Vinegar and water rinse for BC

[Addictedtoscubaandjesus]

Would a 50/50 mix of white vinegar and water be appropriate to clean/rinse out my bcd? I just think how well it does preventing mold from growing in my shower. Knowing that a little bit of water may be left behind after I rinse my BCD before drying it, if the last rinse was a 50/50 vinegar water mix, I would be more at ease that no mold was growing internally. Would this be okay?

 

[OMyMyOHellYes]

I think you're overthinking it.

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

50/50 might be a bit much. I just throw everything in the tub and splash a little vinegar on top. If it smells like vinegar in the bathroom, its probably too much.

 

[chrisch]

Mold grows where its spores are able to settle in a place that allows its growth. There really is no reason for mold spores to be inside a BC. The only gas that goes in the BC is scuba gas from a tank which is filtered and your breath when you oral inflate.

Some people will use a steriliser of some type in the BC particularly if the BC is a rental and this kills any germs from the previous user if s/he oral inflated the BC. If it is your own BC then this is not an issue.

I am fairly sure a little vinegar will do no harm, but it is probably pointless. My old BC is more than 20 years old and has never been rinsed (inside) at all, never mind with any antiseptic or other product. Seawater will kill mold as well.

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

i only toss in the vinegar to help get any salt residue out of the purge valves but again, that's probably overkill. same for my regulators.

maybe its just because i like the smell.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

A ten to one water/bleach solution works good to kill mildew, just make sure you rinse out all the solution with fresh water. 50/50 white vinegar would probably work just as well. When diving and inflating/orally inflating a wing it is inevitable that some salt water will enter into the wing.
When I rinse my gear, I always depress the inflator button whilst holding a garden hose up to the mouthpiece and then slosh the water around in the wing to make sure all salt and biological matter is rinsed out. Then I can remove/unscrew the inflator from the wing and also unscrew the lower dump assembly and pull the wing apart or blow air in to ensure air volume inside.
Make sure it is drained well first and as water settles make sure to keep in drained.
I have to do this to my lift bags as well.

 

[grantwiscour]

A thorough rinse is all that should be necessary. I remove my inflator and attach a garden hose to the inflator hose...water flows through BC and out the dump valves. I let the water flow a few minutes and am done.

 

[Still Kicking]

If you disconnect the inflator elbow from the BC to rinse the bladder, a couple of words of caution:

1. Don't lose the o-ring or gasket that seals the connection. Scubapro, for example, has an o-ring that sits inside the female side of the fitting on many/most of their BCs. It's easy to lose when draining the bladder. To compound things, it's a non-standard size so you have to go to a dealer for another one and hope they have one in stock.

2. Be careful not to cross thread the connection when reattaching the elbow. Some BCs have fine plastic threads that are easy to wreck. If you feel resistance in the plastic threads when screwing it down, back off and start again.

3. Some wings (Dive Rite for example) have a flange on the elbow that has to seat properly in order to seal on the gasket. If you rotate the elbow a bit as you screw it down, you'll feel it click into place as it seats.

4. Whatever you do, if you remove the inflator elbow, fully inflate the BC and check it holds pressure for at least 5-10 minutes before your next dive.

 

[happy-diver]

Remember to include salt as the fish and chips will go better with vinegar with salt

 

[johndiver999]

I only dump the saltwater out, add 16 oz of freshwater and then drain through the inflator - and deflator button and occasionally the pull dumps. You don’t need to do more, if you diligently drain all the saltwater out as a first step. I soak the bc in a rinse bucket for a few minutes with the rest of my gear as well. Unscrewing everything is not necessary.