Surface supplied air with porter cable pan cake compressor

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firemen I think for years used grade d air for scott masks. air quality is not such a big deal (PPcontaminate)for a few feet of water pressure. that said I also would not as first choice use a rigged compressor. if you got a hooka system then perhaps ok . and to be honest if you are a business pro at all just buy a big a#### tank like a LP120 or so and rig 20 foot hose to it with a regular mask and be done with it. that is what many do when they clean their pools. granted you have air quality standards but are those standards, for air, basing their levels on being used at >100 ft Most people get a tank and fill it every year at a shop telling them it is for their car suspensioin and they don't have to have a card.
 
Almost every cheap pancake I've found does not have appropriate volume output and pressure to support a surface supplied diver. Also while "oilless" most still don't use breathing safe lubricant and materials. I've used k bottles a larger scuba tanks to feed the rack box before and it works quite well. There's also and added advantage of no noisy compressor.
 
Captain Vanoy:
Almost every cheap pancake I've found does not have appropriate volume output and pressure to support a surface supplied diver. Also while "oilless" most still don't use breathing safe lubricant and materials. I've used k bottles a larger scuba tanks to feed the rack box before and it works quite well. There's also and added advantage of no noisy compressor.
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As a professional hull cleaner, I too would never use a cheapo pancake compressor in my hookah setup. But not because they aren't safe, which they are or because they can't supply enough air, which they can. I know plenty of hull cleaners who use similar compressors without issue. Further, lugging bottles around, refilling them etc., is a big disadvantage when compared to the small footprint, light weight and unlimited free air provided by a hookah. In my line of work, it's a no brainer.
 
Captain Vanoy:
A compressor is the last thing that you should skimp out on cost. I'd dive a home made hat before i dove a home depot type pancake.
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I would and do stake my life on anything DESCO puts its name on. Having said that, would I use this package. No.

look familiar?

Light Duty Diving Outfit | Deep Sea Diving Masks | Divers Mask | Commercial Diving Gear | DESCO Diving Equipment and Supply Company Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Before Thomas pump went O.E.M. only, DESCO provided this same shallow water package using THOMAS contractor series - Renegade compressors.

Any/all open bottom piston oil-less compressors(low pressure) require the use of one and only one ring/wiper material. Does not matter the unit cost ( cheap or not cheap). A Powerex/Atlas compressor uses the same ring material as a cheap pancake in an oil-less open bottom piston configuration. The real ""gorilla in the room is - reliability AND liability.

You are correct, one should never skimp on a "breathing air" compressor.
I have purposely left out the type of material used. Because..... :popcorn:
 
Fast.

Read my post agian. i do not own this rig.

Their price on this package is based not only on the gear included. They are required to carry liability cost which is past to customer.

Point of my post is this....if a big named dive gear manufacturer is willing to put name and rep on the line selling an offf the shelf common unit. Well you get the picture.
 
No, I understand that you don't own this, or even recommend it. But you did swear allegiance to DESCO and my point is that they are selling (in this case) low-quality crap at an exorbitant (IMHO) price. Liabilty insurance costs passed on to the customer? Liability insurance is a cost of doing business, is amortized across their product line and in any case, doesn't justify a $1000+ markup on this hookah rig. A rig you could very easily assemble yourself for less than half of what DESCO charges for it, even paying full retail for all the components.
 
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