JOBO foot pump - eye injury

[Jim Graves]

O.K. ... feeling pretty foolish. My second time using my Jobo 3005.

Managed to get a pretty serious eye injury from a stupid accident ... took a Jobo 3005 tank lid directly to the left eye ... I had finished the wash cycle ... the lid was on there really tight ... I have the foot pump ... after several unsuccessful 1-footed attempts to get the top off ... I put the tube on the floor and used two feet on the last one ... I must have pressurized the tank with the earlier pumps because it came off like a cannon ball ... staggered me ... drew blood ... and, left me without vision in the eye for about 12 hours. It was so loud that my wife came running in from the other part of the house thinking she had heard a gun shot only to find me on the floor holding my face and in extreme pain ... scared her to death.

Ophthalmologist can find no permanent damage ... abrasion to cornea, blood, etc. in eye clouding vision, a great shiner but nothing permanent barring a "re-bleed" ... am now on "not-quite bed rest" for two weeks.

I'm telling everyone the shiner is from a bar fight with a guy who claimed Photography is not art ... so don't blow my cover if anybody asks ... oh yeah, and he looks a lot worse than me. I'm also trying to pass myself off as Johnny Depp with my eye patch ... that isn't working any better than my left eye.

Feel a little sheepish posting this but if it helps someone else avoid this I guess it's worth it.

Signed - "Newly humbled and lacking depth perception in Sacramento"

[BarryS]

Whoa--glad to hear you didn't do any permanent damage. I've had my Expert tank lids graze my face once or twice so I have a healthy respect for those pressurized tanks. They still scare me when they pop off because you can never tell how much pressure it's going to take. It seems like a crude system considering the cost of those tanks.

[Hector.Navarro]

thank you Jim for sharing your experience with us.

while I do not use the Jobo system there are some folks here (or a lot) that do and should take an extra caution to avoid accidents such as this one.

hope you get well soon...

[Gary Beasley]

I've seen threads describing using water pressure to unseat the lid, saying it doesn't pop because water doesn't compress. Do a search and see what it says, if not here then on Apug. Hope that helps you avoid any more incidents.

[Gudmundur Ingolfsson]

If the lid is tightly fastened, fill up the drum with water almost to the brim and then use
the foot pump. I learned this the the hard way when I got the lid in my face back in 1989.

[Sheldon N]

Wow, sorry to hear that.

Be sure to post a picture in the "Self Portraits" thread.

[Bruce Watson]

Sorry Jim. Eye injuries scare the fool out of me. Take it easy and get fully healed really soon.

Just remember people, it's not a contest to see how tight you can put the lid on. A tighter lid does not make the inside of the tank any darker! The lid should remove fairly easily with a single pump from the foot pump. If it doesn't something is wrong.

[Ed Richards]

If you do have a habit of jamming the lid on too tight, put some vasoline on the drum edge so it will come off easier. Plus, keep your hands on the lid when you pump! I found that if I am careful to keep the lid on straight I do not have to use the pump. It is usually a slight tilt that jams it. Sometimes pushing the high side down loosens it up.

[George Kara]

Ahh - an additional use for having KY Jelly around the studio!

[The Dread Pirate Robins]

Geeez! Take care there. It's all fun and games, until, as they say, someone loses an eye.

Oh, and I am sorry I missed that one part, but I've already posted the REAL cause of your injury to www.JimGravesinSacramentoJOBOdisaster.com.