How do you maintain your gear?

[Darin]

I have been diving a little while now, just about a year and just finished my AOW. I dive every week, usually two dives at the lake.

My question is this; Divers have a lot of (expensive) gear that needs to be taken care of and maintained.

How do you do it? What's your secret? I find that it takes me around 2 1/2 to 3 hours to get everything sorted, rinsed, soaked, and hung up or laid out to dry. Then another hour or so a day later to get everything packed up and stored for the next trip.

I have been occasionally guilty of leaving everything in the bag until the next trip but I avoid this if I can.

It doesn't help that I live in a small apartment and have to do everything in the bathtub and a big plastic tub.

Any ideas? Any thing you can recommend that would help save time?

Thanks!

Darin

 

[ScubaDadMiami]

I also live in an apartment. So, I try to do as much as I can at the boat dock rather than at home.

At home, I converted a shower into a rinsing and drying rack that I made from PVC. You can attach a hose to the shower head, and you can rinse your gear pretty well this way. This also allows me to continue to use the shower if I need to in the event that I have guests. Rather than put my gear in the bag, I prefer to leave it on the rack until the night before my next dive just to make sure everything is completely dry.

The main thing that I think is a good idea to do is to soak your regulators beyond the rinse that you give at the dock. Make sure that you use a good cap and do not depress the purge valve when soaking. After you put them in the water, leave there for a while. Then, swish in the water before draining. Change the water, and then soak again. This will keep your regulators working at peak performance between regular servicing.

 

[UnixSage]

At home, I converted a shower into a rinsing and drying rack that I made from PVC.

Nice job on that. Is it free standing or is perminately attached?

 

[ScubaDadMiami]

Nice job on that. Is it free standing or is perminately attached?

Free standing. I can take it apart if I ever need to do so.

 

[Charlie99]

It doesn't help that I live in a small apartment and have to do everything in the bathtub and a big plastic tub.

Any ideas? Any thing you can recommend that would help save time?

Does your apartment complex have a carwash area? If so, get a couple tubs and do it there, or do it at the docks/boat ramp in the boat washdown area. The tubs can be used for hauling the wet gear to wherever you hang it for drying.

Using the carwash area of my Maui condo and a couple of 58 quart Sterilite tubs has gotten my rinse and clean routine down to only about 30 minutes. That includes the 5 or 10 minutes I spend washing the car while my gear drys a bit while hanging on some line I throw over some nails I hammered into the trees next to the carwash area.

 

[Hoosier]

That's what I do right after every dive. Even though I dive in a local quarry, fresh water, I just rinse all my gear because of the smell and bacteria growth.

I posted the thread about time consuming for the local trip. One of members from NY brought a good idea like Charlie99 said.

I also live in the apartment that doesn't have a garage (PITA). Even my apartment complex doesn't have a car wash place. So, I have to make a trip to other apartment complex. Anyway, I bought two huge tubs for carrying and rinsing the gear, BCD, Wetsuit, glove/boot/reg hangers from UK. After rinsing out the gear, I hang it on the trees on that car wash site for 5 ~ 6 min. And, bring it back to home and hang it at the cheap rack ($20) from hardware store in my patio. The good part is you don't that much water drop thanks to the first 5 min hanging on the tree. I also have two bath rooms, but it is PITA to hang it and cleaning out the drain the water in the small area. It only takes 30 min for all.

Does your apartment complex have a carwash area? If so, get a couple tubs and do it there, or do it at the docks/boat ramp in the boat washdown area. The tubs can be used for hauling the wet gear to wherever you hang it for drying.

Using the carwash area of my Maui condo and a couple of 58 quart Sterilite tubs has gotten my rinse and clean routine down to only about 30 minutes. That includes the 5 or 10 minutes I spend washing the car while my gear drys a bit while hanging on some line I throw over some nails I hammered into the trees next to the carwash area.

 

[Spoon]

i generally rinse my gear after every dive at the site. usually takes about 30 mins. then i once again hose down and strip my gear. thorough rinsing with a hose and soaking them in a nice container for about ten mins. then hang to dry. usually takes about 30 mins.

