Ques. about local Nitrox fills

[Upwelling]

The tanks I want to buy are advertised as "Nitrox Ready", so as I understand it they can be used for membrane/stick fills but not partial. Does anyone know if it will be an issue getting membrane fills in this area? (I'm in Pinellas Park). I'm wondering if I still need to get it O2-cleaned even though it's "nitrox ready". Thanks!

 

[eandiver]

Generally "nitrox ready" means up to 40% but not suitable for O2.

Your best bet for fills in your area is Bill Jackson's on US19 just south of 49th St. N. That is my LDS.

 

[Upwelling]

thanks Mark--that shop is right around the corner from me.

 

[truck1]

Just becarefull of where you go to get them filled. IF you go to someplace that does partial blends then you might have an issue. As a general rule I get mine o2 cleaned so I dont have an issue when i go to say the keys.

 

[Upwelling]

Thanks. One thing though--I was planning on getting it O2-cleaned, but then I was reading the SB tank/valves board , and someone was saying that if you get the tank O2 cleaned and then get a membrane fill later, the tank is considered "dirty" again and needs to be re-cleaned. Is this really true?

Just becarefull of where you go to get them filled. IF you go to someplace that does partial blends then you might have an issue. As a general rule I get mine o2 cleaned so I dont have an issue when i go to say the keys.

 

[GulfCoastdiver]

It's my understanding that you need an O2 clean tank to get Nitrox fills, period.
How do they make them Nitrox ready?
What is the diff for < 40% vs > 40% for a tank? an O2 clean tank is just that, O2 clean, right?
If you using > 40% than its your reg thats got to be O2 clean and not Nitrox ready (or compatible) right?
Just a thought

 

[Web Monkey]

It's my understanding that you need an O2 clean tank to get Nitrox fills, period.
How do they make them Nitrox ready?
What is the diff for < 40% vs > 40% for a tank? an O2 clean tank is just that, O2 clean, right?
If you using > 40% than its your reg thats got to be O2 clean and not Nitrox ready (or compatible) right?
Just a thought

There are a bunch of threads on the subject, but I'll give you the short story.

If the shop does Partial Pressure Blending, where they dump in O2, then top it off with air, the tank is required to be O2 clean to reduce the risk of fire or explosion.

If the shop uses a membrane system, and banks 32% or 36%, the tank does not need to be O2 clean.

If an O2 clean tank ever gets filled with non-hyper-filtered air, or contains any contaminants (water, rust, whatever), it will need to be O2 cleaned again before getting any PP fills.

FWIW, the guy doing the PP blending is trusting you to not contaminate your tank, since it's his life on the line if someone contaminates your "O2 Clean" tank and he gets "unlucky" when he fills it. So while it's possible to get it O2 cleaned, then fill it wherever you please, you may end up causing a serious fire or explosion and maiming or killing the tank guy.

Most regulators are certified up to 40% with no special cleaning (check with your manufacturer), and you can switch between whatever you want as long as it's below 40%, regardless of how you get your tank filled. The "O2 Clean" thing is only necessary for components that come into contact with very high % of O2.

Terry

 

[K Mejean]

Just to be safe I had all of mine 02 cleaned. I think they were supposed to be ready from the factory for nitrox but I didn't want to take the chance. I'm also pretty picky about where I get them filled. If I am going on a trip or something I get them filled before I leave somewhere I trust rather than somewhere I don't know. I have heard too many stories about people having problems after getting bad air. The last thing I want to do is go to a place and their gauge be off and not get my percentage right and end up getting bent. I realize there is probably little chance of that happening but it's a little chance I don't want to take. Just my 2 pennies worth.

 

[eandiver]

I'm also very picky where I get fills. I have my own pressure checker and O2 analyzer which I use on every fill regardless of who does the filling. To me it's a simple matter of CYA since the time I had requested a specific fill for a planed set depth and the mix was 10% too high (math miscalculation) and their analyzer was way off (low battery).

 

[Upwelling]

thanks everyone--(especially web monkey for the concise explanation). It makes sense to me now.