Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] question about general design?

[David Buchner <buchner@wcta.net>]

Title: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] question about general design?

> > From: David
> > Buchner
> > To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
> > Sent: Wednesday, August 08, 2001 9:46
> > PM
> > Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] question about general
> > design?
> >
> >  
> > "Please do; I'm interested in understanding these
> > reasons. The main one I can think of is that at that pressure, those
> > things just don't hold all that much air. I used up almost all of mine
> > yesterday, pre-charging a 20 gal. household water pressure tank to 28
> > psi. That wouldn't translate into much ballast-blowing, at all.
> > Besides, those always make me uneasy by the time they get up to
> > 120."
> >  
> > You've got the idea, Dave.  It's a question of
> > regulation requirements and practical working pressures. 
> > Besides, if I'm going to take up space for an air bottle in my sub,
> > why would I want one that carries 1/25th as much?  Air is one of
> > those things it's better to have and not need, than
> > vice-versa.
> >  
> > Pat

Okay, so -- what about those of us who are just tinkering around in the pool, experimenting, with limited means (or limited means that can be spent on such experiments without threatening domestic happiness; c'mon I'm still lobbying for a *welder*...)? I haven't looked into this, but what's involved in getting high-pressure tanks and getting them refilled and so on? How expensive are they and how fussy are they going to be about selling one to just some guy who looks like he's up to no good with it? Not much of that kind of stuff around here, but I'm guessing it's not something I can just grab off the shelf and throw in my shopping cart at ScubaMart, right? If I wasn't breathing it, I've noticed plenty of those CO2 cylinders for Coke dispensers around...

(I know, I know -- SCUBA CERTIFICATION. It's on the list; see "limted means" and also "not much of that around here" above. Right now I'm just interested in air to blow things in waist-deep water and see what they do (for which my portable tire-filler tank is actually pretty okay).)