How to Care for Dive Gear After a Komodo Trip
Wetsuits, BCDs, fins, regulators and rash guards — the right way to rinse, dry and store every piece of your dive kit after intensive diving in Komodo's saltwater. Done right, your gear lasts years. Done wrong, you replace it in months.
Why Komodo Is Hard on Dive Gear
Komodo is a world-class dive destination — strong currents, exceptional visibility, enormous biodiversity. It is also one of the most demanding environments for dive equipment. A typical Komodo liveaboard involves 3–5 dives per day for 3–7 days, meaning your gear is in saltwater for 6–10 hours daily, with minimal recovery time between dives.
The specific conditions divers encounter in Komodo add to the challenge:
- High salinity. The water around Flores is highly saline. Salt accumulation on neoprene, buckles, and valves is faster and more concentrated than in less saline dive destinations.
- Thermoclines and cold upwellings. Rapid temperature changes — particularly in the north (Banta Island, Sangeang) — cause neoprene to work harder and seals to flex more, accelerating wear.
- Current-heavy drifts. Divers exert more effort managing buoyancy and position in strong currents, putting more stress on BCD inflators and dump valves.
- Tropical sun on deck. Between dives, gear hangs or lies on the deck of a Phinisi in direct equatorial sun. UV radiation degrades neoprene, Velcro, and straps faster than anywhere else.
None of this means Komodo will destroy your gear — but it does mean that post-dive care has to be done properly, every time. The routine below takes about 20 minutes and adds years to the life of your equipment.
Packing gear into a bag while still wet and salty, then leaving it sealed for more than a few hours. Saltwater degrades neoprene, corrodes metal components, grows mildew inside BCDs and destroys regulator seals. Rinse before anything else, every single time.
Wetsuit Care After Komodo Diving
Your wetsuit has been compressed through dozens of depth changes, soaked in salt, and quite possibly exposed to sunscreen from your hands and face. Here is the complete rinse and care routine:
Rinse immediately in fresh water — inside and out
Use the boat's rinse tank or shower before the suit even dries. Cold or lukewarm — never hot. Turn the suit inside out and rinse the inside thoroughly. The interior touching your skin accumulates body oils and salt just as aggressively as the exterior.
Soak in wetsuit cleaner if available
Most liveaboards don't provide wetsuit shampoo, but if you have it, a 10-minute cold soak removes residual salt, oil, and odour. Products like Pinesol-based or enzyme cleaners are effective. Rinse thoroughly afterwards.
Hang inside-out in the shade
Never hang a wetsuit in direct sun — UV breaks down neoprene at a molecular level, causing it to crack, stiffen, and lose insulation over time. Find a shaded spot on the back deck. If the boat is fully exposed, fold loosely under a towel. Hang over a wide hanger or a rail — never over a thin line, which creases the neoprene.
Once dry, turn right-side out and hang properly for storage
Don't fold a wetsuit for extended storage. Roll it loosely or hang on a wide hanger. Storing folded creates permanent creases in the neoprene. Never store compressed at the bottom of a bag.
In Komodo's busy dive season, you may be doing 4 dives a day with short surface intervals. Between dives, rinse the outside of your wetsuit with whatever fresh water the boat has available and keep it in the shade. A partial rinse is significantly better than no rinse at all.
BCD Care After Saltwater Diving
BCDs are the most mechanically complex piece of kit and the one most commonly damaged by neglect. The bladder, inflator, dump valves, straps and buckles all need specific attention.
- Rinse the exterior thoroughly — pay particular attention to the inflator/deflator mechanism and all buckles and D-rings.
- Flush the interior bladder. Add a small amount of fresh water through the oral inflator, work it around by gentle inflation and movement, then fully dump through the dump valves. Do this 2–3 times. This removes salt from inside the bladder, which is where mildew starts if ignored.
- Inflate to 30–50% before drying. Store and dry the BCD partially inflated to prevent the interior walls from sticking together. This is especially important in tropical humidity.
