So, Why Can't Customers Buy Regulator Parts Kits?

Now that many dive shops and manufacturers are moving their sales online, the question I've seen posed by many is, why won't manufacturers sell the parts kits for their regulators directly to the consumer? It seems like a natural conclusion to online sales; the customer purchases a regulator online. Why shouldn't they be able to purchase the kits to repair it as well?

The answer to that question actually begins at the manufacturer's responsibility to the consumer. The reason manufacturers generally require yearly service on their regulators is to ensure that the regulators are in good working condition. So, they train technicians through local dive shops to take them apart properly and examine the regulators' moving parts. Though regulators themselves are generally very durable, the o-rings and diaphragm are made of parts that degrade, much like the belts in your car's motor. Thus, the regulators require new parts from the manufacturer periodically. Even if you only dive once or twice a year, these parts will harden with age like any other rubber product.

Enter the Local Dive Shop. As a shop with a Repair Department, I've seen what it takes to properly disassemble and reassemble a regulator, and to tune it. I can safely say that you probably don't have one in your basement. The regulators have to be tested at a testing station with air pressure to ensure proper function, and many regulators have face plates that require special tools to remove. Manufacturers do not direct-sell their parts kits because it becomes a huge liability to both the dive center and the manufacturer if someone takes their reg apart, pulls out the o-rings, puts it back together and misses something or cracks the housing in a way that causes it to malfunction. It's the same reason you can't fill your tank from the tire compressor in your garage; you breathe off it. If we sell you a parts kit, you install it and your regulator free-flows at fifty feet, whose fault is it? Was it your installation, or was it a faulty kit? The list goes on.

At the end of the day, the repair kit policy is the only means by which a manufacturer can ensure proper function and maintenance of the products they stand by. And keep in mind, these units are designed to keep you alive in a foreign environment. Wouldn't you want someone who checks them for a living to make sure it's in good condition, inside and out?

Holy Flying Mantas, Batman!

Did you know that manta and mobula rays can leap out of the water up to 9 feet into the air?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1298362/Flying-giants

Most people seem to think it's an impulse to remove parasites, although there are theories that males use the leaps as an effort to attract females or to alert others to the presence of predators. It's a rare sight to document, as rays are migratory and often move across vast areas of ocean. Their graceful movements underwater translate well in the open air, where they flap their fins in a manner reminiscent of flight.

A photo by one of the best underwater photographers, Brian Skerry

Unfortunately for these animals, their species has been listed as 'vulnerable' by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. They are being overfished for their gill rakers, the membranes in their gills that filter the plankton they feed on. There are dubious claims in traditional forms of Chinese medicine that they strengthen the immune system, can assist in the resolution of kidney problems, and are touted as a general cure-all (much like the shark fin). There is a widespread belief that migratory ocean animals do not get cancer and diseases like humans do, so consuming their meat should be good for you. Unfortunately, most large oceanic animals are no longer safe for consumption at all, as the levels of mercury and chemical by-products in these animals has steadily increased in the last several years.

Don't succumb to an "out of sight, out of mind" mentality; just as you may never have known that these manta and mobula rays can leap out of the water, you might not have known until now that they are in danger of extinction due to irresponsible fishing practices.

Go to Project AWARE's website to learn what action is being taken to save these animals, from legislation to island community organizing and the creation of marine sanctuaries. And take action yourself! Don't be silent in your opposition to unsustainable fishing practices. Raise awareness, sign reputable petitions such as the petition through Project AWARE, and learn more about the successes of these measures and how they benefit the animals.