[worr8529]

Hi, any ideas on what I can do to get this tank working would be greatly appreciated-

I have a PMI pure energy 68/3000 tank. it is about 10 years old and has been hydro'd twice. It has seen minimal use, if any. I just had it re-hydro'd as of last week, took it to the store and had it filled. the next day the tank was empty, I had not used it and I also could not hear a leak. So I took it to the field today and filled it, It worked ok for a little while and then the air came out of a small hole on the reg, above where the fill nipple is. It just emptied itself out right there and then after that I did not dare to re-fill the darn thing. Does anyone know what happend to this and Do I need to rebuild the regulator? any help on this I would really appreciate!

[Tabris17]

Rebuild the regulator, that's the vent hole on the regulator. The piston or a seal is probably worn out or dirty.

[RudeSechsVibe]

Sounds like your 1800psi burst disk ruptured, perhaps an indication that the piston o-rings and/or the spring(s) are shot.

A rebuild kit won't include the burst disk, but you can order that later, if needed.

You will know if the burst disk ruptured by the loud pop followed by a violent rush of your air supply.

[Tabris17]

If the burst disc ruptured it wouldn't have taken a full fill to begin with and the burst discs aren't located above the fill nipples anyway. That's usually the bleed hole for if a seal goes bad, much like the bleed hole on the marker regulators; which also prevents a vacuum from forming in the piston as well.

[RudeSechsVibe]

Let's break this down slowly, 'cause I'm new

Originally Posted by Tabris17

*snip* If the burst disc ruptured it wouldn't have taken a full fill to begin with... *snip*

An empty tank will never rupture a burst disk. Trust me. I believe the OP said:

Originally Posted by worr8529

*snip* So I took it to the field today and filled it, It worked ok for a little while and then the air came out of a small hole on the reg, above where the fill nipple is. It just emptied itself out right there... *snip*

Huh. It must of needed a bleed or something.

Originally Posted by Tabris17

*snip* ...and the burst discs aren't located above the fill nipples anyway. That's usually the bleed hole for if a seal goes bad, much like the bleed hole on the marker regulators; which also prevents a vacuum from forming in the piston as well. *snip*

Here is a picture of my 7-year-old Pure Energy tank. It has no "bleed hole", as you say. It does have 2 burst disks, one located directly in-line with the fill nipple (high pressure side), the other disk is opposite above the fill nipple. This must be your "bleed hole". It only bleeds when there is a problem.



To save a separate thread, because my curiosity is beyond peaked, even after 23 years of paintball, please explain how a vacuum can be created within a tank or tank regulator with many hundreds of pounds of gas pressure behind it. I would like to see empirical data to support your argument.

I will wait here, tapping my foot.

Reflect upon my signature, if you like, for inspiration.

[Tabris17]

Alright, maybe the older style did have a burst disc above the fill nipple but the models I've seen in person and just rechecked through google do not have a burst disc located above the fill nipple. And when somebody says 'small hole' on a regulator, that leads me to believe it is a relief hole.
As far as the empirical data, sorry I don't have that. I just know through research that the main point of the relief hole is to vent air when a seal, usually the piston seal, is damaged to vent the air. It also allows air in and out of the system to prevent a vacuum seal from forming when the piston moves and seals. This is the exact same case for marker regulators, look at any lpr and hpr and they all have small relief holes for the exact reasons, pressure relief should a leak occur and preventing a vacuum. This prevents inconsistency within the regulators, without it, vacuums form and the pressure flucuate.
Take the AKA forum. I found a thread a few months ago with a user having issues with consistency, turns out he had an old siderwinder regulator that lacked this bleed hole. Once he sent it in to receive the hole and got it back his consistency issues were resolved. I will see if I can find the thread.

And here it is: http://www.pbnation.com/showthread.php?t=3219373

I also don't mean to sound offensive or anything, but just because somebody has played for XYZ years doesn't mean they know everything. I don't know everything for sure, I just enjoy reading about the problems and solutions people have and helping out and learning that way and I learn every day. I didn't know about the vacuum until a few months ago, I always thought it was just for relieving pressure and had no idea it had a double use.

[RudeSechsVibe]

God makes fruit rot, but still have enough integrity for throwing, for a reason.

Originally Posted by Tabris17

I also don't mean to sound offensive or anything, but just because somebody has played for XYZ years doesn't mean they know everything.

No offense taken. I was only implying that in my years of playing, I have heard quite a bit.

Anyone who claims to know everything about paintball (or anything else for that matter) is inherently full of sh*t. It's one thing to know what you are talking about, but thinking that you know is another thing altogether. That's being somewhat disingenuous.

Edit:
I just read the thread you linked to and there was no mention of any vacuum issue. You led yourself to that conclusion and tried to paint worr's issue with that brush. In reality, regulator venting prevents a build-up of positive pressure behind the regulator piston and allows the reg to breathe. This is not negative atmospheric pressure, vacuum or "free space". The secondary purpose of the hole is to allow excessive input pressure to escape that may otherwise damage the marker.

You are right, though. If that hole isn't there, the marker will be inconsistent.

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving

[worr8529]

I have uploaded a picture (not the best quality I know) of the small hole in question -



upon further examination of the tank, I noticed that the fill nipple was very, very loose. To the point that I could turn it with my fingers. Could this have caused the leak? when the tank was leaking, the air felt like it was comming from that hole, but being near the fill nipple, and because of how loose the nipple was, I am now not so sure it was the hole.

anyways thanks for all of the information that everyone has provided thus far! I am going to the proshop later today and I will get them to look at the tank also. hopefully I will have it working for this weekend...

[Tabris17]

Well tighten the fill nipple first and foremost, it should never be that loose. But it could have coming from there all along and just kind of blowing over the regulator body but just check again after everything is tightened.