- Work the inflator mechanism repeatedly during the rinse — press inflate and deflate multiple times while submerged in the rinse tank. This flushes salt from the valve mechanism itself.
- Hang by the shoulder straps in the shade, never crumpled. In Labuan Bajo, you can hang BCDs on the front of most guesthouses — they're used to it.
A deflated BCD in tropical humidity will have the interior walls stick together within days. When you next try to inflate for a dive, the bladder tears at the fold points. Always store with partial inflation (20–30%).
Regulator Care After Saltwater
Regulators require the most careful post-dive handling — a mistake here can create a life-safety issue the next time the reg is used. The key rule is simple: never let water enter the first stage while rinsing.
- Cap the first stage before rinsing. The dust cap must be on and dry before the regulator goes anywhere near fresh water. A single drop of water entering the first stage can cause internal corrosion and affect performance.
- Rinse second stage, hoses and octopus thoroughly. Press the purge button on the second stage while rinsing to work fresh water through the mechanism. Rinse the octopus and SPG hose.
- Shake water out of second stages by pressing purge and blowing gently. Don't blow air through from the tank while submerged — this forces more water in, not less.
- Dry in the shade, hanging from hoses. Let gravity drain water from the second stages. Don't pack a regulator until it's completely dry.
- Annual service. If you've done a significant amount of diving in Komodo, the saltwater exposure warrants a servicing check. Have it inspected and rebuilt annually by a qualified technician.
Fins, Mask & Snorkel Care
These are simpler to care for but still need proper attention. Komodo's currents mean fins work hard — foot pocket rubber and straps are under repeated stress.
- Rinse immediately in fresh water — blade and foot pockets
- Check straps and buckles for salt crystal build-up
- Rinse spring straps: springs corrode quickly in salt
- Dry flat in shade, not standing upright (creases blade)
- Store out of direct sun — rubber degrades
- Never store bent or under pressure
- Rinse silicone skirt, lens and strap in fresh water
- Do not touch the inside of the lens — finger oils cause fogging
- Dry in shade, store in its case
- Don't leave lens facing direct sun — can crack or discolour
- Never use abrasive cleaners on silicone skirt
- Rinse inside and outside thoroughly — salt accumulates inside the tube
- Blow through to clear any water before drying
- Dry fully before storing — mildew forms in trapped moisture inside the tube
- If it has a dry-top mechanism, work it several times during rinse
- Rinse in fresh water — buttons and display bezel collect salt
- Press buttons during rinse to flush salt from seals
- Dry with soft cloth — don't leave water pooled on display
- Check battery seal annually if battery-replaceable model
- Never soak longer than needed — some models have depth limits on rinse tanks
Rash Guards, Dive Skins & Boardshorts
Textile dive gear — rash guards, dive skins, full-body lycra suits, and boardshorts — accumulates salt, sunscreen, and body oils in the same way as regular swimwear, but tends to be more expensive and harder to replace in Labuan Bajo. Treat it accordingly.
The critical difference between rinsing on the boat and a proper wash is residue. Fresh water rinse removes surface salt. It does not remove sunscreen residue, body oils, or chlorine (if you swam in a hotel pool). These residues, left in the fabric, cause:
- Colour fading — particularly vibrant oranges, reds and pinks from chemical sunscreen interaction with UV
- Elastic degradation — oxybenzone in chemical sunscreen breaks down spandex fibres over repeated exposure
- Odour retention — body oil soaked fabric that isn't properly washed will smell regardless of how many times you rinse it
Proper washing of dive textiles requires a gentle cold cycle or careful hand wash with a small amount of mild detergent, thorough rinsing, and air drying completely flat in the shade before packing.
We wash rash guards, dive skins, boardshorts and other technical dive clothing on a gentle cold cycle and air dry — never tumble dry, which destroys elastic fibres. If you have a collection of dive kit needing a proper wash before your flight home, bring it to us or message us for harbour pickup.