 

[SHARKBAIT94]

WOW, I’m waaaaaaaaaay to anal about my gear, after reading this post. (this is x2 mine and my fiancés gear) Once my/our dive in complete all gear goes in a huge Tupperware bin for the ride home. Once at home I hang all gear on a line and spray it off to get rid of salt and dirt and what other crude maybe on it. Then I open up the bladders and fill with water and two cap full of mouth wash (Listerene) shake the ba-Jesus out of it and let it soak for ten minutes. While that’s being done I continue to spray off the wet suites, hoods, gloves, boots and mask mainly penny’s (my fiancé) she has a neoprene goggles strap then off into the a 36 gallon drum filled with fresh water. Then back to the bc’s pull the exhaust valves to drain the mixture out, filling up once again this time with plan Ol water thru each exhaust valve and power inflator, constantly flushing until I no longer get a salt water taste in my mouth from the power inflator. Then once that’s done off the bc’s go to another 40 gallon drum filled with fresh water. Then the regs get connected to the bottles and charged and sprayed down. Once I no longer get a salty taste from the regs or octo’s, I put them in the Tupperware bucket filled with fresh water and 2-4 table spoons of sodium bicarbonate and let the regs and bottles soaks. Now once that’s all done I take all the cutlery and rinse them off and put them in a five gallon buck with 2 table spoons of sodium bicarbonate and let them soak. While everything is soaking (same anal retentive care goes for flash lights and soon my camera and spear) I go and clean out the back of our truck and then wash the truck getting all salt and saltwater off the car. Once the car is done I go back and wash off the bc hanger, shoulder saver and accessories hanger, hang them up and get them prepped and ready. Go inside take a shower grab a bit to eat watch some tv or what ever else Penny needs/wants to be done around the house, only fair she spent the day with me and our friends diving I can help her with what ever needs to be done, keeping in mind all the gear is still soaking/rinsing . Going out side to stir up the water and do a 50/50 exchange in water and purge the regs a little. After about three hours of soaking I/we start pulling gear, draining the bladders and hanging them up pulling the suites, boots, gloves, hoods and hanging them. Grab the bottles and reg set ups , purging them till most of the water is out, turn off the bottles disconnect, connect the reg set ups to the hanger let them hang to dry. Once the suits are dry if they seem a little stiff I run a little zipper wax down them and put the gear away. While doing this if it looks like its going to rain we pull out the pop up 10x10. All the cutlery gets pulled towel dried and them wiped down with hoppes number 9 (a gun oil and rust prohibiter) and test for sharpness if needed they get put on a diamond laced sharpener. Once everything is done and dry everything gets hung up ready for the next dive, speaking of which will be Monday, tomorrow actually and Tuesday if the storms stay way. I/we really are anal retentive about the gear myself more then Penny. Even my firefighter and medic gear :cop_2: . When the instructors kept saying and cramming the words LIFE SUPPORT GEAR, THE GEAR THAT WILL ALLOW YOU TO BREATH AND STAY ALIVE UNDER WATER. KEEP IT CLEAN AND TAKE PROPER CARE OF IT aranoid: :eyecrazy: . We do. We keep and maintain it as such, life support gear. Every time we go diving I always say lets just wash it and hang it, but it never works out that way, it gets to be a pain in the *internet edit* but we would not have it any other way. When we start doing trips for diving and not staying at a friend or relatives place I’ll probably have a stroke not knowing what to do with out washing the gear the anal retentive way.

 

[lackingcreativity]

I have been diving a little while now, just about a year and just finished my AOW. I dive every week, usually two dives at the lake.

My question is this; Divers have a lot of (expensive) gear that needs to be taken care of and maintained.

How do you do it? What's your secret? I find that it takes me around 2 1/2 to 3 hours to get everything sorted, rinsed, soaked, and hung up or laid out to dry. Then another hour or so a day later to get everything packed up and stored for the next trip.

I have been occasionally guilty of leaving everything in the bag until the next trip but I avoid this if I can.

It doesn't help that I live in a small apartment and have to do everything in the bathtub and a big plastic tub.

Any ideas? Any thing you can recommend that would help save time?

Thanks!

Darin

To rince my gear I converted a new plastic trash can into a washing machine. I used PVC with holes in it which I connected to my hose to create water jets to clean my gear and freshen the water. At the bottom of the can there is a drainage hole where I connect a hose to dump the water off in the street. I let this run for about a half hour. Then I wash out the inside of my BC and take out my regs. After that I stop the draining water and pour some mouth wash into the can of water.. I let that soak for a few minutes then drain the can. After this I hang everyting to dry. The nice thing about this system is that the washing is automatic. I can wash my gear for as long as I want without any extra effort.

 

[Hoosier]

Any pictures for this. Thanks in advance,

To rince my gear I converted a new plastic trash can into a washing machine. I used PVC with holes in it which I connected to my hose to create water jets to clean my gear and freshen the water. At the bottom of the can there is a drainage hole where I connect a hose to dump the water off in the street. I let this run for about a half hour. Then I wash out the inside of my BC and take out my regs. After that I stop the draining water and pour some mouth wash into the can of water.. I let that soak for a few minutes then drain the can. After this I hang everyting to dry. The nice thing about this system is that the washing is automatic. I can wash my gear for as long as I want without any extra effort.