maintainence on regulator worries
- Thread starter kenh2o
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chrpai
Contributor
Yes, TWICE.
Once my dad took his car to jiffy lube and they topped off his brake fluid with transmission fluid. Complete break job including master cylnder was about $1000. They denied it and my dad was screwed.
Then there was the time my wife got a radiator flush at goodyear. That very day the damn thing overheated and blew all over the place. They denied it but a pissed off phone call to that particular franchises corp office got it fixed for free and payed for towing.
Once my dad took his car to jiffy lube and they topped off his brake fluid with transmission fluid. Complete break job including master cylnder was about $1000. They denied it and my dad was screwed.
Then there was the time my wife got a radiator flush at goodyear. That very day the damn thing overheated and blew all over the place. They denied it but a pissed off phone call to that particular franchises corp office got it fixed for free and payed for towing.
Of course many times. A few weeks ago I had a weel fall off. I had the car in a bunch of time having the noise checked. Even had a couple of break jobs done. All the while they missed the bad weel bearing. When there is salt on the road (winter) my speedometer and the transmission go nuts. Been going on for two winters now. I've had every one try to fix it, automotive electronics gguys, transmission guys and two different dealers. They all bring it in their nice warm garage and by the time they replace a few parts it's working fine. Until that is a hit another salty puddle.
the issue though isn't that the vehicle doesn't need servicing or that some one broke it trying to fix it it's just that there aren't any good mechanics.
I remember when I didn't even make as much as I spent in the las year on rental cars, repair bills and tow trucks.
chrpai
Contributor
Mike
I get your point but here is the problem. There are lots of car repair places, and lots of people who get their car repaired. So I pretty much know where to go to get it done right. Even so I still seem to get screwed now and then. Also my car cost $20,000. Sure I'm going to spend the money to change the oil on a schedule. But I'm only going to do the brakes and tires when they need it, not on a schedule.
But with diving there are few LDS's and few divers that I know. I'm basically forced to walk in blind and hope they know what they are doing. Oh and if they don't I'll find out at underwater...
Then I figured out how cheap and reliable and entry level regulator was. I factored in how long it will probably last without service and compared the replacement cost to how much servicing costs. I found out that its cheaper for me to just abuse the thing and replace it. As for safety, I feel more comfortable having a redundant system vs a serviced system.
I get your point but here is the problem. There are lots of car repair places, and lots of people who get their car repaired. So I pretty much know where to go to get it done right. Even so I still seem to get screwed now and then. Also my car cost $20,000. Sure I'm going to spend the money to change the oil on a schedule. But I'm only going to do the brakes and tires when they need it, not on a schedule.
But with diving there are few LDS's and few divers that I know. I'm basically forced to walk in blind and hope they know what they are doing. Oh and if they don't I'll find out at underwater...
Then I figured out how cheap and reliable and entry level regulator was. I factored in how long it will probably last without service and compared the replacement cost to how much servicing costs. I found out that its cheaper for me to just abuse the thing and replace it. As for safety, I feel more comfortable having a redundant system vs a serviced system.
chrpai
Contributor
Lets give an example.
Leisurepro
MR2 Axis ( 1st and 2nd ) $110
MR12 Axis ( Octopus ) $ 65
Genesis Pressure Only $ 60
Thats $235
Now lets look at service rates:
DiversDirect wants
$42.99 4 Piece: 1st stage, 2nd stage, octopus, and pressure gauge. (Plus parts if not under warranty)
add $20 for shipping roundtrip and its $63.00. That means in 4 years what I will have spent on service I could have just replaced the whole rig. But here is the kicker. When my reg breaks not every single piece is going to break. Most likely it'll be a first stage failure. Thats only $140. I can make that up in 2 years of no servicing. If my pressure guage or octopus fails I can make that up with only 1 year of no servicing.
Leisurepro
MR2 Axis ( 1st and 2nd ) $110
MR12 Axis ( Octopus ) $ 65
Genesis Pressure Only $ 60
Thats $235
Now lets look at service rates:
DiversDirect wants
$42.99 4 Piece: 1st stage, 2nd stage, octopus, and pressure gauge. (Plus parts if not under warranty)
add $20 for shipping roundtrip and its $63.00. That means in 4 years what I will have spent on service I could have just replaced the whole rig. But here is the kicker. When my reg breaks not every single piece is going to break. Most likely it'll be a first stage failure. Thats only $140. I can make that up in 2 years of no servicing. If my pressure guage or octopus fails I can make that up with only 1 year of no servicing.
Just as with a car you'll want to take the time to try to find a good tech. By good I mean one who 1, knows how to service a reg and 2, one who has a good work ethic. Clearly just because a building has a dive shop sign on it doesn't mean that they will do a good job on your reg.
Also reg servicing is fairly simple and they are simple devices. The do-it your-selfers should have no problem learning to do it themselves. Parts can be hard to get but if you put your mind to it you'll find them. I'm all for redundancey but I want everything in good shape.
Also reg servicing is fairly simple and they are simple devices. The do-it your-selfers should have no problem learning to do it themselves. Parts can be hard to get but if you put your mind to it you'll find them. I'm all for redundancey but I want everything in good shape.
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