DOT vs Non-DOT Tanks

[caliusoptimus]

I've been browsing and see a lot of non DOT tanks for cheap like the tuxing and acecare brands. Has anyone compared them side by side with DOT tanks? The tank I have right now is an air venturi 9L made by Eaton. The brand and certification was enough to ease my mind of any and all safety concerns... but the price. I have a compressor so filling them won't be a problem.

 

[AlanMcD]

What you call "non-DOT" is almost certainly really CE - which is the EU standard of certification, and it is the standard used by pretty much the rest of the world.

I have the Acecare 9L CE tank, and while I have not compared it side by (or teardown) to their DOT tank, I would wager that they are actually the same tank with different cert labels on them. I say this because the standards are so close that one design could easily meet both standards.

I went with the CE certified tank as I will be filling it myself, and even if it were a DOT tank I have decided I would be very unlikely to get it hydro tested as that is what I consider the most damaging thing that ever happens to a dedicated airgunning tank. Since I would only get it hydro tested if I were to stop filling it myself (and thus need the fresh hydro) I decided to just get the CE tank and save the money.

This is one of those cases where having a country specific standard acts as a "tax" on people in the country that initially imposed them - it helps at first but hurts in the long run. And even though manufacturers probably could sell a tank with both cert labels on it doing so would be counterproductive - no true CE customer would pay more for one, and neither would a DOT customer (and selling it to a DOT customer for less money would be silly too). While we consumers would love it if the US would join the rest of the world on this standard, the manufacturers would not like it as they would lose the extra profit they gain from keeping the market split . . .

 

[caliusoptimus]

What you call "non-DOT" is almost certainly really CE - which is the EU standard of certification, and it is the standard used by pretty much the rest of the world.

I have the Acecare 9L CE tank, and while I have not compared it side by (or teardown) to their DOT tank, I would wager that they are actually the same tank with different cert labels on them. I say this because the standards are so close that one design could easily meet both standards.

I went with the CE certified tank as I will be filling it myself, and even if it were a DOT tank I have decided I would be very unlikely to get it hydro tested as that is what I consider the most damaging thing that ever happens to a dedicated airgunning tank. Since I would only get it hydro tested if I were to stop filling it myself (and thus need the fresh hydro) I decided to just get the CE tank and save the money.

This is one of those cases where having a country specific standard acts as a "tax" on people in the country that initially imposed them - it helps at first but hurts in the long run. And even though manufacturers probably could sell a tank with both cert labels on it doing so would be counterproductive - no true CE customer would pay more for one, and neither would a DOT customer (and selling it to a DOT customer for less money would be silly too). While we consumers would love it if the US would join the rest of the world on this standard, the manufacturers would not like it as they would lose the extra profit they gain from keeping the market split . . .

Thanks for the perspective. I'm always extremely skeptical of chinese products with ANY kind of certification label. Half the crap on amazon has a CE, an FCC and an RoHS label but is made with lead, the CE logo isn't the official design, and the product isn't electronic. I suppose I could at least try to dig up the CE on their website or ask for it.

 

[ToddGeddes63]

DOT/date certified tank if you are having a shop fill it.
If you are filling the tank, then a CE tank is fine.
I would think that the DOT certification is needed when transporting a tank, such as flying, train, bus?
Maybe someone that travels with a tank would confirm?