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FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

SCUBAGASKETS o-rings have been developed in close cooperation with the manufacturer, in order to guarantee the usage of the best possible material and type of seal for specific applications in SCUBA equipment.

The average diver might be aware of two main categories of o-rings commonly used in SCUBA equipment, that come in different hardness ranging from 70 to 90 in shore A scale. These are normal industrial grades of either Nitrile o-rings (NBR) or Fluorocarbon (FKM) o-rings. The latest are being used with oxygen enriched mixtures. A number of other materials are also being used occasionally. However, there is a great variety of materials in the industry and each material has its recommended field of use. Even within the same category, and the same hardness, there are many subtypes; with each having its own applications. By selecting SCUBAGASKETS you eliminate luck and you ensure the use of correct seals.

Our O rings are selected/developed only for our Industry.

 
You are correct; our O rings are not the same as normal industrial O rings, but they have been especially developed for our Industry, to ensure longest life time but most important safety! The average diver might be aware of two main categories of o-rings commonly used in SCUBA equipment, that come in different hardness (Shore A), ranging from 70 to 90. These are Nitrile o-rings and Viton® o-rings. The latest is being used with oxygen enriched mixtures. However there is a great variety of materials in the industry and each material has its recommended field of use. Even within the same category, and the same hardness, there are many subtypes; with each having its own applications. By selecting SCUBAGASKETS you eliminate luck and you ensure the use of correct seals.
FKM is the ASTM designation for the fluoroelastomer category. It is not a mark of quality. Not all FKMs are equivalent, and some may fall short on desired performance.
Viton is a trademark of DuPont Performance Elastomers. Viton® was introduced in 1958 and scientists and engineers have relied on DuPont and now DuPont Performance Elastomers Viton® for its superior performance and unique properties ever since. However, DuPont Performance Elastomers is not the only company that manufactures FKM products. Many people in the industry incorrectly refer to any and all FKM elastomers as Viton®. Bear in mind that not all FKMs are equivalent. As a result, you could end up with sealing products that are not the type of Viton® you need, let alone made of 100% virgin DuPont Performance Elastomers Viton®. Products not made from DuPont Performance Elastomers Viton® may fall short of the expected performance levels afforded by the stringent quality standards DuPont Performance Elastomers has set for Viton®, which is manufactured at ISO 9002 registered facilities worldwide.
In a word, no! Only DuPont Performance Elastomers manufactures Viton® fluoroelastomer. Because Viton® is an established industry standard, many people incorrectly refer to any and all fluoroelastomers as Viton®. To ensure you’re getting the highest quality fluoroelastomer available, insist on products made only with DuPont Performance Elastomers virgin Viton®.
Look and Ask! Be sure to make Viton® an element of your part specification. When parts are shipped, look for the Genuine Viton® trademark. Not every supplier has a right to use the word Viton® in its products! You may only use the word Viton, if it is Viton!
It is your guarantee of product integrity. When you use products that carry this trademark, compliance to OSHA Mechanical Integrity Section 1910.119 is assured. It means that the parts offer the superior performance that only DuPont Performance Elastomers Viton® fluoroelastomer provides. Other fluoroelastomer parts may include blends and other rubbers that deliver inferior heat and fluid resistance performance. To assure safety, we only want to use the best!

Originally we chose not to use any colour additives in our  Viton o-rings since the stress tests that we performed indicated that  Black Viton when compared to Green or Brown Viton, with all parameters constant except for the colour, had better performance. It had higher strength, better stability and better elastic properties originally (brand new), even after exposure to extreme situations that cause material fatigue. It also had higher resistance to surface damage.

As divers, we are all highly sensitive to quality issues. We were very reluctant to compromise any amount of quality for the sake of being able to identify Viton by colour. Furthermore we should be aware that nitrile-type and other materials may indeed be produced in green or brown or blue or any other colour we can imagine. If we judge only by colour then there is a great risk of falling into errors. We have chosen to sacrifice easy identification by colour for getting the benefit of the best possible quality.

Nevertheless with the development of technology and chemistry in the following years, new technics and options were available to us for use. When we were asked to develop a special Viton Material for Constant Pure Oxygen applications our consultants Europeseals BV manged to do that and even produce this special Viton O-ring in green colour. Of course, that was not an easy task since in order to develop this special Viton material a big challenge had to be overcome and that was the exclusion of carbon(which adds hardness to the material) from the elastomer formula and at the same time keep the hardness high. The stress tests for this new Viton material indicated that the colour additives didn’t alter the physical properties of the orings, so we have them in green. The only drawback of this material is the cost, which is significantly higher than the black Viton O-rings. So, in conclusion, we offer 2 different viton o-ring types for 2 different applications one for oxygen-enriched gas mixtures (nitrox-black viton) and one for High-pressure constant Pure Oxygen applications (green Viton). We do our best to keep the cost down but offer the best sealing option possible in the market.

 

30 Years of O-ring Technical Expertise in the industry: (including general industry, heavy chemical industry (offshore) Automotive, Water and Heating and others. Also, we are very much involved in the Aerospace industry, working closely with all leading European Aerospace companies like Rolls Royce, Snecma, Eurocopter and Airbus. This assures you that you have the best selection for SCUBA gear with regards to technical characteristics.

The o-rings are packed in shockedproved containers, protected from damage by mechanical pressure that may cause material deterioration and hence alteration of the o-ring sealing characteristics.

The o-rings are packed in opaque containers, protected from UV-light that may cause material deterioration and hence alteration of the o-ring sealing characteristics.

The o-rings are packed in straight-sided jars, which have been specifically designed so you can place them on top of each other and save storage space. The containers are closed with safety seal, which allows you to ensure quality before you buy by checking that the seal is in place.The jars have wide mouth either 5cm or 7,5cm which makes them ideal to work from in the workbench. You don’t need to find a bulky o-ring kit box to store all the different types of o-rings that you are using. Just use the O-rings containers. No more mixing up, and no more mess inside the big boxes. Have you ever dropped an open big box with 30 different oring sizes?

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