scuba tank leak

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redschietti
Posts: 386
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2011 4:31 pm

scuba tank leak

Post by redschietti »

Bought a new scuba tank last winter locally. It has had a slow leak ever since. They have worked on it 3 or 4 times, but the problem hasn't went away. Any ideas on how to fix it? Im open to draining it, unthreading it and trying to fix it myself. I know I should take it back, but I operate on the 3 strikes and your out principle, actually you are lucky if I give you three. It leaks between the tank and the silver nozzle.

thanks,
james
justadude
Posts: 768
Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2010 11:32 am

Re: scuba tank leak

Post by justadude »

Red,

This should not be that difficult, either there is a problem with the seal between the threads on the valve and the tank or there is porosity in the metal of one of the two.

First, I assume you have thrown this in a tub of water to see exactly where the leaks are coming from. If you have not you can the the shop that has serviced it certainly should.

If it is a leak at the threads, the shop that sold you the tank, or serviced the tank should have no problem emptying, cleaning resealing and refilling (at no charge).

If it is a problem with the metal, then the shop that sold this, (assuming it is a new tank) should have no problem replacing it for you as it sounds like the issue was identified shortly after you bought it.

As for working on it yourself, most shops are reluctant to fill tanks that someone else has worked on, first because of the pressures involved, second they don't know that you are not breathing this stuff.

Screw all the discussion: Is there another shop in your area, have a second person look at it. As soon as you get it back, fill the bathtub (or similar) toss it in and check it for leaks.

'Dude
mtncwru
Posts: 441
Joined: Sun Dec 12, 2010 1:50 pm
Location: San Diego, CA
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Re: scuba tank leak

Post by mtncwru »

As 'Dude has said, take it back to the shop. At this point, they should be handing you a new tank, as the problem hasn't gone away. I would not recommend working on it yourself, as the penalty for getting this wrong is having your valve fail under pressure (likely during a fill), and turning that SCUBA tank into a SCUBA ballistic missile.
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