Hi everyone,

I’m heading out on my first liveaboard this August—the Nautilus Under Sea in the Sea of Cortez. While I know they have dedicated communal camera rinse tanks, I’m debating if I should still bring my own personal container.

I bought a 36-can AO padded cooler to use as a dedicated rinse/protection station, but I’m hesitating because of the weight and bulk.

For those with liveaboard experience:

• Is a personal rinse bag/cooler worth the luggage space, or are communal tanks generally safe enough for a mirrorless rig (OM-1 in an AOI housing)?

• Is there enough deck space for everyone to have their own "tank," or will I just be in the way?

I'd love to hear your thoughts on whether to pack the AO cooler or switch to a lighter, more collapsible setup.

Thanks!

A padded cooler will not be very useful on a liveaboard. And the boat rinse tank is fine to use. Just remember the tank is for rinsing, not dumping your camera and leaving it in there unattended.

Hmmmm... I'm always super wary of rinse tanks.

Dave is dead right of course - they are for rinsing not leaving gear unattended.

That said, I would not mind a 1p for every time I've seen masks/computers/GoPros lobbed into the Cameras Only rinse tank; big systems dumped in without a second thought, cables tangled blah blah.... And the good few times I've been distracted whillst rinsing my camera system and had to leave it for a few minutes to come back and find gear dumped on top of it.

I now travel with some of my camera gear packed in a CineBags Grouper bag. One we get to the liveaboard, I unpack it and it's then my own personal rinse tank. I can usually find some discrete corner where it sits out of the way and holds my camera - wet or dry.

"Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter the Dreaded Rinse Tank". I think Danté said that.

30 minutes ago, TimG said:

Hmmmm... I'm always super wary of rinse tanks.

Dave is dead right of course - they are for rinsing not leaving gear unattended.

That said, I would not mind a 1p for every time I've seen masks/computers/GoPros lobbed into the Cameras Only rinse tank; big systems dumped in without a second thought, cables tangled blah blah.... And the good few times I've been distracted whillst rinsing my camera system and had to leave it for a few minutes to come back and find gear dumped on top of it.

I now travel with some of my camera gear packed in a CineBags Grouper bag. One we get to the liveaboard, I unpack it and it's then my own personal rinse tank. I can usually find some discrete corner where it sits out of the way and holds my camera - wet or dry.

"Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter the Dreaded Rinse Tank". I think Danté said that.

Although I do understand Dave's point of view, I lean more in your direction. It's too easy for me to get distracted and leave my gear in a big rinse tank. I've done it at dive shops before. I'm probably better off keeping it as close to me as possible.

I looked at the CineBags, but it's not available anymore, is it? The Kraken Rinse Bag looks similar. I went with the AO because it's significantly cheaper and I don't think I need all the pockets, etc. Now, I just need to decide on the logistics, keeping in mind I need to take care of my back while traveling. I might just stuff it full of clothes and then stuff the bag in a suitcase. I already have a spinner carry-on camera bag for the most critical camera gear.

I didn't know the Grouper was no longer available from CineBags. But, yeah, the Kraken seems pretty much the same thing. Filling a soft rinse tank with clothes sounds a good idea.

I don't know AO coolers. The only thing I think to watch out for is the quality of the zips. They need to resist salt and not jam with salt build-up. And not leak of course! The CineBag was good for that although the internal pocket zips need work to prevent them jamming.