Hydro testing

[ReelDuel]

Where is the closest place to get 6 tanks hydro tested near Montgomery Alabama. What kind of price am I looking at. I also need to have 2 sets of Atomic regulator checked out. email reelduel@gmail.com

 

[Hetland]

Any dive shop can set you up with Hydros. $25/tank plus a visual inspection +/-$12 is typical, but prices can vary wildly.

I'm not familiar with these shops, but here are the Atomic dealers in your area:

Sea Divers Inc.
Phone: (334)-774-3483
246 S. Merrick Ave.
Ozark, AL 36360

Chattahoochee Scuba
Phone: (706)-507-2573
1639 Bradley Park Dr., Ste. 500 PMB 377
Columbus, GA 31904

 

[Wayward Son]

sea divers has the best technician around. Tanks will be done quickly, regs won't. George does all of them himself & for years has dealt with a backlog.

 

[ReelDuel]

Can George do hydro at his shop or does he send them out?? Chatahoochee has a Atomic tech who actually works on Maxwell AFB who I have tried to get to do my regs but he doesnt even return calls, So I dont know what I am going to do.. Only a single dive shop here in Montgomery and the send out hydro and dont do Atomic.

 

[Wayward Son]

he uses a local shop for hydro, turn around is quick.

 

[Bob DBF]

Call around the fire extinguisher shops, the either do the hydros or know who does. Unless a dive shop has a lot of business and does it themselves, they send it out to a fire extinguisher outfit which has tens of thousands of commercial fire extinguishers to keep in hydro, and sets up to hydro anything for anybody as well.



Bob
----------------
I may be old, but I'm not dead yet.

 

[mike_s]

Call around the fire extinguisher shops, the either do the hydros or know who does. Unless a dive shop has a lot of business and does it themselves, they send it out to a fire extinguisher outfit which has tens of thousands of commercial fire extinguishers to keep in hydro, and sets up to hydro anything for anybody as well.

I agree with the above. 95+ % of the LDS's use a local DOT certified hydro shop. Often these are shops that do fire extinguishers or welding bottles.


Just note, that these shops don't care about any "residue" left in the tank if they are filling it with c02 powder for a fire extinguisher. Or they don't always use "fresh clean water". so chances are your tank will come back and need cleaned.



My LDS did hydro's for about $25 plus $10 for a visual.
I could take it to the fire extinguisher shop and get it done for about $12.

Same place my shop takes it. So the shop really isn't making any money off you once he has to pay an employee to drive down and drop off your tank.... then send the employee back the next day to pick them up. They they might have to clean residue out of it.

So by the time I go drop the tank off at the hydro facility....... go pick it up.... then take it to the shop to have it cleaned and filled, I'm not really saving any extra money as I've had to make two extra trips myself.




now when I say 'cleaning', I mean "get the crap out". not O2 cleaning. expect o2 cleaning to be more as they have to use special cleaners and spend more time on it.

 

[oldschoolto]

I agree with the above. 95+ % of the LDS's use a local DOT certified hydro shop. Often these are shops that do fire extinguishers or welding bottles.


Just note, that these shops don't care about any "residue" left in the tank if they are filling it with c02 powder for a fire extinguisher. Or they don't always use "fresh clean water". so chances are your tank will come back and need cleaned

now when I say 'cleaning', I mean "get the crap out". not O2 cleaning. expect o2 cleaning to be more as they have to use special cleaners and spend more time on it.

Part of the knowledge of doing a hydro on cylinders is knowing what gas is being used in the cylinder and keeping it safe to use that gas... And the "special" cleaner for a Nitrox / O2 tank is Simple Green and warm water....

Jim...

Edited to add.... Not picking on anyone.... Just adding my 2 cents....

 

[mike_s]

Part of the knowledge of doing a hydro on cylinders is knowing what gas is being used in the cylinder and keeping it safe to use that gas... And the "special" cleaner for a Nitrox / O2 tank is Simple Green and warm water....

Jim...

Edited to add.... Not picking on anyone.... Just adding my 2 cents....

Correct.

a lot of dive shops use Simple Green. Some use other citrus type cleaners... others different ones.

I didn't post "simple green" because I didn't want someone to think, "oh I can just spray it down with simple green and put o2 in it". (as you said, keeping it safe to use that gas).


for the others reading here..... it's more involved than just spraying it in.. They use glass beads and roller/tumblers to slowly spin the tank on it's side. The glass beads rolling for a time period, in that cleaner, will remove residue adhered to the side of the cylinder. The valve will likely need o2 servicing also.

 

[Hetland]

Correct.

a lot of dive shops use Simple Green. Some use other citrus type cleaners... others different ones.

I didn't post "simple green" because I didn't want someone to think, "oh I can just spray it down with simple green and put o2 in it". (as you said, keeping it safe to use that gas).


for the others reading here..... it's more involved than just spraying it in.. They use glass beads and roller/tumblers to slowly spin the tank on it's side. The glass beads rolling for a time period, in that cleaner, will remove residue adhered to the side of the cylinder. The valve will likely need o2 servicing also.

simple green is one of many, but I don't use it because it seems to leave a residue.

In any event, it is the VALVE, rather than the tank that needs the most attention in O2 cleaning operations (assuming your tank doesn't need a tumble). The valve has to be totally broken down and cleaned properly. The valve has to then be reassembled using O2 compatible replacement components and lubricants.

Unless your shop uses partial-pressure blending, or, you plan on filling a tank with something higher than 40% nitrox, Oxygen cleaning is unnecessary. I could see justification for smaller, low-volume shops using PP blending, but I'd look sideways at any high-volume shop that uses PP blending, or requires O2 service for tanks that are getting nitrox fills through other methods. Either the shop is too cheap to build a nitrox stick (what else are they skimping on, filters?) or they're intentionally selling you something you don't need.

Technically, you don't "need" vips either, but it's a reasonable cost if they're actually performed properly, and it's smart to thoroughly inspect your tanks on a regular basis.