OW Certification Weight System Question

[Dockmaster]

Just a little off-topic: who did you play football for?

 

[BVickery]

If your weights (in the bcd or on a weight belt) are resting on the bottom...then they are not contributing to your buoyancy. When removing/replacing a bcd with integrated weigh system or a weightbelt, it is important to keep them off the bottom.

If you hold something heavy away from your body, you will topple. When you topple, the weight goes onto the bottom and you end floating above it. When removing/replacing, keep the bcd and/or weightbelt close to your torso.

Achieving perfect trim is a fine art...and requires some investment of time, thought and money. Try to imagine your body horizontal underwater....then imagine where your center of gravity would lie (somewhere between the sternum and navel on the centerline of your torso). When diving, try to obtain a neaturally buoyant floating horizontal position (like a Skydiver). Do not 'fight' the water or 'try' to balance... but at the same time, maintain some rigidity in your back and limbs. Push your hips forwards, arch your back slightly and bend the legs upwards at the knees. When floating like this - you will swiftly feel if the position of your weights needs to be adjusted...as you will tilt over your center of gravity.

Also remember that being over-weighted will seriously compromise your stability and trim in the water. Typically, your weights will be located below your center of gravity (around the waist/hips)...meaning your lower body is pulled down. If you are over-weighted, then you have to put more air into your BCD to compensate for this and to achieve neutral buoyancy. The air in your BCD is above your center-of-gravity...and this pulls your top half upwards.

The more overweighted you are...the more pronounced the push-pull effect of this becomes.

Be warned...some instructors tend to overweight students.

Devon,

Thank you so much for these little tidbits to help me out. I hope, within the year, to be at a healthy weight (and at my current rate, I will hit my projected weight in 10 months). I have a pool session on wedsday to learn about the DUI harness as well as trying to get my weight system squared away. I am going to take the advice given and see how it works.

Just a little off-topic: who did you play football for?

Played some Pop Warner, but when I got to a new High School the head coach was a firm believer in that speed ruled on the field. Both the O-line and D-line were built like WR's because they were fast enough to chase down the RB's. I was cut for this very reason. This bozo also was HC of the baseball team and was cut because I couldn't steal 30 bases, doesn't matter that I played avg. defense at first, had a great eye for balls-strikes and hit for Power and Average.

 

[BVickery]

at the motel now and was able to pass OW certification. love the DUI system and thanks to those who suggested it

 

[Jack Scuba]

Congrats! How did your wife do? Or was she already certified?

 

[BVickery]

She passed as well. Our OW instructor also said to ask for him for when we want to do our Advanced OW certification (which we will).

Talked with the Instructor and said the difference from pool and OW was night and day. We had 2 minor problems as far as weight. Didn't have enough on the first dive of the day so borrowed some weight from the boat and was able to do the 1st dive no problem. 2nd and 3rd dives of the day were excellent, but for some reaosn on the 4th dive I couldn't descend even though the weight I used were the same.

Our fist non-cert dive was a night dive with one of the other instructors. We were in the Keys for the weekend and the wife and I can't wait to go back.