Coz Dive Ops That Handle Gear During Covid19
- Thread starter cobra269
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I'm scheduled for Feb. If open I'll go if not will reschedule.
Form their web site: Just received this morning
Dear Valued Guest,
We have been informed by the Cayman Islands Government that the previously announced phased reopening will not include international stayover visitors until at least mid-January 2020. No specific date for reopening the borders to visitors has been communicated.
deepsea21
Contributor
My preferred dive op 3P's is still taking care of all gear and neoprene during COVID with the exception of regulators (and masks I believe). You take those with you now, rinse yourself, and bring back to the boat with you the next day but I know many people who did that pre-COVID because they didn't want those items going into a common rinse tank. That does raise the question as far as what about the integrated back-up regs on BC's as those will go in the common rise tank with your BC but, let's be serious, if you need to swap to that integrated back-up reg COVID is going to be the least of your concerns at the time. Pretty sure everyone is safer out in the open air on a dive boat than walking into a C-store (for cigarettes no less).
Communal rinse tanks have always been nasty. Here's a 2009 article that measured rinse tanks and found them all to ne highly contaminated in the afternoon no matter how they were maintained.
Bacterial Contamination in Rinse Tanks
I think a better system would be to hang the dive gear then spray it off with a freshwater hose. Leave it hanging to dry.
Bacterial Contamination in Rinse Tanks
I think a better system would be to hang the dive gear then spray it off with a freshwater hose. Leave it hanging to dry.
deepsea21
Contributor
I recall from our prior visits, 3P's has 3 rinse tanks out back and used them properly even before COVID was around. Tank #1 has a mild soap/freshening solution added to it and is used for all BC's, fins, neoprene, etc. Tank #2 has a bleach solution added to it sufficient to kill bacteria and viruses and that tank was used for regs (don't think masks went into that tank). The 3rd tank is the common rinse tank that rinses everything that went through treatment in tanks #1 or #2.
Bottom line, in times of COVID I think 3P's best practices they put in place years ago serve me far better than others who just sunk everything into a common tank and hung it. I will also add that 3P's Boutique service will no longer include taking care of rinsing and handling your reg (and maybe your mask but I'm not sure) just to be especially careful so you'll need to rinse, wash & sterilize that as you see fit.
Is that being "especially careful" on your behalf or theirs?
Both, IMO.
keesmon
Contributor
My dive op is picking up all of my gear at my condo the day before I dive, and returning it all after my last dives. I'll dip the mouthpiece in the ocean before putting it in my mouth, but other than that I feel OK about this.
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