Ever seen an O-Ring blow?

[TwoTanks]

I don't know it this is the right place to ask this question, but it should be of special interest to solo divers.

How many people have ever had or seen an o-ring blow underwater?

I went years without seeing one and then last year I saw five.

Three yoke and two Din.

I haven't seen any since.

I had kind of assumed that it didn't really happen, but I would like to get an idea how often it does happen.

It looks to me like many solo divers aren't equiped for an o-ring failure.

 

[MASS-Diver]

I've seen one blow topside. What's the big deal if you are diving doubles s or are in shallow water?

 

[glbirch]

Had one go last year in Thailand, just before I hit the water. Swapped it out and away we went.

A properly trained/equipped solo diver (as opposed to someone diving solo) should have a redundant air source.

 

[TwoTanks]

I've seen one blow topside. What's the big deal if you are diving doubles s or are in shallow water?

If you are in doubles there is no big deal. I just want to get an idea if it is as rare as I had thought, and let people know that it does happen.

TT

 

[Scubaroo]

I've had one go underwater during a dive - yoke o-ring in Fiji just a little over a month ago.

 

[CBulla]

I have been fortunate to not have one blow underwater yet. I had one blow between dives and just after I strapped in literally ready to head back into the water. Nearly had to change my swimsuit!

 

[Diver0001]

I don't know it this is the right place to ask this question, but it should be of special interest to solo divers.

How many people have ever had or seen an o-ring blow underwater?

....snip.....

I haven't seen a DIN go yet but I've seen multiple yokes go.

I've never had this problem myself but when I still had a yoke I replaced my o-rings frequently (15-20 dives) even if they looked ok (flip them after 10, replace them after 20). If I have to rent a yoke tank on holidays the first thing I do is replace the o-ring. I don't even think about it.

Point is: you *know* it's a weak link. Be anal about it.

R..

 

[scubafool]

Mine blew, then within 15 minutes my buddy's blew. All while we were gearing up for a cavern dive. I change mine long before they look like they need it since then.

Which brings me to another question. How often, & why, do you change your DIN O-rings?

 

[Scubaroo]

I occasionally remove the DIN fitting from the regulator and give it a vinegar solution clean to remove any visible residual buildup - the faint white haze that slowly builds up in the threads over time (not salt crystals from not rinsing!!!). Change the o-ring at the same time, because you need to pick the old one out to clean it properly.

 

[fishnchips]

It happened to me 4 times. No big deal as my Spare Air came in handy. Turn off the air, back to the boat, swap a new O-ring, and get back to diving.

On 2 separate dive trips, the dive guides had their O-ring burst while underwater. Instead of buddy sharing air to goes up, I hand them my Spare Air and they just went up to the boat, swap o-ring and came back down to continue diving. Sometimes, it is good to have a completely separate redundent Air source.