Where do I store my scuba gear?

[orch1ds]

Does anyone have any good tips on how to organize their scuba gear out in the open between dives?

I live in an apartment and do not have a nice garage nor do I have a lot of closet space.

So, I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas on storing scuba gear between dives. My dives are a week to 2 weeks apart. I don't want to store it all away in boxes or anything like that but rather in a corner of my living room without having everything all over the place. Maybe some type of shelves?

How do you keep your dive gear in your home?

Thanks!

 

[LIVES4SHARKS]

Supreme Garment Rack - White/ Chrome : Target

I use this rack to dry and store all my things. It's heavy duty and stainless steel so it can take the weight. I have trays under the bottom rack to catch water. I am in a 1 bedroom loft, but I do have a small screened in porch, so that is where I have put it. It has worked well. You can also get a cover for the rack so that you can hide everything.


Good luck!
Carolyn:shark2:
I got mine at Lowes, but they don't show it on their online site.

 

[scubadiver888]

I have a second bathroom with a shower. I store everything in there. My shower is big enough I can run a shower curtain rod from side to side in it. I can then hang a lot of my gear from there and let it drain into the shower floor.

If you don't have a second shower, maybe a shower rod in your main bath tub. When you need to take a shower you can slide everything to the end farthest from the shower head.

 

[LIVES4SHARKS]

If you use a shower curtain rod, make sure it is a solid or heavy duty one. I have had one bend with 2 wetsuits hanging. That is why I opted to hang on the portable SS rack. I used to use a broomstick across the rod to the tile. This was a bit tricky and I finally got tired of everything collapsing in a heap. The world is just not designed around our scuba needs dangit! LOL!

Carolyn:shark2:

 

[Tigerman]

What I do is basically to store it in a suitably big plastic box (without a lid) inside my appartement after i have dried it well in the bathroom..

 

[Clammy]

I throw everything into large plastic bins in a corner in the living room. I have multiple bins stacked on top of each other and one is my primary that I just load up with the gear I need and take to my car. The other bin(s) store my excess gear. This is, of course, after everything is dry. My dry suit I hang in oddball places if it's not in it's bag. While unloading and loading/packing gear things get strewn about but then I just throw it all back into a bin, close the lid, and it's clean.

 

[ligersandtions]

I bought TWO shower rods and put them up at the same level as each other in my shower....I lay the wetsuits (one 7mm full and one 7mm farmer john, as well as a hooded vest) across both of them, so that each wetsuit is supported by the two rods. That means that each rod takes half the weight, so we've never had any bending or breaking issues.

As for where I store my stuff between dives....we happen to have a bedroom that has nothing in it except diving and riding gear. So everything gets strewn about in there....certainly not organized the way we'd like for it to be (but that's our next step!).

 

[Teamcasa]

The real issue for storing gear is to insure it is completely dry before storing it. Damp gear will suffer with mildew and mold, not to mention a funky smell. I dry my gear in the garage (a bedroom or spare bathroom will do fine) and let it dry for at least a day after it feels dry before storing it. After your gear is completely dry, then hang it on a rack, plastic tub or just hang it in a closet.

I use the wetsuit hangars for drying both my drysuit and wetsuits. Wetsuits are stored on the wetsuit hangars and the drysuits with undergarments are packed in their storage bag. All other gear is packed in my rolling chests, ready for the next trip.

One tip for cleaning and storing boots. After washing the boots in a mix of Woolite and water, they are rinsed and a splash of cheap mouthwash tossed in the final rinse. I dry then in the sun to insure complete drying then put away. No residual smell.

In addition, I add a capful of cheap mouthwash in the BC bladder for its final rinse as well. It kills the bacteria that love to grow inside damp dark places.

 

[Clammy]

One tip for cleaning and storing boots. After washing the boots in a mix of Woolite and water, they are rinsed and a splash of cheap mouthwash tossed in the final rinse. I dry then in the sun to insure complete drying then put away. No residual smell.

In addition, I add a capful of cheap mouthwash in the BC bladder for its final rinse as well. It kills the bacteria that love to grow inside damp dark places.

I use simple green. It's not petroleum based, so it won't eat at anything and it's biodegradable. It also smells nice and fresh.

 

[lmorin]

As stated above, everything must be dry before storage! In our house, wetsuits hang in a closet, miscellaneous stuff (logs, slates, batteries, lights, save-a-dive junk, etc.) are in a plastic storage box under bed along with regulators, computers and BCDs. Fins, gloves, masks and other misc. in dive bags at the bottom back of a closet.