Question on regulator cleaning

[castanagajt]

I know it sounds like a dumb question, i apologize.

I have read my Scuba magazine in maintenance and care of my regulator but I am kind of weary about its contents so I have come to pick your brains for knowledge

My procedures is;

Unravel my regulator, make sure my 1st stage cap is on and submerge it in the tub while making sure that I don't press the purge button on my octo and my 2nd stage.

According to the magazine it says to make sure not to press the purge button or it will let water in but my question is how will this prevent water to go into the 2nd stage and probably towards the 1st stage without air pressure to keep the water out? When we all pack up, all the air from the regulator and BCD has to be out before we detach the reg from the spent tank.

Procedure on affirmative action:
I remember once I dunked my DIN regulator without the 1st stage covered. Once I remembered about it I quickly took my fresh tank that I have lying in my room and ran 600 psi worth through my regulator and octo and let it dry on the side of the tub. The next day I bought my 1st stage DIN cap and went to my local Zeagle dealer if I may have to bring my regulator in for service. Is this the right affirmative action? Any other things I should know on regulator care? Thanks.

 

[halocline]

The thing that prevents water from going from the 2nd stage to the 1st is the closed valve in the 2nd stage. That's why you don't press the purge while it's submerged. Some 2nd stages have a seat saver feature which opens the valve when the reg is not pressurized. With those, you should be careful when soaking to make sure the 1st stage is always higher than the 2nds. Or, better idea, since you have a tank, you can simply put the reg on your tank, pressurize, and then soak.

If you get a little water in the 1st stage, you can try to dry it out by removing the HP port plugs and SPG, leave one 2nd stage but plug the other LP ports, put it on the tank and push some air through the HP section. You can use the the 2nd stage to purge if you have to in order to remove the reg. You can also just wait for the HP section to clear. Do that a few times, then plug the HP ports, remove the 2nd stage and leave all the LP ports open, run some air through them. The air will flow much faster, so only open the valve for a couple of seconds, close, repeat, etc. Then attach your seconds, LP hose, etc, purge a final time.

 

[Couv]

I know it sounds like a dumb question, i apologize.

I have read my Scuba magazine in maintenance and care of my regulator but I am kind of weary about its contents so I have come to pick your brains for knowledge

My procedures is;

Unravel my regulator, make sure my 1st stage cap is on and submerge it in the tub while making sure that I don't press the purge button on my octo and my 2nd stage.

According to the magazine it says to make sure not to press the purge button or it will let water in but my question is how will this prevent water to go into the 2nd stage and probably towards the 1st stage without air pressure to keep the water out? When we all pack up, all the air from the regulator and BCD has to be out before we detach the reg from the spent tank.

Procedure on affirmative action:
I remember once I dunked my DIN regulator without the 1st stage covered. Once I remembered about it I quickly took my fresh tank that I have lying in my room and ran 600 psi worth through my regulator and octo and let it dry on the side of the tub. The next day I bought my 1st stage DIN cap and went to my local Zeagle dealer if I may have to bring my regulator in for service. Is this the right affirmative action? Any other things I should know on regulator care? Thanks.

Hello castanagajt,

I see Matt was quick on the draw, so I will just add my cut and paste advice below.

Start off with a good, dry dust cap in place on the first stage. Look for a good solid rubber dust cap that has few nicks and crannies to trap water and is easily dried. Pull back any hose protectors or instrument boots.

Only after a dive trip regulators and gauges need to be soaked over night to dissolve salt crystals. But first hold it by the hoses) with both stages and hp gauge submerged and dunk them a few times. Holding the hoses above the stages will prevent water that might enter the second stage from migrating to the first stage even if the purge button is pressed. Then simply hang the hoses over something while the stages hang in the bath overnight. After a good soak and another good swishing hook it up to a tank and slowly purge air through to dry it. Once it is completely dried, put cloth bags over the stages to keep the bugs out during storage.

Note that this is done after a dive trip. During a trip where the regulator gets wet a couple of times a day salt crystals will not form. Therefore, a couple of quick dunks holding the hoses in the same manner as above is sufficient.

If you suspect water has entered your first stage, it needs to be taken to someone qualified to open it up and give it a good cleaning. However, having said that, if you are on a dive trip and water gets into the first stage, it is not cause to quit using it. To prevent damage to the gauge, remove the hp hose and cap the port; slowly purge air through the regulator and dry it out. It will be ok until you have time to take it to a trusted tech.

couv

 

[beanojones]

The new feature that Aqualung (and Oceanic) are putting on their regs seems interesting. It only opens the first stage inlet when put on a tank.

The seat saver mentioned above is apparently why Atomic regs cannot reliably be used as deco regs. (In addition to the exploding titanium thing.)

 

[DA Aquamaster]

The whole seat saver concept creates more problems than it solves and has been dropped by most companies who have tried it.

Innovative Scuba Concepts sells what I feel is the best DIN cap available. It is metal and is essentially double o-ring sealed. If you are rinsing your DIN reg when it is not connected to a tank, the Innovative Scuba Concepts DIN cap is the one you want to be using.

 

[pescador775]

Let's not stay awake at night fretting over trivia. Fresh water is not particularly harmful to a regulator, it is designed to be wet and survive. However, long term wetness might encourage fungi and other nasties so let us agree not to get the innards wet. Clamp a DRY dust cap over the orifice, turn down the second stage adjustment knob and spray the exterior and any ports with hose; or, go crazy and soak the thing. Drip dry. If in doubt, hook it up and blow some air through. Remember, tank air contains near zero humidity and is an effective drier. Don't pour alcohol in the inlet as it may carry away some lubricant, just air.

 

[beanojones]

The whole seat saver concept creates more problems than it solves and has been dropped by most companies who have tried it.
.

What you talking about willis? One company has tried it and is still doing it. (Atomic)
No one else has tried it. (It's patented, and copyrighted, so both the same device, and a similar functioning device are covered.)

Old school regs had a thingie on the purge button but that ain't at all the same thing.

 

[tfsails]

Concerning rinsing after a saltwater dive: The best advice I've seen in this thread is to cap the 1st stage inlet, hold the reg by the hoses and let the three stages and the console soak for a few days. Keeping the hoses above the stages assures water in any of the stages cannot migrate to the other stages. This is the technique to use after you've come back from the trip.

If doing multiple dives in saltwater as on a dive trip, it's ok to cover the reg up and dunk it for a while between dives. Save the long soak for when you get home from the trip.

If you're diving freshwater, you're already soaking the reg in fresh water, so a mere dunk or two in CLEAN fresh water ought to be ok.

This is what I do to my reg and it looks fine inside.

 

[bigtim6656]

question new to diving and will be getting cert in march and buying all the gear to dive. Do you need to clean your reg and stuff when you dive fresh water.

 

[halocline]

question new to diving and will be getting cert in march and buying all the gear to dive. Do you need to clean your reg and stuff when you dive fresh water.

It depends how "fresh" you're talking about, I suppose. There's a spring around here that I often dive in; I don't bother rinsing after those dives because that water is cleaner than the tap water I would rinse with. There are a few lakes I occasionally dive in, and I definitely soak after those trips.

In general, it's the salt residue that causes the damage to regulators. I still think it's a good idea to run a little air through the reg once it's been soaked to make sure it's nice and dry inside. I might be a little paranoid.