Used SCBA cylinders ?

[3crows]

Thanks, my basement is cool and the air here is sometimes nearly as dry as when we were in Phoenix. I chill my water reservoir with ice blocks. I can pump for a good long while and the YH never goes over 50 centigrade. I will be adding a second filter stack. The more hoses and filters, the more the little thing has to work to get to pressure so I am trying to keep things in proportion. The tank itself acts as a condensate collector should any get past to it. I am using the Seco 500 oil. I changed oil at 2 hours and it is now at hour 7 and running strong. I will probably only fill to 4,000 psi as routine, that is enough to fill several Marauders and Urbans multiple times.

[3crows]

The problem with gauges is that no two read the same. Especially the ones with a M10 thread. Maximum fill pressure is 3000 psi. I can cheat and use the gauge that reads 2600 at 3000 or I can be conservative and use the one that reads 3600 at 3000. Or I can use the button gauge under the stock that actually seems to be accurate but which I need triple bifocals to read. It is enough to cause one to question their sanity or make their hair fall out.

[HondaTRX500]

Well...
I had grown leery of filling my "Retired Scott SCBA" .... Just because I didn't want to be That Guy...
And I had reasoned in my mind, Scott is mighty proud of their tanks...
Saw a picture of a ruptured tank, and thought to myself..... wonder how much pressure it took to do that ?
I would like to have someone Look at my tank,. inside that is a tank inspector,.
But not found anyone yet that,,... I trust won't put a drill bit through it. Upon seeing the 2011 & 2016 Hydro badges. (Now being 2024)
2021 would been 15 years, so the tank is 18/19 yrs. old...
Good reasoning told me to just buy a smaller NEW tank,, and I did, still waiting on valve.
But now I too am again questioning is it ok to use for my home application,. at 4000 psi.
Truth be known my biggest concern is the !!2!!  Hydro tests at 7500 psi that the tank has already endured..
And I know the Fire Station It came from,,. what abuse did it catch being tossed about in it's life going into burning buildings....
Those Thoughts, tell me to drain the air down and forget about it..
I don't want a $700 19 yr old tank to be my reason for an "Early Judgement" day.
Then again more reasoning.... Way smarter folks than me designed or adopted this 15 year RULE.
Seems to me a current modern day tank, well cared for and not abused should last indefinately....
The new tank I just got has a max label pressure 374 Bar. 5423 psi.
So my thougts,. (dumb ole me) only expose to 4000 psi. (Don't leave it in car in SUMMER)
Man I get almost convinced one way then the ends move on me.
I just can't make my mind up.

Anyone else feel like this on this topic.
 

[Madd Hatter]

If it's the one I think it is it was around 15000 psi.

[avator]

I just find it crazy that we stress on these tanks yet we put 4500+ psi pipe bombs next to our faces time after time and pull the triggers. And BTW... they don't have required test times and expiration dates.   

[Madd Hatter]

I just find it crazy that we stress on these tanks yet we put 4500+ psi pipe bombs next to our faces time after time and pull the triggers. And BTW... they don't have required test times and expiration dates.   

The 1 on my impact does, not that I care!

[avator]

I just find it crazy that we stress on these tanks yet we put 4500+ psi pipe bombs next to our faces time after time and pull the triggers. And BTW... they don't have required test times and expiration dates.   

The 1 on my impact does, not that I care!

That gun uses a CF tank, right?

[triggertreat]

I just find it crazy that we stress on these tanks yet we put 4500+ psi pipe bombs next to our faces time after time and pull the triggers. And BTW... they don't have required test times and expiration dates.   

My thoughts on this are that the smaller onboard tanks don't have the extra space between the stronger ends like the 60-minute tanks do and don't have the larger diameters either.  It just seems to me the larger tanks are at more of a risk in the middle area. I say this because I keep mine in a 5-gallon bucket with a tight-fitting hole in the bucket lid to keep it upright and more secure.  There is definitely more resistance removing the tank from the bucket at 4500psi compared to 3000psi.  The middle area does bulge out a little more.

[3crows]

I do not think these SCBA tanks are fragile eggs. They are built to survive in a work environment where rugged equipment is a requirement and conditions can be expected to be severe. Fireman risk their lives going into fires wearing these things.

[Madd Hatter]

I do not think these SCBA tanks are fragile eggs. They are built to survive in a work environment where rugged equipment is a requirement and conditions can be expected to be severe. Fireman risk their lives going into fires wearing these things.

And there you have it. I'd rather buy a expired scba tank than a chicom new tank. The fireman scba tanks have a very stringent requirements that not only manufacture of the tank have to meet but also the supplier of the carbon fiber prepreg roving. Who knows what standards the chicom tank manufacturers have if any?

[bchannell]

Do a search on 30 year certified SCBA cylinders and you'll get the full scoop on this whole issue of using outdated cylinders. You have to search 30 year to get the info on 15 year cylinders because it was the info used to certify cyls for 30 years.
The gist of the papers is that using a 15 year cyl after it's expiration date poses almost infinitesimal risk to life and limb. I'm going from memory on some of the timing, but you'll get the idea. There have only been a couple, I think two, instances of cyl failures that were unexplained and the reason was other damage that made cyl inspections impossible, like a fire that destroyed everything or some such disaster. Of the failures beyond those few, all were traced back to physical damage or abuse of the cyl that rendered it unsafe and should never have been in use to begin with. The safety factor built into carbon fiber cyls is simply amazing. IIRC, the burst testing showed something like 17,000psi (just shy of 1200BAR!!), so I think we're good there. As long as the cyl is in good physical condition, and has had it's visual inspection, then I'd have no problem using it. Remember, it's not that they were deemed unsafe, it's that DOT no longer allows them to be transported commercially, and I think even that is being contested.
It is noteworthy to mention that aluminum cyls DO NOT share the same safety margins, nor record as the carbon fiber and you should read up on them carefully, as they are a completely different animal.

[HunterWhite]

I did some scuba diving back in the 80' and 90's. There were a few tank ruptures. IIRC  The investigation revealed that they all had one thing in common, a fancy paint job.

It was traced back to a guy doing baked on enamel. The baking process destroyed the tempering of the aluminum.


Hunter