Just ordered new tanks - anything to note?

[Jayfarmlaw]

On my silver tanks, I just use a black sharpie to write my last name on them so they don't get mixed up. Also, I put 2 yoke orings on the tank cap. That way, there is no need to dig out a save a dive kit and the o ring is right there. With new tanks, its more likely that an oring will be blown out while drying your reg than and actual leaking oring, but anything could happen...

We're headed to Chrystal river and Devils Den next week just to get under water. Carribean vacations have all either been rescheduled or flat canceled...

Safe travels, looks like you will be going through Laura's path so it should be interesting.

Jay

 

[scubadada]

Wow, those are mega-cylinders, I could get two dives out of of 1 of them.

 

[Johnoly]

When full, correct, ...

Congrats on the purchase !!
There will be times that you won't use alot of that air.
And then times that a short dive you have planned, you won't need that much air. Sometimes it's too much or too little.

And in those times you'll wish you could transfer some high fill tanks to some slightly used tank fills and that's when a transfill whip will save you time.
With 6 tanks, invest in an economical whip and you'll never regret it.

DGX Gas Transfill Hose with Analog Gauge

 

[Divin'Papaw]

I had two similar tanks ... LP104s. They are BIG tanks. Depending upon your size they may be perfect ... or way too big. They are pretty darn tall vs the HP100, LP85 or even AL80.

I just use a sharpie to label & number my tanks for easy ID & reference.

As @Johnoly mentioned, a transfill whip comes in very handy if you don’t have one yet. A pressure gauge as well like this. You don’t want to always have to connect your reg to check the pressure:

Accurate Cylinder Pressure Checker

 

[Scraps]

I totally get the reasoning behind big tanks. I’m a big guy, and I want to make sure I have enough air for me and any customers who run low. But 133’s are just huge and heavy and, as noted, require you to carry extra weight if in case you do breathe the tank low.

If it’s not too late, perhaps you could get a mix of sizes rather than have to dive in beast mode every time you dive.

I never see customers bring anything larger than a 120 cu. ft. tank on the charters I work, and those are rare.

I have a pair of steel 80’s and a pair of steel 120’s in addition to some AL 80’s. I use the 120’s only for dives deeer than 80 feet because otherwise I just feel like I’m wasting air when I go to get refills. Even then, it’s sort of overkill when everyone else is using AL 80’s. I went diving with two friends last week: two dives to 100 ft. My buddies are both smaller, more experienced, more efficient divers than I am. They both had AL 80’s. I used my 120’s and still surfaced with more than 1500 psi after each dive. If I’d had 133’s it would have really been overkill!

I think the 120’s would give you all the safety margin you need while not making you carry extra weight to account for positive tank buoyancy at the end of the dive.

One other thing to consider if you’re going to be diving from charter boats: Most recreational charters won’t let you stay down long enough to consume the air you’ll carry in the 133’s. I’ll put experienced divers and divers with big tanks in the water first to give them more bottom time than less experienced divers, but everyone is on the clock. We don’t have all day.

Best wishes,

 

[grf88]

For some years my PST 130's were my favourite tanks for wreck diving in the Great Lakes but since passing 70 with bad knees and a torn rotator cuff my new favourites are Worthington HP 100's and I see sidemounted Faber 50's in my future.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

For some years my PST 130's were my favourite tanks for wreck diving in the Great Lakes but since passing 70 with bad knees and a torn rotator cuff my new favourites are Worthington HP 100's and I see sidemounted Faber 50's in my future.

Deep, dark, and drysuit they’re awesome. Otherwise they are too much tank for most people.

 

[johndiver999]

Deep, dark, and drysuit they’re awesome. Otherwise they are too much tank for most people.

They are a bit much- probably for most women especially. However, the recommendation of buying a bunch of different tanks also has some consequences. The one that comes to mind is that if you have 6 identical tanks and only use those, it is easier to get your weighting balance and trim dialed in much better than if you are bouncing around between different tank sizes.

 

[Scraps]

They are a bit much- probably for most women especially. However, the recommendation of buying a bunch of different tanks also has some consequences. The one that comes to mind is that if you have 6 identical tanks and only use those, it is easier to get your weighting balance and trim dialed in much better than if you are bouncing around between different tank sizes.

Granted. Depending where you dive. In our warm water, for >6 months of the year, I use no suit and no weight for either the steel 80 or steel 120 It’s a non-issue for me until I don more than 3 mm of neoprene.

 

[grf88]

For a combination of boat and shore diving in both warm and cold water I think HP100's make a good all round tank. They also make great doubles and I still use a set of those occasionally.