question about bcd

[donnad]

hi there! my husband and I are new divers and just purchased suits and bcd's. we went to the pool with the instructor from the dive shop where we purchased our gear to get oriented with our new equipment (we were certified a couple of months prior). when we got home we were rinsing out our bc's in the shower and realized that we had forgotten to put the little plug on the inflator hose where you attach the hose from the regulator. i stuck the plug on there as soon as i noticed it (was in the shower with it). when i got out i turned the inflator hose upside down and jiggled it to get out any water that might have gotten in there and then let it sit overnight (partially inflated ) without putting the little cap on there so it could air out. is it going to be ok? my husband was rinsing his out in the bathtub and had forgotten the little cap as well. help! thankyou!

 

[Bluefish]

Hmm... I don't even have a little cap with mine. And I've never seen anyone else use one either, but I suppose that could be because I never paid any attention. I hate to ask this since I'd never do it, but did you look at the owner's manual?

 

[MikeFerrara]

If I'm understanding the question you're worried that you got water in the bc?

It's common to get a little water in the bc when you dive anyway so you should put fresh water in the bladder on purpose to rinse the inside.

When rinsing the bc, I run water through the inflator valve on purpose while working the moving parts to help rinse out sand, salt, clorine or whatever.

 

[ChrisA]

hi there! my husband and I are new divers and just purchased suits and bcd's. we went to the pool with the instructor from the dive shop where we purchased our gear to get oriented with our new equipment (we were certified a couple of months prior). when we got home we were rinsing out our bc's in the shower and realized that we had forgotten to put the little plug on the inflator hose where you attach the hose from the regulator. i stuck the plug on there as soon as i noticed it (was in the shower with it). when i got out i turned the inflator hose upside down and jiggled it to get out any water that might have gotten in there and then let it sit overnight (partially inflated ) without putting the little cap on there so it could air out. is it going to be ok? my husband was rinsing his out in the bathtub and had forgotten the little cap as well. help! thankyou!

I can't imagine that getting water inside a BCD could harm it. After
all it is standard practice to partially fill them with fresh water
shake then drain after every dive, You got to rince the insides too.

Also the quick disconnect is self sealing. Notice how air does
do rush out either part when you disconnect the hose. You
DO want to put water inside but you can't do it through the
LP inflator connection. You have to fill it via the oral inflater
while holding the release button

I think the purpose of the cap is to prevent sand from getting into the fitting But I don't think my BC came with a cap over the fitting.

 

[RICHinNC]

I think about the only time that might cause a problem is if you have your alternate airsource attached at the end of your corregated hose....like an Air2 and so on.

If you dont....it shouldnt be serious. As a habit I keep mine on just so water does not get trapped inside and leave a residue or catch dust more easily.
Rich

 

[Warren_L]

hi there! my husband and I are new divers and just purchased suits and bcd's. we went to the pool with the instructor from the dive shop where we purchased our gear to get oriented with our new equipment (we were certified a couple of months prior). when we got home we were rinsing out our bc's in the shower and realized that we had forgotten to put the little plug on the inflator hose where you attach the hose from the regulator. i stuck the plug on there as soon as i noticed it (was in the shower with it). when i got out i turned the inflator hose upside down and jiggled it to get out any water that might have gotten in there and then let it sit overnight (partially inflated ) without putting the little cap on there so it could air out. is it going to be ok? my husband was rinsing his out in the bathtub and had forgotten the little cap as well. help! thankyou!

There's nothing to worry about. As others have said, it is normal to get some water in the BCD anyway, so you just need to rinse the inside of the bladder out. As well, you are supposed to be able to disconnect the inflator hose underwater in the event that the inflator itself gets jammed.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

THe inflator will consist of either a schrader valve or by a balanced design with a stem and a couple of o-rings. Neither one should be effected by getting wet with fresh water.

Even the air 2 is pretty moisture resistant as the hole in the infaltor connection just leads to the orifice and the seat, neither of which are particularly prone to corrosion being plastic and rubber respectively, and to the blananced inflator mechanisim which is super simple and chrome plated.

The air barrel itself could corrode or develop deposits if exposed to salt water frequently, but the cap is not a big gotta have item when rinsing with fresh water.

 

[donnad]

thankyou so much for your helpful reply!

THe inflator will consist of either a schrader valve or by a balanced design with a stem and a couple of o-rings. Neither one should be effected by getting wet with fresh water.

Even the air 2 is pretty moisture resistant as the hole in the infaltor connection just leads to the orifice and the seat, neither of which are particularly prone to corrosion being plastic and rubber respectively, and to the blananced inflator mechanisim which is super simple and chrome plated.

The air barrel itself could corrode or develop deposits if exposed to salt water frequently, but the cap is not a big gotta have item when rinsing with fresh water.

 

[IslandHopper]

That cap is to keep dust out ... water doesn't matter there.

You are told not to let water back up through your second stage when unpressurized because that could allow water to get inside the first stage (not because it would hurt the second stage). That's not a problem with the inflator even if it has integrated second.

In any case ... a wet inflator/second stage is no problem (salt or fresh) ... but allowing water into the hose of an unpressurized second stage could cause corrosion problems in the FIRST stage. If this happens, the solution is to put it on a cylider and purge the regulator/hose to dry it out. The dust cap on the FIRST stage helps keep water out at the second stage end too, because there's no route for water to "flow" through.

 

[scubajoe]

My new SP bc has the little rubber cap. I have put it on a few times. it has seemed to effect the operation in any way. I have been known to unplug the low pressure inflator at depth to inflate balloons as well. If water would hurt the mechanism it looks to me like an extra atmosphere of pressure would be worse then showering. Don't worry about it!

Joe