Sport Chalet is a joke of a dive shop. They refused to fill my tanks because they were painted. Never had a problem ANYWHERE but there. My dive buddy always goes there and always gets short fills. Go anywhere else but Sport Chalet!
Terrible Dive shops
Sport Chalet is a joke of a dive shop. They refused to fill my tanks because they were painted. Never had a problem ANYWHERE but there. My dive buddy always goes there and always gets short fills. Go anywhere else but Sport Chalet!
Did they elaborate on why because it was painted they wouldnt fill it? Was it covering the neck stampings?
Maybe they were concerned about the liability of filling a tank that may have been heat cured by someone other then the factory and thus the aluminum could concievably lose it's temper and tensile strength.
Considering filling tanks is a loss leader item, I can GUARANTEE you if a tank exploded and caused an injury as a result of improperly cured paint any lawyer who slept through law school would seize upon that issue.
No none of the stamps were covered. It was just spray paint on a steel 72. It was easy to tell it was spray painted because old VIP stickers were falling off, and you could see the old paint. They gave no explination. They told me they could refuse any tank that they wanted to. Took it to a local dive shop (where I usually go) and they laughed..... told me that if they didn't fill a painted tank that they would never fill a tank at all. They went on to say what do you expect, that's why they work at Sport Chalet. Just goes to show how much corporations suck!
Originally Posted by hbh2oguard
Well you are a bit off base here. Now that you are pissed at me I will tell you why. A cylinder fill is not a right it's a privileged. When you bring a cylinder to me for filling I have to take a risk in filling it. The risk is that the cylinder is reasonably safe to fill. That means it has a current hydro test, it has a valid visual inspection sticker, it does not appear to be damage, mishandled, subjected to heat or has hidden corrosion.
The explosive force of a scuba cylinder is enought to take off the side of a building. Enough to shear a man in half. It's a bomb and WILL fail if damaged.
ANY cylinder that comes into my place that has been painted, or has more than ONE current visual inspection sticker on it, or is covered with "stickers" will not be filled unless we perform a visual inspection on that tank. Paint and stickers can hide corrosion that could lead to cylinder failure.
Sport Chalet is following prudent procedure. Don't blame them for wanting to protect thier employees, customers, and property.
Hang in there.
Cheers
Joel Silverstein, VP COO
Tech Diving Limited - Everything Tech
Scuba Diving Limited - Everything Rec
New Playground
But you CAN blame the applicant's trial lawyers association.
Just a thought.... why dont you buy a compressor and learn to fill tanks. Then, YOU can fill every crappy, missused, heat cured, corroded tank and risk your own health and safety! Sport Chalet can send all their "rejects" to you and then there wont be any unhappy people with empty tanks in the world)
It is always an option. Would you stand next to your tanks while they are getting that big fill you asked for? Need a hot fill? Willing to not sue whoever is in control when your body parts go seperate ways due to any of this? Why do people tend to err on the side of caution? Because the one in a million does happen. Thats why its one and not none.Just a thought.... why dont you buy a compressor and learn to fill tanks. Then, YOU can fill every crappy, missused, heat cured, corroded tank and risk your own health and safety! Sport Chalet can send all their "rejects" to you and then there wont be any unhappy people with empty tanks in the world
Matt
I not mad at anyone. I'm trying to prove one point, support your local dive shop not a corporation. I would buy a compressor but it doesn't economically make sense. I would also have no problem standing next to my tanks as they are getting filled. They comply with all regulations and are just as safe as any one of your tanks.
That is a tough call hbh20guard. Did you paint them yourself? Or do you mean they were painted from the factory? If they are refusing to fill ANY painted tank than yeh, that is a bit overboard since a lot of tanks arrive brand new from the distributor painted. But employees who are taught to operate the fill panel are probably taught, and rightly so, to be wary of home paint jobs for the reasons previously mentioned. It was good you took them to a place that knows you and knows your tanks, they'd probably be more understanding.
What is Sport Chalet, anyway? That is a dive shop chain?
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