Quick-Reference Rinse Table
Use this as your on-boat checklist at the end of every dive day:
| Equipment | Rinse Timing | Water Temp | Dry How | Store How |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wetsuit | Immediately, inside & out | Cold | Hang shade, inside-out | Wide hanger, partially open |
| BCD | Immediately, flush bladder | Cold | Hang shade, 30% inflated | Hang, never deflated & folded |
| Regulator | Cap on first, then rinse second stages | Cold, cap must be on | Hang from hoses, shade | Coiled loosely in mesh bag |
| Fins | Immediately, especially straps | Cold | Flat in shade | Flat, not bent under weight |
| Mask | Immediately, rinse only | Cold | Shade, air dry | In case, lens up |
| Dive Computer | Fresh water, press buttons | Cold | Soft cloth, then air | Dry, out of sun |
| Rash Guard / Skin | Rinse; proper wash when ashore | Cold rinse | Air dry in shade | Fully dry before packing |
Dive laundry pickup in Labuan Bajo
Back from Komodo with a bag of salty rash guards and dive skins? We collect from the harbour and return everything clean and ready for your flight home.
Laundry in Labuan Bajo for Dive Textiles
After a week of intensive Komodo diving, your textile dive gear needs more than a rinse. Rash guards, dive skins and boardshorts accumulate layers of salt, sunscreen, body oil and general ocean residue that a fresh water rinse cannot fully remove.
Bajo Laundry is 3 km from the main Komodo embarkation point at Labuan Bajo harbour. When Phinisi boats return from a trip, we can arrange pickup directly from your boat or from the pier within the hour. Express 24-hour service means your gear is clean before your flight home, regardless of when you arrive back in Labuan Bajo.
We handle dive textiles with specific care:
- All rash guards and dive skins go through a gentle cold cycle only — no hot water, ever.
- Everything air dries — no tumble dryer on technical fabrics.
- If you have specific care instructions for any item, tell us on pickup and we'll follow them.
- We can pre-treat sunscreen stains on white or pale rash guards before the main wash.
For broader context on fabric care in tropical travel, read our Complete Laundry Guide for Labuan Bajo →
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you clean a wetsuit after saltwater diving in Komodo?
Rinse immediately in cold fresh water, inside and out. Soak briefly in wetsuit cleaner if available, then hang inside out in the shade. Never tumble dry, never store in direct sunlight. A properly maintained wetsuit lasts significantly longer in tropical conditions.
Can I wash rash guards and dive skins at a laundry in Labuan Bajo?
Yes. Bajo Laundry handles all dive textiles — rash guards, dive skins, boardshorts, wetsuits (outer rinse), and other technical fabrics. We use gentle cold cycles and air dry everything. WhatsApp us to arrange harbour pickup after your trip.
How do you rinse a BCD after saltwater?
Submerge in fresh water and work the inflate/deflate mechanism repeatedly to flush salt through the bladder and inflator valve. Inflate to around 30% and hang to dry in the shade. Never store fully deflated in tropical humidity.
What's the most important rule for regulator care?
The dust cap must be on before the regulator contacts any water. Once the first stage is capped, rinse all second stages thoroughly, pressing the purge button during rinsing. A water-contaminated first stage is a potential dive safety issue and an expensive repair.
How long does dive gear take to dry in Labuan Bajo?
In Labuan Bajo's tropical heat and breeze, thin rash guards dry in 1–2 hours. Wetsuits take 3–6 hours inside out in the shade. BCDs take overnight. Never pack gear that isn't completely dry — mildew sets in within hours in sealed bags in tropical conditions.
Is there a dive gear rinse station in Labuan Bajo?
Most Labuan Bajo dive operators and liveaboard departures have fresh water rinse facilities at the harbour or their base. Your accommodation likely has an outdoor rinse option too. For a full wash of textile gear, Bajo Laundry offers pickup directly from the harbour.
Ready to Order?
Free pickup from your hotel, villa or Phinisi boat — minimum 2 kg within 3 km.