Hi, managed to aquire/ have been given a couple of old cylinders out of test. Wanting to use for open water and wondering the cheapest/ best place to test them,

dont think they have been in test for about 8 years but they appear in good nic

cheers

I know john taylor has a place near his work (chester/queensferry) that he uses regularly. He might be persuaded to drop them off there on his way past. Im seeing him tomorrow and will ask.

They will almost defently need a hydrostatic test, maybe worth looking at www.godive.net as the costs between getting the tests done and some new cylinders may not be that much.

Stu.

Indeed Stupot - and some might venture to suggest that such manipulation of prices indicates that some of us divers are being seriously ripped off. 

Get them tested and beat the "system".

Just beware that CTS have considered every one of my cylinders to need repainting - and that brings the cost to about the same as getting them tested anywhere else. ~£25 each for a hydro. Don't pay more than that. And it is still a lot cheaper than a new cylinder.

Marcus

I contacted my local dive shop in Bradford and was informed that new regulations mean that the tap has to be dismantled and inspected, so they have have put up their prices for a full hydro test to £37.50.  CTS were a lot more reasonable and were even able to offer an additional discount for cash on test & paint for a bulk order.  They had no problem testing 20 year old taper thread cylinders and they all passed.

Thanks sam that would be ace, cheers for your thoughts guys

I acquired a second hand tank for free recently and once I'd had it tested, repainted and a new cylinder tap fitted it would have been cheaper to buy new.

When it comes to testing don't be tempted by cheap, back yard, it'll be right, we do it to BS bla bla bla (often BS stands for bull shit).  I can't be arsed to elaborate but I have seen the consequences of cheap first hand.  Go to somewhere like SDS Watersports 0114 268 8488 www.sdswatersports.co.uk and get the job done properly.  If it fails it's not because they are trying to make money out of you unduly, they are making a living and doing their job.  There's been loads of stuff in the press about how much dive shops charge for testing etc. but.... they always fail to mention how much it costs to buy, maintain, run and insure a test facility.  What they charge for testing, to be honest, is a bargain.  If it passes, it passes, if it doesn't, they may have saved you getting your head blown off......

From my experiance, avoide GoDive with a barge pole. They pile it up high, sell it out cheap, know f***all about anything.

My own experience leads me utterly to disagree with just about everything SLP has just posted above.

One problem is that there is the accepted law on how cylinders should be tested - and then there is this outfit called IDEST.  Unfortunately many dive shops have allowed themselves to be absorbed into IDEST.  It has often been commented on that for many years IDEST has been failing cyliders for reasons which are not in the actual regulations.  They also won't return your cylinder so you can get a second opinion.  Whiff of rodent?

It is exceptionally rare for a (properly looked after) cylinder to fail in use explosively.  I keep all my cylinders in test religeously - not because I am concerned about them exploding but because I am concerned about the possibility of insurers wriggling out of their obligations (for example if a tap is knocked off in a road traffic accident).  Therefore I always use the cheapest test house which will give me the bit of paper stating that each cylinder has been tested in accordance with the law (not with IDEST).

I have been very impressed with STS at Speke (near Liverpool).

I also have to say that in my dealings with Go Dive (albeit not very often as they are out of my area) their service has always been excellent.

Eyup Pitlamp.

You may have misunderstood what I was saying, or pehaps I wan't clear in what I was saying.  I've never been a fan of IDEST.  The point I was trying to make was.... be sure the place you are taking your cylinders to be tested is reliable, IDEST or not.  I've had 200bar cylinders filled at both IDEST and non IDEST test houses to later find they were blown to 285bar, because they were in amongst some 300's and whoever filled them couldn't be arsed to read what was written on each one.  It suggests that if they can make this kind of a mistake filling they can do similar testing.  One of the above facilities has closed down and I no longer use the other.  I guess what I was trying to say was go on recommendation - not price. My recommendation for SDS is based upon many years of good service going back to pre IDEST, I trust them, that's all... Just use somewhere that can be reliably vouched for. SLP.

PS: My comment regarding GoDive in hindsight is perhaps a tad sweeping so perhaps I should retract it, but it was based upon personal and second-hand experiance of poor sevice. Perhaps these were isolated instances and I've/we've just been unlucky.

Ah - well that's a bit different then!  Actually I also have a lot of time for SDS as I've used them over the years.

You're right about using a shop you know and trust.  There's a certain excellent shop at Bamford which I trust implicitly for getting outdoor gear . . . . !  Always had good advice from there and never been sold any rubbish!  Highly recommended.