Adrian it is different from vest to vest. There should be a window on your vest and somewhere on the cartridge mechanism should tell you what year it needs to be changed. My Mustang cartridge is good to 2020 unless the indicator window goes red. On the ones that use the bobbin...or soda pill as some call it, they replace the pill each year. I had one back in 2007 that was 3 years old and was going to replace cartridge anyway so I just got it wet and it went off. Most recommend inflating the bladder with the manual inflator at least once a year just to see if the bladder will hold air. Of course you have to repack it but you have not used a cartridge and it is peace of mind knowing the bladder is in good condition...and yes they sometimes can be a pain to re-pack.


Regards

Awesome. Thanks... I have a Green Indicator. I'm good to go fishing on Wednesday!

thats pretty good info there. as stupid and simple as it sounds, i never would have thought to test the bladder on a yearly basis. makes perfect sense though. might be fun to do one nice summer day....dive in and pull the cord.

When you do this, please video it. You know, for educational purposes of course!!!!