Florida Sea Base News

Thursday was rough in much of the north-central US with at least 12 weather related fatalities and more is expected today.  People fear hurricanes.  But usually we have DAYS of advanced warning.  Tornados, while generally not as large or as long lasting,  have higher wind speeds and allow very little advanced warning.

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Scuba Instructor Rich Goldman is scheduled to arrive tonight.  He has been working to get the Galley staff scuba certified.  The plan is for me to tag along tomorrow as a second instructor.  Steven Raymond will be our shared Divemaster.  Captains Dennis Wyatt and Christy Clemenson will crew the boat.  We hope to leave the dock at 0830 tomorrow and complete three Open Water Training Dives in time to be back on the dock by 1400 (2 pm).  We will need to function like the proverbial well oiled machine.  The ride may be very bumpy; 15 to 20 knot southerly winds are forecasted.  Yahoo!  Scuba Rodeo!

The crew continued to work very hard on the scuba tanks yesterday.  Thanks everyone!  They should be very close to completing the task by the end of the day tomorrow.

I spent two or three hours late yesterday preparing for more PADI exams.  I did quite well on my first round of practice tests.  With just a few hours of review I should be able to ace the next five exams.  After all, do you want an instructor trainer that knows MOST of the stuff or ALL of the stuff?

I found time to tinker with my aft air conditioner last night.  I was able to get it to work – temporarily at least.  Maybe it will hold up long enough for me to get through the end of the March.  The PADI Course Director Training Course application will be behind me and I’ll have a little more time to select a new unit and install it.

Have a great weekend.

Capt. Steve Willis
Professional Scuba Bum™
Aboard S/V Escape 

Yesterday I posted:

WE NEED YOUR HELP!!!!!  The Florida Sea Base has a pathetic internet capacity.  Many leaders are scanning and emailing their scuba crew medicals.  Yesterday, the whole computer network at the Florida Sea Base shut down from data overload.  Please fax the medicals to 305-664-5632 or mail them to Florida Sea Base, PO Box 1906, Islamorada, FL 33036.  If you must send them electronically, consider copying them onto a CD and mail that to us OR email the medicals ONE PARTICIPANT AT A TIME.

We are still in internet overload and need you to refrain from sending large data files.  I do NOT use the Florida Sea Base internet system for this post.  I pay $70 a month for an AT&T air card for my personal internet use.  In critical weather situations it is not unusual for Captain Rich and I to have to depend on our iPhones for weather data or we have to go to the boat (we both live on boats) and use our personal internet access and computers.  When I purchased my MacBook Pro it gave me the ability to be more mobile when these issues arise.

But none of this fixes our current dilemma.  All of the on base business computers (about 20 of them) are hardwired to a single server that is fed by a single DSL connection. This same feed supports two wi-fi systems that are used by our seasonal staff and participants.

The 2012 Daytona 500 is finally over.  If you didn’t watch it, you missed some incredible, real life action.  Wow!

Another round of termite treatments is complete.  The tents have been removed from the dorms, GM’s residence and Quarterdeck.

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A few days ago I wrote a post about the annual inspection of our scuba tanks.  Here are some photos I took yesterday of the staff hard at work.

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The Florida Sea Base hosted a session of the PADI Member Forum last night.  I have explained this is previous posts. Essentially, we host the Forum each spring.  It is a three hour session for PADI Divemasters and Instructors to see what’s new with PADI.  PADI Regional Manager Mike Kurzcewski makes the presentation.  Last night we had a special treat; Bob Coleman, one of PADI’s Vice Presidents (of sales I believe), came along with Mike.  Bob (like everyone at PADI) is a really great guy.

Capt. Steve Willis
Professional Scuba Bum™
Aboard S/V Escape

Question:  Who’s the oldest person to have ever passed the PADI Standards and Procedures exam with a perfect score?
Answer: I’m not sure, but I am certainly in the running.

Now that I have that exam behind me, I have the PADI Dive Theory exam to look forward to.  It is actually a set of five mini-tests on physics, physiology, equipment, skills & the environment and decompression theory & the Recreational Dive Planner.  The good news is I can take those on-line.  The bad news is I need to study a LOT and take the exams as soon as possible.

As far as I know there were no issues yesterday at the Florida Sea Base.  I returned to base just in time for flags but went to the boat and didn’t make time to talk with anyone.  No news is good news.

There are no crew arrivals today.  Our next arrival is a week from today.  Scuba Commissioner Laura Kuras and I will keep the scuba staff busy visually inspecting scuba tanks.  This job has to be performed at least once a year.  Here’s the process:

The hard plastic boots on the bottom of the tank, the old inspection sticker and any paint must be removed from the tank.

Any remaining air must be slowly drained from the tanks.  This can be a long and incredibly noisy process.  (Bear in mind that we have over 400 tanks to drain.)  Since the scuba tanks contain compressed air (approximately 100 times the air pressure in a common automobile tire), the tanks cool as the pressure is released.  If it is released too quickly, condensation is formed.  The inside of the tank needs to stay dry to protect it from oxidation.  Therefore, condensation is a no-no.  The air is released through the valve that allows a regulator to be attached to the tank.  The hole in the valve is less than 1/8 inch in diameter.  Discharging the air quickly causes noise that can cause ear damage; another reason the tanks need to be drained slowly.  Even if the tanks are being drained slowly, you can only drain a few at a time or the noise still becomes deafening.

