Steel tank or Alum?

[wendledo1]

Does anyone have any suggestions on wich tank would be better to purchase? a steel or an alum?

Money wise, I say Alum, but is it worth the extra dough to go with steel?

it is like ugh! is the spending ever over with

all I need to purchase now is a hood, gloves, weights, suit and a tank.... you all know how it is in a budjet, the price difference between a steel and an alum (120.00) means that I get it now, or I dont.... I havent a clue what to do.

If steel is going to be better in the long run and more dependable, by all means my life is worth more than 120.00....

thanks guys,
wendledo

 

[gfisher4792]

I know there a couple of threads on this (ex: http://www.scubaboard.com/t47979.html) and specific ones on steel and AL, but I would suggest that you first purchase a hood and gloves, then a suit. These items will significantly increase your comfort/control, and moreso than having your own tanks (IMO). I actually haven't seen an LDS that rents hood and gloves, but I only have a small sample of shops I've been to (My OW class actually required purchase of those two items).

BTW, I don't think the spending is ever over with :freak:

 

[Quarrior]

Does anyone have any suggestions on wich tank would be better to purchase? a steel or an alum?

Money wise, I say Alum, but is it worth the extra dough to go with steel?

it is like ugh! is the spending ever over with

all I need to purchase now is a hood, gloves, weights, suit and a tank.... you all know how it is in a budjet, the price difference between a steel and an alum (120.00) means that I get it now, or I dont.... I havent a clue what to do.

If steel is going to be better in the long run and more dependable, by all means my life is worth more than 120.00....

thanks guys,
wendledo

Tanks can always be rented and pretty cheaply at that. Thing to get is the personal gear first like the suit, hood and gloves.

Alum will make you float like a cork when it gets empty if you are not real careful on your bouyancy control.

Steel will help to keep you down a bit. Generally about 1 or 2 pounds negative when empty. I personally prefer this.

Again, it's all a personal preference kind of thing too.

Brian

 

[BuoyantC]

[Tanks can always be rented and pretty cheaply at that. Thing to get is the personal gear first like the suit, hood and gloves.]

brianwl is right on that.
Steel is nice for it's inherent negative buoyancy, but there are other conciderations for steel as well such as DIN valves vs. yoke, getting HP fills etc. Aluminum is much more universal in that regard.
The tank is probably the last piece of basic equipment to own. And once you get a tank you'll want several. So eventually that aluminum tank will be the one you "lend" to your friends!
---------
D.C.C.

 

[yknot]

Wendledo-First of all, having already had the conversation of which particular dive shop you are probably looking at in Toledo, take a look at the 30 or so tanks in the shop's rack and count the ratio of alum to steel. In general, the argument that steel requires less weight than alum is misleading. You need to weight yourself for the end of the dive when you have 500 psi in the tank. The alum tanks are more inherently bouyant and will require more weight in the BC or on your weight belt BUT you are just shifting some of the weight already on your back if you were to use a steel tank instead. In general, I prefere the steel. I dive the same enviroment you will locally. Unless you drive to Florida, your steel tanks will never see salt water and are not subject to corrosion. I like the extra weight on my back instead of in my BC. You are more likely to arrive at a local quarry with a "full" steel tank (2640psi) vs a "full" alum (3000psi). No reason for this other than it's just my experience locally. Fills tend to be a little fast and I find the alum more subject to thermal expansion. Part of your decision to buy vs rent a tank must lie with the amount of diving you plan to do. I know people that have recently bought steel tanks from the shop you frequent. They paid shop asking price ($80-100 higher than Leisure Pro) but negotiated free air for LIFE. That's a $100 discount after only 20 dives. I don't know of anyone who got that deal with an alum tank.

 

[bladephotog]

I have the same dilema. I have all of my personal gear and the tanks are the last thing I need to buy. I'm used to aluminum tanks and am tempted to go that route because of that and the money.

I'm wondering though will I just want to upgrade quickly? I mean, I haven't ever used steal so will I know what I'm missing? Also, are there different brands of valves, ie., certains brands to avoid.

Thanks,

Andy

 

[Quarrior]

I have the same dilema. I have all of my personal gear and the tanks are the last thing I need to buy. I'm used to aluminum tanks and am tempted to go that route because of that and the money.

I'm wondering though will I just want to upgrade quickly? I mean, I haven't ever used steal so will I know what I'm missing? Also, are there different brands of valves, ie., certains brands to avoid.

Thanks,

Andy

I dove steel this past weekend for my first time. For me it was great to get the weight off my hips/waist and onto my back where I can keep it in one place. Granted, integrated BC's do a good job of keeping weight up on the torso where it needs to be, but I thought the steel was great. Also, you don't need as much weight since they never become positive.

Brian

 

[diverbrian]

... and have aluminum eighties for loaners. My boat is about the same as BuoyantC's.

I bought the aluminum tanks when I started diving and as I run a pretty low SAC, they worked fine. But I got into deeper diving and have been diving Nitrox since OW (Nitrox is bundled with the OW courses at our LDS). I was beginning to lose bottom time because of gas restrictions and that drove me nuts.

So, I bought two steel 100's. I loved them and eventually doubled them. My Singles are steel 120's.

The advantages of steel. The weight goes on your back and not into your BC. And this is the part that I love... If I am going to carry weight, I may as well carry it in a form that will give me more gas.

 

[CRESSIDVR9]

I own AL80s and usually leave them at home and rent because its doesnt cost much to rent tanks usually.Sometimes it isnt worth the trouble to haul them around. Im with everyone else a tank is the last think you should worry about. Unless you have to have one spend that money on something else. Just my opinion.

 

[pw1981]

I recently got a lot of good info on tanks from this board before I bought. I totally agree with everyone above that tanks should be the ABSOLUTE LAST piece of dive equipment you buy because it will take a while to recover from the purchase if you live on any kind of budget.

I went with Steel 100's (PST E7-100) because of all the dives I did on other people's tanks and rentals. I dove on everythinf from AL63's to HP Steel 130s and the most enjoyable and controllable dives I have ever had were wearing PST 100's. So I bought two of them - its a way to kill $600 real fast! so if cost is a concern for you and you don;t mind extra weight then the Aluminum 80 is a good choice.

My biggest beef with Aluminum tanks was the buoyancy issue and the fact that, as the tank got empty, it would get really light on the bottom of the tank causing me to sit very uncomfortably in the water.

After looking back at my dive log notes and my mental memory of experiences with different tanks, I went with the Steels and am happy with the decision.