What causes the demise of regs?

[captain]

Corrosion can make the chrome peel of the marine brass. Once that happens in important places, it's all over. If you see green oxidation, it's a sign that that proses has already started.

If you think a little missing chrome is a problem you would have a heart attach if you saw some well used commercial and military equiptment. The chrome does make it look pretty and helps to prevent corrosion but loss of chrome won't affect operation or life span if it is serviced regularly.

 

[muddiver]

Chrome will corrode a lot faster than brass in salt water. I suspect that abuse, lack of maintenance, water inside the regulator and not rensing your gear after each dive will kill your regulators.

 

[Nemrod]

Why, if you get your regs serviced yearly, do they need to be replaced after x amount of years? I bought some used regs, used no more than a dozen times. I took them to be serviced, and when i went to pick them up the owner said that they were about 7 years old. He said that they were good but that you didn't want to push them too far. Why? Does the piston break or something? Also, even though they are 7 years old, do you look at that or the fact that they were only used maybe 12 times? The regs are Genesis Yukon and Genesis safe second. Thanks for any input. let me know if i need to clarify...

Your being taken advantage of. I know I will get chastized yet again but this is another example of why it is wise to learn to service and inspect your own gear only if to understand enough about it that you can determine when your being lied to.

The LDS is full of something ----"doesn't want to push them to far"---baloney. I have numerous regulators that are decades old, one is a 1958 Mistral I was given as a child and it still works fine. The regulator I dive the most was made in 1972 and it just made a 150 foot dive a few months ago--"doesn't want to push them to far"---baloney. Below is my Mistral and me and my friend are about to go diving--year--1967, that's me.

And here is that regulator last spring.

These Voits above are from the late 60s--I dove the caves of Florida with them well into the 70s. I have dived them until the chrome was worn off and then rechromed them. Baloney. I do my own work, if need be I make the parts, these regulators are not only still good but they are better than most of what you can buy NEW today and because they are all metal they are far more rugged.

Seven years--yeah--somebody is getting their leg pulled.

The 1972 Aqua Master, decades old and still good as new or even better than new,either you guys need different regulators are the shops are making money at your expense. Seven year old regulators would need to be replaced only if run over by a bull dozer unless they are Mares for which you cannot get parts or service (been there and tried that).

N

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Corrosion can make the chrome peel of the marine brass. Once that happens in important places, it's all over. If you see green oxidation, it's a sign that that proses has already started.

Yes and no.

Loss of chrome in cosmetic areas is unsightly but does not affect the function of the reg. Where it may be a problem is in areas where the corroded surface seals against an o-ring.

This is most commonly encountered in a piston reg where the piston head o-ring seals against the body of the reg separating the compression chamber from the ambient chamber. When the reg is depressurized, the piston is lifted off the seat exposing the ambient chamber side of the area where the piston head o-ring seals. So in essence, the only way it will corrode is if you go diving, depressurize the reg and fail to rinse the ambient chamber, leaving salt water in contact with this area. It then has to sit there long enough (months or years) or months) in an environment with enough moisture in the airfor corrosion to occur. In the rare cases where that occurs either a new reg body, cap or, swivel cap is required depending on the design. A new body equals big money and may not be an economically viable repair while a new cap or swivel cap will only cost about $20.00.

In a diaphragm reg, similar nasty things can happen inside the reg, but you have to get salt water inside the reg through either failing to rinse after a dive, or by doing it badly by dropping it in a rinse tank without a tightly sealed dust cap. If left to sit long enough, the result will be a brass paperweight that cannot be economically repaired.

In either case the cause was improper care and maintenence and/or abuse and that really has no bearing on how long a reg will last. I have seen new regs go out of the store go on one dive trip and come back for service the following year in paperweight condition because the owner was an idiot who could probably break an anvil if he or she owned one. (And I did see once a prime example of an idiot who managed to unintentionally cut the horn of his anvil off with a plasma cutter - he was not a prime candidate for dive instruction.)