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Conrad,
You wrote:
>> Jim, Chuck:
Does anyone know which part of a Wings/BC unit tends to fail more often?
Can anyone provide statistics? (Perhaps some shop owner that has seen
just about everything).
Then we would know what kind of thing to prepare for.
I've had no recent problems with the gear, but many years ago my first
BC (Horse-collar) had bladder problems, and having changed the bladder,
it developped overpressure/dump valve problems. Tired of repairing it,
I just bought another (stronger) horse-collar BC. This one also
required a bladder change, but is now perfectly operational, though I
no longer use it now. With a Jacket type BC which I seldom use now,
and with Wings which is what I use most, I've yet to have problems,
they have never needed any repairs.
Either gear is stronger now, or I give it less abuse than before.
Conrad Daubanton <<
---------------------------------------
You wont find any meaningful statistics on this - just personal
observations.
The most common problems seem to be with sticking inflator mechanisms,
sticking or leaking LP hose connectors, and worn LP hoses blowing out.
I certainly suggest rebuilding your inflator mechanism and dump valves "at
least" once a year. Get someone at a shop to show you how if you're not sure
- it's a cinch. One thing you want to watch for in particular is chrome
plating flaking off
of inflator mechanism parts. Once this starts you should throw it out and
get another whole inflator mechanism without chrome plating on the shaft if
you can find it.
An LP hose adds, not 1, but 2 failure points to your system, the hose
itself and the connector on the end. If you run dual bladders for
redundancy I recommend not using the second LP hose at all - just inflate it
manually if you need it.
Most tech divers recommend against any pull dumps for fear of the hose
pulling off if a hose retainer breaks or weakens - I agree, but I would not
bother taking it off a recreational rig if you really like it; just make sure
the hoses are glued down as well as retained by strapping, and check them
often. Make sure you glue them back after working on them. (Stick & Seal /
Shoe Goo / Marine Goop / maybe contact cement).
Any spot where salt crystals can collect can suffer from accelerated
abrasion. Watch for this between the bladder/s and the outer covering of
wings. Jacket styles that do not have a bladder are only waterproofed with a
coating inside the nylon jacket that is easily worn away by such abrasion when
opposite walls rub against each other. Flush these out well and keep them
partly inflated for storage AND transport where feasible. This is the kind of
invisible ware that can catch you by surprise during a dive - easily avoidable
- easily overlooked.
When you have a trapped volume or film of water that has been seeded with a
population of microbes from your mouth, hands, or the ocean you are actually
doing a biology experiment in evolution and microbial population dynamics
inside your BC and hoses (there is a lot of food in seawater).
Don't create a primordial soup inside your BC bladder and hoses and then
run a test for your resistance to the newly evolved inhabitants when you use
it again. Use something like Listerine or just plain soap & water to clean
out the inside now and then. (open to more suggestions on what to use here)
Soap kills most amoeboid, ciliated, and flagellated microbes by reducing
the surface tension of water (wetting agent). They actually burst open by
osmosis
(I "think" most bacteria are killed by this also).
Many amoeboid forms are able to form a test (shell) to survive periods of
desiccation and bacteria and viruses need little or no moisture to survive
anyway, so don't assume that drying out will kill anything. Viruses are
tough to destroy and some require specific chemicals to do so - there is
actually little defense against invasion by them once you leave the womb.
Now you can never get all the water out of your BC so you need to make
sure there is chlorine, a little soap, or something else left in the remaining
drops that will prevent or inhibit growths during storage. Don't melt or
brittlize your bladder with a hair dryer.
Also don't let wasps, caterpillars, and spiders cozy up inside your
regulator or BC mouthpieces during storage.
NEVER EVER drill out the inflator orifice to increase the rate of filling.
If it
sticks open you're in for a hell of a ride to the surface before you can do
anything about it. A BCD should be able to dump gas through any single dump
device faster than it can enter through the inflator hose.
If cave diving in marine caves, be aware that tiny bits and pieces of
coral, worm tubes, and shells will fall from the ceiling and get caught
between your tanks and wings (just from bubbles). Some of these are as sharp
as broken glass and slight movements of the wings during the dive will work
them back and forth.
Inner tube rubber will help protect the bladders but the shell is going to
take a beating if you do much of this without protecting it as well.
When ice diving watch for ice forming ON OR IN components and holding them
opened or closed.
Most equipment is very reliable when new and the key to being a happy BC
owner is keeping it that way with proper maintenance and getting the right
design for your purposes.
Chuck Boone
--
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