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I completely agree.  Responsibility for one's self.  I personally mark with
duct tape.  I DID put a Mix sticker on my mix tank, so it would be remembered
which one I use for which, but other than that, I make everybody know 
that they should never use my personal cylinders without first consulting 
me and then analyzing for themselves.


Tim






On Fri, 10 Nov 1995, Jammer wrote:

> >I thought the idea of marking cylinders was to prevent contamination and
> >confusion.
> >
> >Without accepted, recognizable identification, cylinders could  
> >inadvertently be
> >filled with "dirty" gas.  Or worse, a less than scrupulous diver could do 
> >it on
> >purpose for his own convenience.  Then when he goes back to the nitrox 
> >facility
> >. . .
> >
> >What about the facility that rents nitrox cylinders?  How do they keep their
> >rented out cylinders from being incorrectly refilled elsewhere?  Then when 
> >the
> >next diver rents it, what does he get?
> >
> >The labels also let everyone, not just the physical posessor identify the
> >nature, if not the specific contents.  There is a chain of posession here and
> >cylinders do change hands.  Tape does fall off..  If I never *thought* a
> >cylinder would leave  my  control, I could put Argon, CO2, Helium, in it.
> 
> 
> A story. 
> 
> In British Columbia, last year.
> We took nitrox up in our tanks, we had them filled here at our favorite 
> shop with 32 and 36 percent.
> 
> We were diving off a boat being run by a Captain who runs a lodge that 
> pumps nitrox and teaches nitrox classes, and we assumed he knew what the 
> hell he was doing.
> 
> With us on the boat were other divers, some of whom were untrained in 
> nitrox, and some very experianced nitrox divers who were not diving nitrox.
> 
> Our tanks were unmarked, except for our names and the mix written in 
> black grease pencil on the tanks. 
> 
> One of the untrained divers asked the Captain which tanks he should use, 
> he was renting tanks for the day.
> 
> The lodge's tanks were all clearly marked with nitrox stickers. They all 
> contained air.
> 
> The captain waved his hand at the rear of the boat and said 
>   "All my tanks have air in them." 
> 
> The diver went back to the back of the boat, looked around, saw 12 tanks 
> with nitrox stickers, (all with air in them) and our four tanks with no 
> stickers, filled with nitrox.
> 
> He took 36% to 120 feet on the wreck of the Chaudiere.
> 
> There was lots of shouting and arm waving when we all realized what had 
> happened, and then lots of flaming when I posted the story to rec.scuba.
> 
> The whole incident served to set in stone my views on tank stickers, and 
> that is that they are meaningless. My newest philosophy on diving, be it 
> tech, wreck, nitrox, or recreational, is one of absolute personal 
> responsibility.
> 
> I am responsible for the gas I breathe, and no one else.
> There is no way to make me (or anyone else) responsible for the gas you
breathe.
> 
> I will not mark my tanks, it creates more problems than it solves. 
> 
> If you use my tanks, you might die.
> 
> 
> ---------
>   "huh?"
>      -Jammer, 1992
> ---------
> 
> --
> Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@terra.net'.
> Send subscription/archive requests to `techdiver-request@terra.net'.
> 

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