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Rant: Bought a cheap dive light that flooded on the first job
I was doing a hull clean on a tug in Mobile last month and grabbed a $90 'commercial grade' light off some online store. Figured it was a good backup. Ten minutes into the murk, it just filled up, went dark. Had to surface and switch to my main, wasted about 40 minutes of bottom time. That's easily $200 in lost pay right there, not counting the cost of the junk light. Should have just spent the extra on a proper light I knew was reliable. Anyone have a solid brand for a backup light that won't drown on you?
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murray.troy6mo ago
Yeah, that's the worst. I got burned like that once and now my backup is a basic Light Monkey can light. It's not cheap, but the o-ring groove is cut deep and the switch is simple, less to go wrong. Had it for three years now through all sorts of muck and it's never even hinted at a leak.
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leo6036mo ago
Totally feel that. My buddy had a cheap backup light flood and kill his whole comms unit, not just the light. Salt water got into the cable port and fried the main board. That was a way more expensive lesson than just losing bottom time. He ended up sending the whole rig in for a rebuild. Sometimes the backup failing can take other gear down with it.
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taragrant6mo ago
Classic case of a backup becoming the main problem. You buy a light to save money and it ends up costing you double in lost bottom time. @murray.troy has the right idea, a simple can light with a fat o-ring is boring but it works. My rule is if the ad says 'commercial grade' but the price looks too good, it's probably just a regular flashlight in a slightly thicker tube. Seen too many guys surface holding a fancy paperweight.
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