Question for the day.

[grumpie]

Good Evening,
In the past I have used carter lift bags, they range from 100# to 500# . I have a chance to try some 2000# sub-salave car recovery units. If anyone has used them I could use some pro or con statements about them.
grumpie......

 

[Boater Dan]

Good Evening,
In the past I have used carter lift bags, they range from 100# to 500# . I have a chance to try some 2000# sub-salave car recovery units. If anyone has used them I could use some pro or con statements about them.
grumpie......

I believe they are the set that we have for recoveries. They work well as long as the vehicle has not been in the water too long. If the vehicle has been stuck in the mud for an extended period of time, it is difficult to get the chains around the frame. If the vehicle is filled with mud and stuck in the mud, we have experienced some difficulty in breaking the vehicle loose. A tow truck in conjuction with the bags will break it loose. If it is a relatively new submersion, they work pretty well.

Communications are very important as the bag at the front and the rear need the inflation valves cracked at the same time. The divers then need to clear the area as the vehicle rises. Generally, we have been close to shore, so clearing the area has not been a problem.

Dan

 

[grumpie]

I know what your saying about mud and the suction from the bottom. If you take a 1/4 x 48 inch copper tube and put it on a air gun with surface supplied air. Then put it under the car or boat and let blow it will break the suction when you inflate the bags.
We have a 4 port manifold that we use to inflate the carter bags. We put the larger bags in the front where the weight is. We had to tow a pick up truck two miles to where we could pull it out. It was like pulling a barge sideways. It all that the twin 50 hp merc could do.
we used the carter bags on planes and boats, I have a chance to try the subsalve bags for free, so Im asking questions before I start. thank you for your anwsers
grumpie.......

 

[BladesRobinson]

I have used both Carter and Sub Salve. The Sub Salve system can be adapted easily but I don't necessarily care for the dive tank holder. If you need to remove the SCUBA cylinder with the bag inflated, it is VERY difficult to do (if not impossible). I had to deflate the bag to get a tank out of the holder.

Both lift bag companies make good bags and it is a cost/benefit scenario in my mind. If money was not an issue I believe I would go with Sub Salve. I think some of the features are better on Sub Salve but consumers should do their own side by side comparison.

One big plus for Sub Salve was a favor they did for me a few years ago. I returned by bags for some service and they made repairs and upgrades at NO CHARGE. If that is an example of the customer service they give to all of their clients, then two "thumbs up" to them for supporting the public safety community!

"Service after the sale" is one thing that is often overlooked when a public safety agency makes a purchase, and I think it should be one of the first.

 

[grumpie]

Good Evening.
Im not to happy with the idea of two divers having to open the valves underwater and then swim like crazy to get out of the way. I like the idea of cracking the valve on a manifold a little bit and tighten up the chains and then getting out of there. If this thing is stuck in the mud and then breaks loose, it will be gone like a rocket to the surface and then guess what happens next.
I guess tomorrow I will see what they look like and I think that we do a little dirt diving in the junk yard and see how they work and fit before we do it in the water
grumpie.......

 

[grumpie]

Good Evening.
We tried out the sub-salve car recovery bags yesterday, I see what you mean about the location of the tank holder. It takes two divers to use this system and install it on a car. You really need frame hooks and chains to do the job right.
The thing that I like is you can also use surface supplied air also. When we use lift bags, we do the final filling from the surface and the divers are out of the way. I think that this system would work very well on small aircraft also. you could set them on either side of the cabin and get it almost dash board high out of the water.
grumpie........