Need to change my tank from yoke to DIN. What DIN valve would you recommend?

[minimalistdiver]

I bought an aluminum tank off of Craigslist for 25 bucks. It looked beautiful. Had it hydro'd. That cost 50 bucks. I almost forgot, I need to change it from yoke to Din to fit my MK17/DIN regulator. I don't know too much about the top valves. This is my first tank. Are all DIN valves the same or is there a sweet mother Rolls Royce of a DIN valves that I should consider?
What should I do with the yoke valve? Store it in my garage for a lifetime?

Also, is removing the old valve and installing the new one a job for a handy guy like me, or is this best left to professionals?

Thanks for your advice.

 

[Peter_C]

Is there by chance a place to insert a hex key into the center of the yoke valve? Some are known as convertible valves that allow you to switch from yoke to DIN by removing the insert with a hex key aka allen wrench. Thermo makes the convertibles, and that is what I would recommend so you can switch back and forth. They can be had off of ebay for a reasonable price. Also make sure to replace the neck o-ring with a new one. Often dive shops do not like the idea of a tank coming in with nothing in it. They might require a vis be performed and can charge you for it.

The valve should be a 3/4" valve, and needs to have the proper burst disk in it. A 3,500 psi burst disk would need to be replaced. Thermo usually marks the valve on the front what pressure it is rated for. This pressure rating can be changed by changing the burst disk. There is also 200bar and 300bar. The difference is the amount of threads available for the reg. Since it is only a 3,000psi tank I would recommend 200bar which is what the convertible valves are.

The valve is easy enough to swap, especially if the tank is already empty. If not empty, slowly and I do mean slowly drain the tank.

 

[undrwater]

The Thermo (Thurmo?) valves that have the DIN/Yoke removable inserts are pretty popular, and quite flexible. Will allow you to dive a yoke reg if ever that becomes a necessity. Removing is pretty simple (hopefully), but if you buy one from your LDS, they'll change it out for you more than likely. Keep the old one or pay it forward to some needy diver.

[edit]Peter C got to it before me![/edit]

 

[halocline]

Good call on checking to make sure the existing valve is not a convertible. Assuming it's not, you could get a used DIN valve on eee-baay that looks like it's in good condition. A 300 bar DIN valve might be next to nothing, and valves last forever and are very easy to rebuild. Divegearexpress has the thermo convertible valves, new, for $45; that's less than I would have thought. So if you don't mind spending that much, it's a quick and easy solution.

Valves are a breeze to put on; make sure you coat the valve threads with something like PTFE grease (silicone is fine for air-only) to break the galvanic action between the valve and AL tank. Don't lubricate the tank neck o-ring, it functions as a crush seal and the lubricant might make it a little more susceptible to extrusion.

$50 for a hydro?

 

[oly5050user]

just get an din adapter for you regulator so that you can use the standard valve. They are cheap enough and when you travel all you would see on most resort tanks are standard yoke type valves.

 

[Teller]

Thermo 200 BAR Pro Valve. Then you can use DIN or yoke first stages with it. I think they are around $50 new.

 

[Peter_C]

just get an din adapter for you regulator so that you can use the standard valve. They are cheap enough and when you travel all you would see on most resort tanks are standard yoke type valves.

Some tank setups will leave the reg bonking your in the back of your head. Not my preference. When switching to warm water wussy I swap my reg back to yoke from DIN. No adapter needed. We have two adapters and they get used all the time, just never in the water. The cost of an adapter is about the same as a replacement tank valve too.

 

[minimalistdiver]

Do you think there is any safety issue using a convertable Thermo brand DIN and Yoke valve? It converts to yoke by an insert being threaded in. What if that insert started unscrewing out? I just am paranoid about anything malfunctioning. And it seems like that adds one more component. But I guess if I only used it for DIN, I should be fine right?
Are there any special DIN valves that are made for cold water? Or is there no temperature situations like there are for regulators?
Please excuse my ignorance.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

No problem at all. There are no.valves that are specifically better in cold water.

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk

 

[halocline]

Do you think there is any safety issue using a convertable Thermo brand DIN and Yoke valve? It converts to yoke by an insert being threaded in. What if that insert started unscrewing out?

I'm sure you realize that while it's in use, the insert isn't going anywhere because it's trapped between the reg and the valve. As far as while it's not in use, actually the problem with them is somewhat the opposite; if the insert sits in the valve for a long time, especially with salt water dives, salt can get in the threads and cause some serious sticking. For that reason it's a good idea to occasionally remove the insert and clean the threads.

But that doesn't matter to you because the whole reason you're doing this is because you have a DIN regulator, right?

The 200 bar DIN valves are reputed to be a little stronger than the 300 bar valves, although that seems counter-intuitive. The reason is that the 300 bar valves have a deeper bore to accommodate the extra threads, and as a result, might have a little less metal around the bore. This would have no impact on how secure they are in use, but if the tank gets banged around without a reg (or a plug for that matter) installed, the 300 bar valves might be a little more prone to getting knocked out of round. Might be....not definitely.