I may have repeated this story here before but I still find it amusing, even today. Years ago, I had my PSI-PCI visual inspection stickers refused by a local dive shop because "I could have just bought the stickers off the internet.." Even though they had my PSI inspector number, I was current and I even worked for another dive operator at the time.
I didn't really want argue with them as it was their shop so it was their rules but I did of course tell the owner that I thought his rule was stupid. I was ready to leave when the owner finally recanted and filled my tanks but not before giving me a stern lecture about how he doesn't honor visual stickers he doesn't recognize but he would make this one and only exception, once. Honestly I wasn't even making a big deal about it but the owner kept wanting to lecture and rant about "internet stickers."
At the time I had renewed my PSI credentials at least 3 times (so ~9 years). I wasn't exactly brand new or ill-informed. Interestingly enough, there was actually another local dive shop that solely used PSI-PCI stickers for all their own visuals. I actually had to make sure that it was my inspector number on the tanks and not the other dive shop because I used both.
The other funny part of the story is I noticed the dive shop's own visual stickers on their rental tanks had punched out that they performed a Visual Plus (visual eddy current test) on all of their steel cylinders. I just found it funny because if they had taken any formal visual inspection training they would probably have realized that you don't perform a visual eddy current test on steel cylinders. Why should I trust them to do a visual when they can't even get that right? I am pretty sure the dive shop employee was just blindly punching out the "visual plus" on every visual they did without understanding what that meant.
The irony is I now do buy my visual stickers off "the Internet." I stopped renewing my PSI-PCI credentials because I don't work for a dive shop anymore and I had done that TDI-SDI course, which at the time (I understand they've since changed this) did not require renewals. I made my own visual stickers template because I felt slightly dishonest in using PSI-PCI stickers (even though I have stacks of them) since I am no longer current.
All of this was one of the many reasons I bought my own compressor. I know this is not feasible or cost effective for the majority of people. I also realize it doesn't help me when traveling but thankfully most dive shops in North Florida don't have silly visual sticker rules. I always make sure to travel with a stack of visual stickers when I go to Florida Keys or somewhere outside of cave country.
I didn't really want argue with them as it was their shop so it was their rules but I did of course tell the owner that I thought his rule was stupid. I was ready to leave when the owner finally recanted and filled my tanks but not before giving me a stern lecture about how he doesn't honor visual stickers he doesn't recognize but he would make this one and only exception, once. Honestly I wasn't even making a big deal about it but the owner kept wanting to lecture and rant about "internet stickers."
At the time I had renewed my PSI credentials at least 3 times (so ~9 years). I wasn't exactly brand new or ill-informed. Interestingly enough, there was actually another local dive shop that solely used PSI-PCI stickers for all their own visuals. I actually had to make sure that it was my inspector number on the tanks and not the other dive shop because I used both.
The other funny part of the story is I noticed the dive shop's own visual stickers on their rental tanks had punched out that they performed a Visual Plus (visual eddy current test) on all of their steel cylinders. I just found it funny because if they had taken any formal visual inspection training they would probably have realized that you don't perform a visual eddy current test on steel cylinders. Why should I trust them to do a visual when they can't even get that right? I am pretty sure the dive shop employee was just blindly punching out the "visual plus" on every visual they did without understanding what that meant.
The irony is I now do buy my visual stickers off "the Internet." I stopped renewing my PSI-PCI credentials because I don't work for a dive shop anymore and I had done that TDI-SDI course, which at the time (I understand they've since changed this) did not require renewals. I made my own visual stickers template because I felt slightly dishonest in using PSI-PCI stickers (even though I have stacks of them) since I am no longer current.
All of this was one of the many reasons I bought my own compressor. I know this is not feasible or cost effective for the majority of people. I also realize it doesn't help me when traveling but thankfully most dive shops in North Florida don't have silly visual sticker rules. I always make sure to travel with a stack of visual stickers when I go to Florida Keys or somewhere outside of cave country.
