Regulator maintenance

[cvrle1]

Hi there,

I need to get maintenance done on my Scubapro regs. I went to Ocean Quest to see how much it would be and was quoted about $200 for 1st and 2nd stage. Needless to say I was shocked especially cause thats almost how much I paid for the regs in the 1st place.

I was researching on what my options are and found basically 1. Alot of people said to go DIY route, however I am not sure if I am comfortable doing that seeing how I have no idea what I am doing. How hard would it be to DIY maintenance? Is there any courses that I could take that could teach me how to do this? Any other options?

I really don't want to pay $200 every year for maintenance, especially if I can do it myself or if there are cheaper routs to take.

Thanks in advance.

 

[redacted]

If you "need to get maintenance done on my Scubapro regs" only because that is what the manufacturer requires to maintain your warranty then one easy alternative is to forgo service until there is some other need. Most regulators will easily go 2 or 3 years without service if you take care of them. Some will go 5 years or more with no problem.

 

[cvrle1]

Well I want to do a maintenance on it not because manufacturer says I should but because I think it is time to do one. I bought them used and didnt do maintenance of any sort. Used then for several dives and all seemed good. Then I didnt dive for over a year and regs have been sitting in the bag. I will go diving in 1st week of June and figured it would be good idea to get one done, seeing how some parts may have gone bad from all the sitting and no use.

Thanks

 

[elan]

Those prices are way too high imho just look for another lds. Doing it your self will not be cheaper at first as you need tools and that would be much more expensive than that and only pays back if you own many regs.

 

[Julian55]

Well unfortunately you are going to be stuck paying those prices pretty much anywhere around here. I went through the same thing last year and was also shocked at the price, I will never buy used again because(so I was told) that if you buy a new reg you get the parts kits for free?, and only pay the labour. Remember that you are relying on this piece of equipment to keep you alive.

 

[StuartT]

You could try a tech here in Abbotsford who services all kinds of gear. If you pm me I'll get you his #

 

[redacted]

The best way to make a regulator that worked fine on the last dive fail on the next dive is to have it serviced unnecessarily.

Even if you are not interested in servicing your own regulator, you can easily learn to inspect your regulators to determine when they are ready for service.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/346813-regulator-inspection-checklist-rev-7-a.html

 

[CR Diver]

What model of regs do you have?
If they are fairly new (MK25, MK20, MK17) you will need a pretty good collection of tools and they have a lot of parts inside. Also both have set procedures to ensure they are set up correctly once assembled. Sharkbite is the Canadian distributor for Scubapro, unfortunately they (Scubapro and Sharkbite) frown on what they call a "grey market" reg. They will only give out free parts if they can confirm where the regs were bought (receipts) or, as long as they have a North American s/n and your LDS wants to give the customer free parts.
Everything being equal, the only problem you should encounter with your regs sitting for a year, is your high/low pressure seats. If you (or a friend) can do a general check and know how to adjust your IP and/or your second stage, there's no real immediate problems. The problems arise from what you cannot see until the regs are taken apart. If the regs have had anything other than clean air through them, they may be deteriating from the inside. Even regs that are taken care of get a certain amount of build up in them and the longer you wait to have them serviced the bigger the problems become. Also, without taking a reg apart you have no idea what the real condition and/or performance of the reg will be - like buying a used car with unknown miles and usage - you have no idea what you have.
Very few shops will inspect without servicing because of liability, they can only guarantee what they service. At $30 - $35 per stage and additional parts kits, it can get pricey pretty fast for reg servicing. I personally service all my regs once per year without hesitation, I am not willing to take a chance on a failure- fortunately I can service them myself so it saves me some money as I get free parts and free labour. I would recomend a service based on OEM recomendations by a certified Scubapro tech - why take the chance.
Just a bit of info and an opinion

 

[redacted]

What model of regs do you have?
If they are fairly new (MK25, MK20, MK17) you will need a pretty good collection of tools and they have a lot of parts inside. Also both have set procedures to ensure they are set up correctly once assembled. Sharkbite is the Canadian distributor for Scubapro, unfortunately they (Scubapro and Sharkbite) frown on what they call a "grey market" reg. They will only give out free parts if they can confirm where the regs were bought (receipts) or, as long as they have a North American s/n and your LDS wants to give the customer free parts.
Everything being equal, the only problem you should encounter with your regs sitting for a year, is your high/low pressure seats. If you (or a friend) can do a general check and know how to adjust your IP and/or your second stage, there's no real immediate problems. The problems arise from what you cannot see until the regs are taken apart. If the regs have had anything other than clean air through them, they may be deteriating from the inside. Even regs that are taken care of get a certain amount of build up in them and the longer you wait to have them serviced the bigger the problems become. Also, without taking a reg apart you have no idea what the real condition and/or performance of the reg will be - like buying a used car with unknown miles and usage - you have no idea what you have.
Very few shops will inspect without servicing because of liability, they can only guarantee what they service. At $30 - $35 per stage and additional parts kits, it can get pricey pretty fast for reg servicing. I personally service all my regs once per year without hesitation, I am not willing to take a chance on a failure- fortunately I can service them myself so it saves me some money as I get free parts and free labour. I would recomend a service based on OEM recomendations by a certified Scubapro tech - why take the chance.
Just a bit of info and an opinion

Do you really believe that annual servicing eliminates any chance of failure? Or are you also a Scubapro tech profiting from the ridiculous labor charge of $30 to $35 per stage?

BTW, what happens to an HP seat when it sits for a year?

 

[CR Diver]

Nothing eliminates a chance of failure, servicing any kind of equipment helps reduce the chance of a failure.
I am a Scubapro tech - although I do not work for a dive shop, I am associated with one.
A HP seat and/or LP seats are like any other oring and lubricant - with time they become ineffective, dry out, split, crack and displace, even inside a regulator. With all seats, there are 2 parts the seat itself and the moving sealing mechanism normally made of a harder compound (steal for HP). A couple of things happen which creates problems. The seal becomes distorted over time or hardens/softens which affects the sealing characteristic of the seat. As the steal portion sits against the seat (under spring pressure) it distorts the seat creating high/low IP settings which greatly affect the performance of a 1st stage. We (the dive shop and I) find that this is a very common problem with regs that sit for any long period of time and require adjustment prior to use (usually done on site when someone turms their reg on and finds that it is free flowing for no obvious reason). Depending on the circumstance and the dive, you can do a field adjustment, but I always recomend that the reg gets serviced.
It's like changing the oil in your car, you can debate it all day that you don't have to do it. But in the end, if you want it to last you need to service it regularly.