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#135
Aluminum 80 vs Steel 80
Unsoughtdevil - 8/31/2013 11:27 AM
Category: Equipment
Replies: 12

Besides the the added weight and increase in pressure, what are the up and down sides of each?
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Greg - 8/31/2013 11:56 AM
Aluminum should last longer if properly cared for. Steel allows you to reduce the lead weight you need to carry. Aluminum is easier to carry around (not as heavy). It’s more manly to say you dive with steel :). Steel tanks cost over 25% more than aluminum tanks.
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tshark - 8/31/2013 11:58 AM
The steel tank is smaller & can rust from the inside out! also many scuba stores dont have enough pressure to get a good fill they are also less buoyant at the end of a dive as compared to aluminum. Aluminum tanks are the standard easy to get good fills but become very buoyant at the end of a dive & you need to wear more weight to stay down. I hope this helps
#15534
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Brian_V - 8/31/2013 1:33 PM
If you do decide on steel, buy two. It will be easier to sell them, a tech diver might buy them to use a doubles.
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ScubaCrab - 8/31/2013 6:46 PM
I own mostly steel tanks. Properly cared for they will last a lifetime! Less weight on my weight belt. For a small or short person they are more compact than an aluminum and easier to handle. For a tall or large person they may not trim out as well in the water. Unless they wear the tank very low then it is hard to reach the valve in an emergency on a 80cf steel not a problem with a 100 or 120cf steel for example. Depends on the diver and there setup. Getting a short fill depends on where you go. Many places fill them properly also are we talking about high presure tanks? They are made with different presure ratings. Aluminum 80 are popular because they are cheaper saving dive ops in alot of capital out. Easier to sell to most divers because of there affordable. And just a good all around for average divers. Comercial tec and cave mostly use steel tanks except for pony deco and stage bottles. But that can vary.
#15534
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Brian_V - 8/31/2013 7:38 PM
If you didn’t know already, in the ’for sale’ forum, somebody is selling two H
P80 tanks, they’re in Florida. Just saying!
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LatitudeAdjustment - 9/01/2013 4:17 PM
"Besides the the added weight and increase in pressure, what are the up and down sides of each?"

An AL 80 and a LP Steel 80 weigh about the same filled, the real difference as you breath them down the AL80 gets positive and a steel tank gets negative so by 500psi when you are doing your safety stop the steel tank will require 6 pounds less lead to stay neutral. That’s 6 pounds less you carried onto the boat :)

For beach dives I use a Steel 72, it has more than enough air for a shallow dive and less lead to carry over the sand.

IF I’m diving with a 3mil suit, my 6 pound BP and a steel tank I have no ditchable weight so for that I need to switch to my plastic BP and then I have 5 pounds if I need to ditch.
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Brian_V - 9/01/2013 7:16 PM
I own a HP80 and two HP100’s, either are nice, less lead on my belt with either, lots of extra air volume with the 100’s. And since AL80 only actually have 77 cu in and are like corks at the end of the dive, they’re more hassle then they’re worth.
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GoDeeper - 9/02/2013 5:34 PM
Steel LP 85’s are my favorite. Good size, negative throughout the dive, and a slight overfill gets a nice amount of breathing gas. They make a great doubles set-up as well. As far as how long they will last; we are still using steel 72’s made in the early 1970’s.
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DeepBlueDreaming - 9/03/2013 5:47 AM
I’m just starting and all the info on AL80 really helps to explain a lot of the buoyancy problems I was having this weekend. I would have fairly good trim throughout the dives and I was able to really control myself by just my breathing and not adding/removing air to the BS. But when it was time for the safety stop, I had such a hard time staying between 15-17’.

I carry 6lbs of weight, 2-two lbs by the tank and 2-one lbs in the pockets on my side. From the sound of it, I could get a Steel 80-100 tank and that might be perfect. A guy I was diving with yesterday had a short fat SL95. It didn’t really feel much heavy than the AL80 when I unloaded them from the truck.
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Greg - 9/03/2013 10:37 AM