I have an inflatable PFD from Gander MTN, actually the "Guide Series" brand that I bought in 2010. I left the CO2 cylinder in it over the winter outdoors and came to find it inflated in the spring. No big deal. When I bought a new cartridge last summer, it immediately inflated upon screwing it in. What could be causing this? The directions mention replacing the bobbin every 3 years so could the bobbin be damaged?
JT,
The bobbin needs to be replaced every time it's been inflated. If it's like mine, the bobbin actually contains a LifeSaver-shaped pellet of salt that keeps the valve mechanism shut. If the salt is gone (it dissolves if you go in the drink, or when it's been left out in humidity too long like yours was), the valve remains open, and just putting a new CO[size=75]2[/size] cartridge on will result in what you saw.
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