not "missed" anything else.

Everyone has a bad day, but that was two strikes on the same reg by the same tech.... dangerous.

Best wishes.

 

[Van Isle]

I disagree that the tech is neccessarily negligent. If you asked him to fix that specific leak and he fixed it that's fine. If you paid for an inspection and an overhaul and then he was sloppy THAT would be negligent. I'm not sure I understand the whole story.

 

[a878bob]

sloppy-yes, negligent-yes, trust them-No, unusual-NO.
We've all heard similiar stories. That's why I repair/service my own gear now, then take in the pool for a thorough test before taking it to real water. If it goes bad, I cant blame anybody but me!

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

I disagree that the tech is neccessarily negligent. If you asked him to fix that specific leak and he fixed it that's fine. If you paid for an inspection and an overhaul and then he was sloppy THAT would be negligent. I'm not sure I understand the whole story.

Van Isle,

The OP said this: "Just bought a used reg and took it to a new LDS for service." He also said he took his "refurbished" reg into the pool to be tested after initial servicing.

When the OP picked it up after having the reg serviced, there was a leak from an un-tightened 2nd stage (the octo). He attempted to tighten it, he heard a pop (o-ring extrusion I'd guess) and the leak worsened. He returned it to the tech, who replaced the o-ring, fixing the leak... but when the OP got home, he discovered the nut on the primary 2nd stage is also loose.

This points to sloppy, negligent service. Basic mechanical competence was lacking if the tech forgot to tighten two fittings, and the tech must be "drain bamaged" if he did not think to re-check EVERY fitting after the OP pointed out the loose 2nd stage to him....

I'm sorry, but there is no polite way to say it: The tech screwed the pooch. I would not trust the reg until a different tech completely rebuilt it.

Find a new tech to do the work.

Best wishes.

 

[aquaregia]

I had a mechanic leave a wrench in my van after a clutch rebuild. Buggered up the whole thing, and the shop still charged me for the repairs. My friends think I'm nuts for working on my SCUBA gear myself (with the help of SB), but I'm not letting anyone touch anything of mine that they don't have to use.

 

[scubafanatic]

I recently had a couple regs worked on by a new LDS (well, new to me anyway, but they've been in business locally a LONG time, just thought I strike up a relationship and give them a try) and during a test pool dive discovered one reg had a very loose connection where the primary 2nd-stage hose screws into the 1st-stage...when I exited the pool I was surprised to see how easily the hose could have completely unscrewed, and spooked by imagining the consequences if that thing had disconnected in the middle of a real (deep) ocean dive ! So, as Ronald Reagan used to say about the Russkies: "Trust, but verify." I now will at least check the tightness of all hose fittings (including where hoses screw into 2nd-stages)......pressurize the reg hooked to a tank/BC and see if there is any leakage...and breathe the reg on dry land.....I feel these double checks on my part will rule out the worst of the possible reg tech omissions.

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

I had a mechanic leave a wrench in my van after a clutch rebuild. Buggered up the whole thing, and the shop still charged me for the repairs. My friends think I'm nuts for working on my SCUBA gear myself (with the help of SB), but I'm not letting anyone touch anything of mine that they don't have to use.

The nice thing with scuba gear is that for the most part is is simple, reliable, and VERY easy to service if you have just the slightest mechanical ability (and the interest to do it).

There are lots of great techs out there. But lots of horror stories too. Servicing regs is not "rocket surgery", but it DOES take attention to detail. The service horror stories I've heard are almost always result from a lack of attention to detail.... parts not properly tightened, over-tightened, improperly installed, etc.

The DIY'ers are more likely to pay VERY close attention because they are less rushed, and infinitely more motivated to do it right

Best wishes.