Recent trip - Should I complain or not ?

[Conor]

Hi all

On the recent redsea trip my 1st stage got filled with some bizarre white gel/powder from a dodgy cylinder on my first day. It wasn't salt or silica gel. The guys on the boat sent it back to Sharm to get cleaned and gave me a rental reg instead, I was supposed to get it back a day or two later when we passed Sharm, but they hadn't got around to it (Insh'allah). I eventually got it back while awaiting transfer to the airport. In the mean time the rental reg got filled with the same gunk twice and I had to get a third reg which also got the same stuff in it.

So the downsides are that I didn't get to use my own reg for the most of the holiday, which as a holiday diver is a real bummer as I only get to use it a few weeks a year and the next time I can check the reg will be at the start of my next holiday. To be honest I never really trusted the air after this happened.

The real surprise is that while repacking my regs at the weekend a little heap of the aforementioned white powder fell out. So now I'll have to get them serviced/cleaned again at my own expense.

So do you reckon I should mail Oonas and see what they have to say ?

Cheers

Conor

P.S. To clarify, the guys on the boat were very helpful, and at the end of the week sent all cylinders off to be cleaned/inspected.

[Twinset & Wing]

Hi there.

I am not a person known for complaining but in that situation I would definately complain there is no way I would want to be in your situation god knows what was in that white powder.  It is just plain dangerous.  It makes me sick that dive shops can get away with things like that.

DD

[Duiker]

White Powder, in your hand luggage? Do you really want to draw attention to this?

[Conor]

If it had've been that dodgy I'm sure I would have enjoyed the dives a lot more

[Dr Stevil]

I'd say there's no harm in writing to them in a non-complaining style to see if they'll offer you any discount for next time or such like, but as they gave you a rental reg and it didn't interupt your diving I doubt you'd be in line for compo, especially when,  AFAIK, no one else had problems with gunk in their regs, if there'd been a few other folk it would have given a stronger cause for complaint and recompense. Of course I know you're telling the truth 'cos I saw the gunk myself.
Last year I complained to Monarch airlines about the flight (can't be arsed to repeat myself but it was a total nightmare), all I got was a written apology... ho hum

[Dominic]

Damn right you should complain - you should also send them photocopies of the receipts for the servicing/cleaning and demand that they reimburse you.

A photo or two of the gunk in there would also not be a bad idea..

[Conor]

What I am thinking is of writing a letter detailing what happened, as much to make them aware of it as anything else. As for it only happening to me, that was strange as it happened to me 4 times and I was beginning to think I was going mad, until it happened to Gav on the last day. Viki (the Divemaster) did admit it had happened to her in the past also.

Even if it had happened only to me I would like to see someone explain how I could attach a clean 1st stage to a cylinder at 200+bar, dive with no sign of air escaping, return a tank with a minimum of 50+ bar and have anything inside the 1st stage and cylinder that wasn't in the cylinder before the dive.

It may have happened to others, but besides the YD crowd I don't know how many of the guys actually were checking their 1st stage before putting on the new cylinder.

The things that piss me off are;
That I own regs to use on Holiday so I don't have to rely on rentals, my air consumption and general enjoyment of a dive can vary dependant on the equipment I dive with. This holiday represented half my years diving that I couldn't use my regs for.

The next time I use the regs will most likely be on my next holiday, if this holiday is another liveaboard I may not therefore know if my regs are OK without having them properly serviced before I go. I was assured the regs had been cleaned, and they weren't.

Something in the processes/procedures being used is flawed, allowing contaminents to enter the breathing air. I was left diving with a slight feeling that if there was a little bit more of this stuff on the next dive it may be able to interfere with the operation of the regulator. One other diver reported smelling diesel after clearing his mask, he later said he felt dizzy on the dive. When my second reg got blocked for the second time, one of the crew tried to clean it by rinsing water through the first stage, hence reg 3.

But, just to be clear, I had a great Holiday and hold nothing against any of the staff on the boat, but I am thinking about bringing it to the attention of the people chartering the boat to see what they have to say. My holiday was by no means ruined but it may have been a little better.

Steve - I hope I didn't come across to miserable on the boat, but there was one occassion I could have throttled someone (when I was told I wouldn't see my regs until the end of the week). Unforunately/luckily none of the people available were the people I should have throttled.

Sorry to rant

Conor

[Mark Davies]

<font color='#000080'>Conor,

It was obviously a problem which marred the trip a little for yourself, but we were all dissappointed for you. Not least when they failed to return your regs cleaned as promised part way through the week. And of course that is compounded by the fact that it appears they haven't cleaned them at all!

It's clear the staff on the boat did all that they could and were let down by the &quot;support&quot; on shore. If I were you I would be writing to them, and at least seek to recover the cost of getting your regs cleaned and serviced. If you need any help with it I'm sure we'd all be perfectly happy to back you up.

[Tim Ingmire]

Write to them as Steve suggested and they should at least cover the cost of a proper service.  You can forward them our details if they wish to confirm the problem.  If it made you anxious to use a rental reg - resulting in increased air consumption and therefore reduced total bottom time then it has clearly had a negative impact on your hols.  I would ask for a discount - they can only say no.  Or get them to throw in a Nitrox course on your next booking with them.

HTH

TIm

[Dr Stevil]

Nay lad, you didn't come across as miserable at all.
I think I'll give my 1st stages a thorough inspection this week but can't say I'd noticed any strange gunk on sunday whilst using the 1st stage that I'd taken on holiday