Post-dive regulator/octopus cleaning

[mikedarmody]

What is the best way to clean my regulator and octopus after an ocean dive? I am now at home after a 30 min drive and have no tanks. I have a Sherwood Oasis and corresponding octo. I also have a Sherwood Wisdom computer which attaches to a hose. What advice for it? Same?

 

[ppd1107]

In the past I have rinsed mine off after an ocean dive. I live about 30 to 45 min from the ocean depending on traffic. I recieved a tip that I am going to try. Bring a 5 gal bucket or one of the rubbermaid totes. Fill it with fresh water before the dive then after getting out after the dive place the regulators/octos/gauges/computers in the fresh water for the dive home. Apparently the motion of the drive helps adjitate the water and cleans the salt and sand out of your equipment. I'm going to give it a try on my next dive. It might be worth a shot.

 

[wscdive]

i let mine soak in a slop sink in my garage (second stages hoses and computers only!) The first stage being metal just needs a rinse, make sure the dust cap is in place and hose it off. Also make sure not to push the purge buttons on your regs,that would allow water into the valves and hoses.

 

[matt_unique]

What is the best way to clean my regulator and octopus after an ocean dive? I am now at home after a 30 min drive and have no tanks. I have a Sherwood Oasis and corresponding octo. I also have a Sherwood Wisdom computer which attaches to a hose. What advice for it? Same?

I have a Sherwood Maximus among other regs. Some years ago I brought it in for the annual service. When I arrived the first statement from the tech was "you rinse your reg with just a dust cap, don't you...." That was the case until that moment. He mentioned water poured out of my 1st stage. I had always been very careful to make sure my dust cap was on tight and flat before rinsing. Bottom line is the dust cap prevents dust and dry contaminents from entering your first stage but it is not water proof. If you rinse your regs with just the dust cap you have a high chance of water entering the first stage.

Hook your regs to your tank and submerge in a tub. Press all the buttons and move all the levers to shake up any salt or such.

--Matt

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Some dust caps are pretty effective while others are not. Some use an o-ring to seal it but thes only work if the o-ring is present.

Also if the purge button on the second stage gets depressed, the reg will flood through the second stage(s) and the presence of a dust cap is a moot point.

Soaking the reg in warm water while connected to a tank and pressurized is ideal. The idea of soaking in a rubbermaid tote on the way home sounds good - as long as the reg is connected to a pony bottle and is under pressure. Otherwise the sloshing is most likely going to depress a purge valve and allow water in the reg. Even with the pony bottle, if al the air in the pony is eventually purged, you'll have the same problem plus you'll need to VIP the tank. So if you did it, I do it where you could observe what is happening or make a fixture of sorts to hold the second stages and prevent any purging.

I disagree that first stages only need a rinse. It depends on the first stage. Some first stages allow water to enter the ambient chamber and on some of these regs it can be very difficult to effectively rinse the salt water out. A warm water soak is needed to remove both the water and any salt crystals that may have already formed.

 

[Charlie99]

Some dust caps are pretty effective while others are not. Some use an o-ring to seal it but thes only work if the o-ring is present.

Also if the purge button on the second stage gets depressed, the reg will flood through the second stage(s) and the presence of a dust cap is a moot point.

Some 2nd stages regs, like my Atomics B1/T1, have a "seat saving" feature that means that when it isn't pressurized, you have a path for water to flow back into the 1st even if you DON'T hold down the purge button. So I first rinse the 1st stage, and then rinse the 2nd stage, always keeping the hose between them up higher than the water in the rinse bucket.



If you get a dust cap that uses an o-ring to seal, you will always have a spare o-ring handy if you need to replace one on your tank just before a dive.

 

[rescuediver009]

You don't have to worry about any special seat saving orofices or improperly sealing dust caps on your sherwood. The cap is soft enough that if you snug it up and then drop your reg in luke warm water and come back in an hour or two it will be fine as the salt with have dissolved off. As for the computer either leave it connected or take it off and make sure that hose end does not get submerged.

It is important that you pay special attention to proper rinsing with the sherwood as I have seen on more than one occasion that if the first stage is not properly cleaned after a salt dive the one way bleeder collects salt crystals and will leak on the successive dive into the first stage...