exploding plastic storage tanks

[Daniel_LaFleur]

Originally Posted by AllenGregoryIV

Before we call for a ban on all the plastic tanks, I think we really need to answer these questions. As far as I know PneuAire made the plastic tanks before Clippard started doing it. It was my understanding that Clippard released the 2013 plastic air tanks in response to teams using the PneuAire ones in the 2012 season.

We have used the PneuAire tanks (bought from PneuAire) without any failures for the past 3 years (only 2 in competition).

Safety is very important but we also shouldn't overreact.

Here I feel the opposite.

Considering the failure mode (sharp plastic shards flying a high velocity) I would err on the side of caution. Until we can prove that the plastic volumes are safe in a FIRST environment (High impact, low technical knowledge, large swings in temperature) I would want to ban the plastic volumes for foreseeable future starting next year.


P.S. Has a metal volume ever failed in a dangerous way in FIRST (they have a much longer history)