Help! inflator hose and dump valves fused shut

[cool_hardware52]

I didn't knew that inside the bladder was another piece of hardware (the T nut), I though that the male center post was welded to the bladder.

It is in some designs, particularly designs that use Urethane coated nylon as a single layer for both the bladder and shell. Even when the "T" nut is welded to the bladder it' possible for the "double nut" to get stuck in the OPV cover.


Tobin

 

[ifukuda]

I was able to get the valves off. I soaked the stuck valves in hot water and muscled the valves open with a pair of pliers.

The "nut" on the OPV/Dump valve came off pretty easily. The one on the inflator did not. The points on the "nut" that were in contact with the pliers, have been crushed flat. I wish I could have taken off the "nut" cleaner, but it was probably the best I can do. Oh, well...

 

[Mandy3206]

Just got my new BC tool from Dive Rite Express, thou my main BC is OMS the DR BC tool works on the OMS and the inflator hose Pull Dump assbly fits perfectly the OMS threads as advised here in SB.

Yesterday, I disasemble the whole BC and found a few curious things:

1- The inner bladder on my 45# bladder is very big, I would venture to say that it's the same as the 100# bladder just the outer shell is smaller.
I like that since when you inflate the BC to the max, the outer shell takes the stress, not the inner bladder.

2- I was surprised to find out that the T nut inside the bladder was loose in there, not welded to the inner bladder.
I like that since in the event of a inner bladder failure, you only replace the bladder and use the same T nuts, saving money in a replacement.

3- I was surprised not to find any salt deposits, even near the T nuts or anywhere inside the outer shell, seems that the soaking of the bladder and and rinsing with a hose afterward, including between the inner bladder and outer shell works great disolving the salt crystals between the bladders.


Now with the BC Tool, I tightened the T nut and the double nut, eliminating the problem described originally in this thread.

 

[Mandy3206]

When disassembling the BC, the lower pull dump valve came out with the double nut fused as described originally in the thread, after trying all the methods described in the thread , including my own friction method, I couldn't take them apart, so I resorted to freezing the whole thing for about 2 hrs and then removed it from the freezer and warmed with my hand the pull dump cover, leaving the double nut "freezed", then with the friction method, it just came apart effortlessly like it had grease between the threads leaving no marks on the double nut or any hardware, just a variation of the hot-cold method