New Tank Has a Dent/Nick In It - It Won't Explode and Kill Me, Right?

[Vegan Shark]

I bought my first tank a few weeks ago, a beautiful HP 130, and it had a small dent at the top of the neck, where the numbers get embossed. As though the machine pressed too hard and dented it, or something, since the letter A is where the dent is. The shop passed it on the visual inspection, and I didn't worry too much since I trusted them....but after looking online it looks like a dent will condemn a tank. Now I'm thinking they either didn't give it a thorough VI, or wanted to just get it off their hands so sold it regardless.

Should I use this tank, or try to take it back for a replacement/refund? I am worried it won't pass the next visual, and I'll be out $400. Pictures included. The dent is a little under 1/5th an inch across, and about 0.09 inches deep.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Is the tank full?

 

[Vegan Shark]

Yes, they did an airfill when I bought it.

---------- Post added October 21st, 2013 at 11:19 PM ----------

Is there a guide for the XS Scuba steel tank VI? I found the aluminum one, and it says the limit for a ding is: [FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]"Known wall thickness, maximum ding = 15% of minimum design wall thickness."

So how do I find out the wall thickness of the tank? It isn't in any of the spec sheets I see.
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[lucca brassi]

Is there a guide for the XS Scuba steel tank VI? I found the aluminum one, and it says the limit for a ding is: "Known wall thickness, maximum ding = 15% of minimum design wall thickness."

So how do I find out the wall thickness of the tank? It isn't in any of the spec sheets I see.

ultrasonic or Xray with calibrated pick up ad screen

 

[Pedro Burrito]

Per SDI/TDI Visual Inspection Procedures, page 25, Section 5.2, number 8: "Condemn any aluminum cylinder with dents less than 2 inches in diameter and greater than 0.060" deep. The limit for a steel cylinder is 0.030" in depth and less than 2 inches in diameter." And page 26, number 10: "Condemn any aluminum cylinder with surface cuts, dings, digs, or gouges in the metal that are either longer than 6 inches or deeper than 0.030 inches. The depth limit for steel is 0.020 inches."

And it's usually not the diver that has to worry about it exploding, it's the person filling the tank.

 

[Vegan Shark]

Thanks. Looks like I'll be taking the tank back for an exchange/refund. Surprised someone would overlook something so obvious when doing a VI, especially if they then fill it up with air and put themself at risk.

 

[halocline]

It's hard to see from the photos but the real problem is that you don't know who's going to do the inspections in the future, and even if one hydro place (those are the DOT licensed facilities) says it's okay, another might easily say no and you're out. As far as dive shop inspectors go, they're not supposed condemn tanks at all, even if they have a private course cert like PSI or the course referenced above. They can certainly refuse to put a sticker on it or fill it, but they cannot stamp it or otherwise deface it.

That said, I was interested to hear the numbers from the TDI course, although .020 is very shallow, just about half a millimeter if I'm thinking right. I know I've seen hydro stamps on steel tanks deeper than that. If this gouge is from the original hydro stamp, it means it was stamped after the test. That would mean that the tank has not yet endured test pressure with the gouge in place, which to me is definitely a risk in owning it.

Given the price, I'd get a new one.

 

[Steve_C]

You can only measure the obvious depth. That does not mean it is not stressed/cracked deeper than that.

 

[Scared Silly]

There was another thread regarding some similar concerns not too long ago. Send the images off to XS Scuba as they are the mfg distributor. I can not remember what they said about it. Hopefully someone can find the thread as my quick search did not locate it.

 

[XS Scuba]

The cosmetic element you are seeing at the top of your cylinder is part of the manufacturing process of the cylinder. There are operator ID, lot codes, etc that are stamped into the steel along the production process. These marks are done by hand so they are not always the same depth. However, they do not exceed any standard that would cause them to be failed. Additionally, all cylinders are inspected by a third party inspector before they can be shipped out of the Worthington facility.

We want you to be comfortable with the cylinder you have purchased and would be happy to discuss any concerns or questions you may still have. Please feel free to give us a call at 866.977.2822. Take care.