Silly rinsing mistake. Now what?

[happy-diver]

I flush SPGs with syringes containing non proprietary flushing solutions
Particularly when reconstituting blocked SP Brass and Glass type things

 

[hgdiveclub]

Since it is fresh water, a good flow of dry air from a tank should be plenty to dry it out especially if done right away. If it was mine, I wouldn't service just because of this. However, I do have an IP gauge and check my regs before every dive and before putting them away after every dive trip. That way you will notice any need for servicing long before it is actually a problem.

I now have enough equipment that I need to learn to do some of the service on my own. I am a long way from doing that, but to start, how and why do you use the IP gauge? How do you know what the pressure should be in your stage 2? And why do you use it before and after every dive, don't you think that is overkill? Does how often you dive make a difference? I dive almost every week, but being that I have 3 kids that dive, their regulators are not use as often. Would that make a difference?

 

[rsingler]

Check IP before first dive of every trip.
2 min work.

 

[NYCrecdiver]

I now have enough equipment that I need to learn to do some of the service on my own. I am a long way from doing that, but to start, how and why do you use the IP gauge? How do you know what the pressure should be in your stage 2? And why do you use it before and after every dive, don't you think that is overkill? Does how often you dive make a difference? I dive almost every week, but being that I have 3 kids that dive, their regulators are not use as often. Would that make a difference?

The normal IP for a particular regulator is mentioned in the service manual. It's mostly a matter of watching out for IP creep indicating a problem with the seats. The IP should stay stable, dip a little bit with a second stage purge and promptly recover. It's very cheap, easy and quick to test so why not? I just bought an IP gauge myself (DGX) and plan to test my Reg after every dive when I pressurize to soak it. If I see a problem, I can send it in for service hopefully before my next dive.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Just a curiousity question, and I would never actually do this, but…
Is it possible to pack/fill the air hole on an SPG with Dow-111 in a syringe and essentially make it “SPEC” like is done on some piston regs? This would keep any salt water from reaching the internal bowels of an SPG.
Would doing that screw up the innards and make the SPG not accurate?

 

[grf88]

Just a curiousity question, and I would never actually do this, but…
Is it possible to pack/fill the air hole on an SPG with Dow-111 in a syringe and essentially make it “SPEC” like is done on some poston regs? This would keep any salt water from reaching the internal bowels of an SPG.
Would doing that screw up the innards and make the SPG not accurate?

I think it would make it far less responsive.

 

[hgdiveclub]

The normal IP for a particular regulator is mentioned in the service manual. It's mostly a matter of watching out for IP creep indicating a problem with the seats. The IP should stay stable, dip a little bit with a second stage purge and promptly recover. It's very cheap, easy and quick to test so why not? I just bought an IP gauge myself (DGX) and plan to test my Reg after every dive when I pressurize to soak it. If I see a problem, I can send it in for service hopefully before my next dive.

Thanks, I was looking at DGX before I wrote this, it's $12 buck. I will give it a shot, thanks!

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I think it would make it far less responsive.

It would be interesting to try it on an old decommissioned SPG that still works but it wouldn’t matter if the experiment failed.
I could envision the packing needing to be done in such a way that there could be no trapped air up inside. The silicone would have to be solid with no voids and I’m not sure that would be achievable? I’m not familiar enough with the inner workings of an SPG.

 

[Nemrod]

It would be interesting to try it on an old decommissioned SPG that still works but it wouldn’t matter if the experiment failed.
I could envision the packing needing to be done in such a way that there could be no trapped air up inside. The silicone would have to be solid with no voids and I’m not sure that would be achievable? I’m not familiar enough with the inner workings of an SPG.

The spg is just a bourdon tube instrument. Getting the tube filled with silicone would be a trick and keeping it in there each time the spg is depressurized more of a trick. Not worth the effort for something so inexpensive. One tiny bubble at 3000 psi would evacuate the tube at 0 psi into the hose. What a mess that would make of things.

 

[tmassey]

I guess this is why some people sing praises to something like a MK2. Drag it through the mud, swing it around like a weapon to fend off bandits, flood it in salt water, whatever, doesn’t matter. Just open it up with some crude tools or your teeth, rinse it out, wipe it dry, a little luvin’with a dab of silicone on your fingertip, and put it back together. Dirt simple reg to fix and to service, but not fancy, it doesn’t need to be.
I would call it the AK47 of regulators.

My exact feeling about Sherwood first stages from before 2000 or so: the ones that look like unbalanced pistons but are actually balanced. (Well, let’s say balanced-enough.) There’s like 3 o-rings in the entire thing. And unlike the Mk2, they‘re environmentally sealed. (OK, not sealed per se, but dry inside, which is the point of the sealing anyway.) Which means they’ll keep working in 29 degree saltwater, too, and no salt damage to the sealing surfaces *inside* either. Try that, mk2!

Not going to win any breathing or style contests, but hard to beat for reliability. And if (when?) you do get water inside of them and need to clean and rebuild, the kit is like $15…

I like the old Sherwood (round) second stages for the same reason. They’re just unbalanced downstream seconds, but when properly tuned they breathe plenty fine. And they’re the only regs I’ve ever used that don’t purge or flood even in 5 knot current — something none of the other regs I’ve used in our local river can say…

Anyway, enough off-topic eulogizing…. Thank you all for your thoughtful responses. As a freshwater diver, my dive *was* the reg rinse, but I do tolerate the stingy-eye water from time to time and appreciate the wisdom provided. I was just telling @The Chairman what a tremendous resource Scubaboard is, and this thread just exemplifies that.