Pro tip: Stop cleaning your regulator with WD-40

Used it for years on my Kirby Morgan until a dive supervisor at a Gulf job in 2022 told me it eats the rubber seals. Switched to a silicone spray and my second stage hasn't needed a rebuild in 8 months. Anyone else learn a gear trick the hard way?

2 comments

2 Comments

elliot_grant381mo ago

Yeah no kidding, WD-40 is a total scam on regulator parts. I had a buddy who used it on his ScubaPro first stage and the thing started freeflowing like a garden hose in about two dives. He swore by it until his LDS guy took him aside and basically laughed at him. The worst part is you think you're being smart keeping stuff clean, but that solvent just eats through the o-rings over time. I switched to a food grade grease for the threads and a simple rinse with fresh water between trips. Been running the same setup for three seasons now with zero issues. Sometimes the old school advice like just water and a soft brush is actually the best move.

jesse_cooper1mo ago

People get way too dramatic about WD-40 on regs. I use it on the outside of mine and never had a single issue. The solvent evaporates in like five minutes. By the time you put the thing back together, there's nothing left to eat anything. Most guys soak their gear in soap and water and think that's fine but honestly a quick spray of WD-40 on a crusty valve stem or a sticky purge button is not going to melt your seals. Maybe if you left it soaking overnight or sprayed it directly into the internals every day for a year. But a normal person using it as a light cleaner and displacer? Come on. The panic about this feels like something a dive shop makes up to sell more special sprays.