Official 2005 DOT Regulations

[Caffiend]

If your tank had still been a 3-year tank, it would already be out of hydro. The month listed on your tank is for the first of the month, not last. You must get your tank hydro'd before January 1, 2007. :)

Just a little something most people don't know about hydro dates.


*Ninja edit*
Forgot to say thanks for the info, Brophog. Link to the site from where you got it?

Thanks deathstalker! I thought it was like car registration, it goes by the end of the month, but now I know :)

[deathstalker]

...and knowing is half the battle!

[Brophog]

Update - an alert forum member has located an additional exemption number and asked me about it. This exemption, on some Scott CO2 bottles, is E-8096, and exempts these bottles from ever needing to be tested, for their service life of 15 years. These are for 16 ounce chrome-moly tanks, the exemption will expire on October 31, 2005 - meaning that these tanks are still ok to be used without hydro for D-Day 2005. After that date, if the exemption is not renewed by the manufacturer, you will have to have them hydroed.

--Airguy, Texas Air Solutions

[kscullin]

Great post, Brophog! You answered several questions I had about tank hydrotesting requirements.

Perhaps I can help clear up some of the reasons behind the common confusion about exemptions. The chrome moly myth, the "E" myth, and the 9 oz myth all stem from the fact that only chrome moly cylinders stamped DOT-3E are exempt from hydrotesting. This is because they are the ones which fall under the 2" in diameter and 2' in length exemption. These cylinders comprise the 3.5 oz, 4 oz, 7 oz and 9 oz sizes (although there may be 3.5 oz or 4 oz aluminum cylinders that fit the requirement). 9 oz aluminum tanks are stamped DOT-3AA or DOT-3AL, and must be retested every 5 years.

You should be aware that there is a problem with tanks made of the aluminum alloy 6351-T6. These aluminum cylinders will be stamped DOT-3AL and composite cylinders will be stamped DOT-3E 7235. There are exceptions, as noted in http://hazmat.dot.gov/pubs/reports/c...l_advisory.pdf, but unless specified otherwise, you should assume your tank with either of these codes is made of this alloy. I've read of one death associated with a SCUBA tank made of this alloy rupturing - and the guy hadn't even started filling it yet. If it wasn't already in a tub of water, it's likely the 2 men next to him would've died as well. The fiber wrapped ones were all made before 1990, (I believe that's what it says, anyway), and should soon all be out of service anyway, but keep an eye on your aluminum ones. I had a 9 oz aluminum tank stamped DOT-3AL, but it's already removed from service (I needed the valve and wasn't going to get it hydro'd anyway). It was made in 9/2000.

[tolley]

Dot

The DOT website has all this, if you have your tank DOT number you can go there and look it up.

[ben_JD]

Tolly is correct. Go to : US Dept. of Transportation HazMat Exceptions Page and choose your Exemption number from the list. I carry printed copies in my gear bag to fend off the occasional hydro challenge from a new field.

[jewie27]

You would be surprised on how many businesses/fields don't even check the retest dates. This one kid at this one field I played at had a tank that was almost 2 years out of date and the guy filling filled 2 or 3 times before someone told on him.

good thing I stay clear of those kind of people. If a shop or field doesn't check my hydro date, although I already know what it is, I won't go there.

[fire1811]

thanks for the info

[okiTony]

This is great Info. Thank you all!!!

[Smileatom88]

Wow. Great Information. Thanks

[50 cal]

now the only problem is convincing the filler that your tank doesn't need to be tested, hopefully they got this memo :)

There is a guy local that just won't believe me about 5 yr hydros. I tell him about the ASTM and DOT site and where to look for it and he absolutely refuses to believe me.
I try to tell him to look for himself, he has 'net access at his field. He just refuses to be proved wrong. I have to borrow a friends 68/3000 to play there.

[ben_JD]

There is a guy local that just won't believe me about 5 yr hydros. I tell him about the ASTM and DOT site and where to look for it and he absolutely refuses to believe me.
I try to tell him to look for himself, he has 'net access at his field. He just refuses to be proved wrong. I have to borrow a friends 68/3000 to play there.

Why is it that you haven't printed the exemption and showed it to him? Visit the website listed in my post above, print the exemption and place it in your gear bag to avoid these problems.