Wouldn't it be sufficient to have a one-way valve in the supply line from the manifold to the motor, in conjunction with a manual shut-off valve? An in-line pressure (or depth) gauge on the manifold should be included also.
Hi, Dean - one more note regarding pressure compensating your motors.
I wouldn't connect your motors to a manifold that leads to the cockpit as
breathing air. Should something happen to the motor - blown seal,
collision, etc.- you're going to lose your breathing air.
My suggestion? Have a bottle(s) dedicated to the motors, gauged apart from
your cockpit air.
This may be overkill but you could use a depth gauge to monitor your motor
compensation by running a line from the motor (assuming one motor for the
moment) to your dashboard or outside a front porthole. The depth gauge
would be exposed to the line by putting it in an enclosed box (plexi?) fed
by the line. If the motor depth gauge matched actual depth your motors are
(probably) sound.
BTW, I hang out with an ex-IBM'er and his IBM cronies. I'll have to mention
one of his bretheren wants to be a psubber. :-)
Cheers
Rick L
Vancouver
----- Original Message -----
From: <ShellyDalg@aol.com>
To: <personal_submersibles@psubs.org>
Sent: Friday, October 13, 2006 7:57 PM
Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST]New guy
> Hi Dean. Yes, it's possible and I've seen it myself. No modifications to
> scuba regulators is needed. Just need to adapt the regulator to hose
> connections, and supply the air to the motor housing. If you can see your
thrusters from
> inside the sub, you'll see a few bubbles coming out. Too many bubbles and
> the seal is leaking. No bubbles and maybe water is getting in. Not much
air is
> required for this task and some people use a manifold system to connect
> various tanks together and route air where it's needed. Better to have
more air
> than you need than run short.Remember that scuba air is oil-less, so you
can't
> fill up at the gas station. You said you're a diver, so many of the same
> rules apply.
> I will be using Minnkota motors at first. They're affordable and easy to
> service.I plan on upgrading to a magnetic coupled motor purpose built for
manned
> submersibles later on. There are several on the market but are pretty
pricy.
> We just had a string of questions go round about hydraulic motors, and it
> seems the consensus is the power conversion is low compared to electrics,
> although there have been some high dollar research subs made using them.
>From what
> I've been able to see, the big tourist subs and research subs are being
> retrofitted with electrics.
> If I remember, you're planning on a depth of 400 feet. You'll need lights
> down there....It's dark!
> Again, welcome aboard, and good luck in your adventure.Frank D.
>
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