Looking to reduce weight on land.

[db83]

I'm considering buying a tank. Would the weight be lower with an aluminum tank or steel tank? I've seen that steel tanks are much smaller. How much air do they hold relative to an Al tank?

[Damselfish]

that's all going to depend on the tank. Here's a chart - Scuba Cylinder Specifications

Lighter on land is nice, but there are lots of other considerations. Aluminum will be cheaper. Steel tends to have better buoyancy characteristics in the water, especially if you are diving cold water. (On the other hand, some people who dive warm water with little exposure protection will find themselves overweighted with some steel tanks.)

[db83]

It looks like steel tanks are slightly lighter than Al tanks. And smaller is good as well. Negatively buoyant is good for me since it allows me to wear less weight in other areas.
Now... what is Tripple, Pwdr, Galv?
What is better?

[WD8CDH]

Once weighted for the same buoyancy, the tank plus any weight will always be less for the higher pressure tank of the same material. Of the readily available SCUBA tanks, HP Steel will be the lightest for a given capacity, both the tank itself and with any needed weight to be added or removed from your belt.

[CompuDude]

Originally Posted by db83

It looks like steel tanks are slightly lighter than Al tanks. And smaller is good as well. Negatively buoyant is good for me since it allows me to wear less weight in other areas.
Now... what is Tripple, Pwdr, Galv?
What is better?

Galvanized in best for salt water, and fine in fresh, too. The triple-coated epoxy that Faber uses is fine for fresh water, but I don't like it as much for salt water. It also gets more beat-up looking than galvanized tanks do.

Power-coating is generally only for aluminum tanks.

[WD8CDH]

To make the decision MORE complicated, the phosphate interior treatment of the Faber tanks is more resistant to corrosion from a wet fill.

[WD8CDH]

This is the lightest diving system available. It is now DOT approved.

http://www.interspiro.com/_downloads..._leaflet_L.pdf

[WaScubaDude]

Originally Posted by WD8CDH

This is the lightest diving system available. It is now DOT approved.

http://www.interspiro.com/_downloads..._leaflet_L.pdf

These look great but what about the buoyancy characteristics? Any idea how much?

[awap]

Originally Posted by db83

It looks like steel tanks are slightly lighter than Al tanks. And smaller is good as well. Negatively buoyant is good for me since it allows me to wear less weight in other areas.
Now... what is Tripple, Pwdr, Galv?
What is better?

The only better solution is what my wife came up with. If it is a longer walk, I get to carry her tank.

[mitsuguy]

Originally Posted by WaScubaDude

These look great but what about the buoyancy characteristics? Any idea how much?

its a cool system, but they sell weights to make the assembly less positive, neutral, or negative...

out of the water, the tanks will be much lighter than standard gear, however, the weight you need to add will be similar to an aluminum tank to stay neutral in the water... this is both good and bad - it doesn't solve the root problem, walking with gear on is heavy, but it does make moving the tank around by itself easier...