Please help: white powder from carbon fiber tank

[Raj]

Hope you find an answer and solution, Jeff. The title did make me smile
Does this mean you cant use your tank?

[jeffbroodwar]

Hmm I called them and denied that they have this white residue. They said they filled several bottles already and not heard any complaints. Im tired arguing especially if store didnt even bother to check phone just denied it through phone.

Its fine if the inner walls have aluminum, funny thing is that I washed it with dish washing liquid and rinsed it 100 times to make sure nothings left inside and placed it upside down for a week to make sure water gets out and make it dry... All I can think off is the anti moisture powdered crystals they use with the compressor...

I even tried to touch the inner wall of the tank before I went to the shop to fill it with air and I didnt get any white powder on my finger.

Sad just sad

[TenMetrePeter]

Are you still in Phillipines? Do they test tanks there by law?
I must say washing them out is not something I do regularly in UK but st least you can do it again!

[gdavison]

As an ex diver, if you believe that the compressor or shop is at fault, you should ask to see a copy of their up to date Air quality certificate, from that take a note of the testing company (ie the company who actually tested the air quality) and the test agency the company who defined the standard to which it is tested (in the UK that is the HSE) and contact both with your concerns. Bad air to a airgunner is a PITA, "bad" air to a diver could be their life.. I have had the dive from hell from breathing air from compressors where the filters have started to fail and small amounts of oil fumes had made it across and they are not fun, never mind the costs of having to get Trimix equipment re-cleaned and serviced from the contamination

Its fine if the inner walls have aluminum, funny thing is that I washed it with dish washing liquid and rinsed it 100 times to make sure nothings left inside and placed it upside down for a week to make sure water gets out and make it dry... All I can think off is the anti moisture powdered crystals they use with the compressor...

I even tried to touch the inner wall of the tank before I went to the shop to fill it with air and I didnt get any white powder on my finger.

Apologies if I miss read this, I do have to comment that I read the above as you have cleaned the cylinder and and left it to" air dry" .. so after rinsing, you turned the cylinder upside down and left it without a valve in to naturally dry for a week - if there was any moisture still in the cylinder or dampness from humidity, you would have got some aluminium oxidation occurring on the inside of the bottle (when a cylinder test station cleans a bottle after hydro test they blast the water droplets out with dry compressed air and immediately valve the cylinder and partially fill it, we also did the same after O2 cleaning for Nitrox etc) .. As your finger would have only reached as far as the valve thread are you sure you had no Aluminium "corrosion" at the bottom of the cylinder, did you do a full visual check with an endoscope ?

[Raj]

Maybe it is the moisture and detergent that is reacting with the aluminium

[TenMetrePeter]

Need a helluva bottle brush

[Phil B]

The non-scientist in me says the last couple of posts probably have the answer

[jeffbroodwar]

I didnt use a scope to see the inside just flash light. Ill try to clean the places I can reach and do another dead head test, see if the places I cleaned will have the same powder again. Im thinking using it anyway with my gun. Getting impatient with all the sensitivity of the sport. Fill and shoot right? Lol

[TenMetrePeter]

I might buy a new scuba tank in your situation and not poke about inside it. If it's at all flakey I wouldn't put 300 bar in it.

Fill and shoot with clean breathable air, yes.

[jeffbroodwar]

Sad cause its brand new