Once ALL of the air pressure has drained the valve can be removed.  (That is not a correct statement.  All of the air is not evacuated from the tank, that would be a vacuum.  The tanks are drained until the internal pressure equalizes with  ambient air pressure.)  Removing the valve can be challenging.  We use a 24″ crescent style adjustable wrench and a hammer.  The valves are made of very soft brass that has been nickel plated.  Hammering on the tank valve or gripping the valve inappropriately with the wrench can destroy it.  Valves are not cheap.

After removing the valve, any silicone or dielectric grease residue is scraped off the top of the tank with a razor blade and wire brush.  The outside of the tank is inspected for saltwater pitting or signs of damage from being dropped.  A long, skinny light is inserted through the neck of the tank so the inside can be examined for saltwater pitting.  Significant pitting, whether internal or external, can cause the tank to be condemned and removed from service.  A special (expensive) device is used to illuminate and magnify the threads of the tank.  Damaged threads can also cause the tank to be condemned.

If any debris (salt crystals or aluminum oxide for example) is found inside the tank, the tank is pulled and goes through a special cleaning process to remove said debris and allow for an investigation of the cause.  The cleaning process usually takes a day or two.

Once the tank is determined to be acceptable for duty, a new o-ring (with just a tiny smear of silicone grease) is placed onto the valve.  A dab of dielectric grease is placed on the valve threads.  This helps prevent galvanic action between the brass threads of the valve and the aluminum threads of the tank.  The valve is then reattached to the tank and tightened securely (with care to not over torque it) to the tank.  The tank is tapped off so the lower several inches can be painted.  This is a sacrificial paint that protects the tank from saltwater pitting that can occur from the tank boot retaining tiny amounts of saltwater.  After the paint dries (frequently overnight) the boots are put back in place.

Finally, the tanks have to be filled.  We can fill about 20 tanks at a time and it takes about 20 minutes to fill a set of tanks.  That makes the math easy.  400 tanks need to be filled.  We can fill 20 at a time.  400 divided by 20 = 20 sets to fill.  20 sets times 20 minutes per set = 400 minutes.  400 minutes divided by 60 = 6.6 hours to refill 400 tanks.  But when you add in time to move, connect and disconnect, move the tanks again, fill the air storage banks, and so on, the reality is that it takes almost two full days to refill all of the tanks.

It will take a serious team effort for us to visually inspect all of the Florida Sea Base scuba tanks in a week.  Our team will consist of Scuba Commissioner Laura Kuras, Scuba Instructor Meghann Michalski, Divemaster Steven Raymond and will be supervised by Captain Dennis “slop on more silicone” Wyatt and me since we are both certified in the safe management of the process.  We may draft some help from the sailing staff if they run out of chores.  And if we are still working on tanks next week, Scuba Instructor Dave Ball and Divemaster Mike Roesel will be available to help.  It’s a family affair of sorts.

In case you can’t tell by the length of this post, I woke up a little early this morning (around 0300).  I’m going to lay back down for an hour and then get up for the 0730 staff meeting.  Don’t forget the Daytona 500 is running today.  It will be broadcast on the FOX network starting around noon Eastern Time.  (I am not a huge fan, but I do have the recorder set so I can fast-forward to the crashes and watch the last 10 or 20 laps.)

Capt. Steve Willis
Professional Scuba Bum™
Aboard S/V Escape

I always wondered how West Summerland Key was so named when it was actually east of Summerland Key.  But it doesn’t matter anymore because it was recently renamed Scout Key.  Scout Key is the home of  South Miami Councli BSA Camp Sawyer and Girl Scout Camp Wesumkee.  Crews going to the Brinton Environmental Center will now pass the Scout Key road sign on their journey.

Most of the staff worked on servicing the scuba tanks yesterday.  Capt. Aaron Foster reported that there was a leak in one of the high pressure lines between the compressors and the tanks that were being filled.  So I checked it out and he was right.  One of the quarter inch lines had gotten a little rust on it and had developed a pin-hole leak.  I dismantled that section of line and took it to Quiescence Diving in Key Largo to have a new one bent into the proper configuration.  When I got back to the base I realized they had not provided one of the fittings. Kyle Beighle was kind enough to drive back to Key Largo to get the needed part.  We are back in the scuba tank filling business!  We have to be very diligent while filling the tanks.  Most compressors used to paint houses or run mechanic or construction tools use 200 pounds per square inch (psi) of pressure.  The scuba compressors generate up to 5,000 psi.

One Coral Reef Sailing crew arrived yesterday afternoon.  Since we have no crews on base today or tomorrow, Capt. Rich is giving half of the program staff off todayand the other half will be off tomorrow.

Twenty or more States had severe weather yesterday with multiple tornadoes and at least one fatality.  We are still doing pretty well.  The chance of rain is still lingering in our forecast but, otherwise, we are doing well.

Enjoy your Sunday.

Capt. Steve
Aboard S/V Escape

Today Capt. Alex Bergstedt (FSB Scuba Commissioner) and I are scheduled to “get off the rock”.  That is a term the locals use when they get to go to the mainland.  Living on an island has it romantic qualities, but it’s also easy to get “cabin fever”.  Many of us watch very little TV or listen to news radio or read the newspaper even (except when we need a good laugh about how moronic some of the local politicians are).  Getting off the rock is a little shocking sometimes; cars driving faster than 45 mph, roads with more than two lanes, convenience stores (but not on EVERY corner like it seems to be back in Texas), chain stores, fast food, Wal-Mart, Kmart and Target, shopping malls, and all the other evils of society.  READ MORE.