Spare Air: some thoughts

[Thalassamania]

I did not miss it, just reinforcing the reality, Spare Air's are absurd, EAN Spare Air reaches into the existential.

 

[Atomic_Diver]

This thread has been going off and on topic way to much, I am shocked that none of the SB staff has decided to lock this, or merge all the SA/Pony threads to one... Would make sence to me if they did, no one is going to fill a SA above EAN 40 it would be a disaster waiting to happen if they did, so there is no need for Nitrox SA... IMO the OP's question must have been answered a longtime ago, why isint this thread locked or merged since it has no further use? Also IMO if had to take a pony or SA I would go with an AL 30, or 40... Safest choice by far for anyone that has to have a redundant air source...

 

[SkimFisher]

This thread has been going off and on topic way to much, I am shocked that none of the SB staff has decided to lock this, or merge all the SA/Pony threads to one... Would make sence to me if they did, no one is going to fill a SA above EAN 40 it would be a disaster waiting to happen if they did, so there is no need for Nitrox SA... IMO the OP's question must have been answered a longtime ago, why isint this thread locked or merged since it has no further use? Also IMO if had to take a pony or SA I would go with an AL 30, or 40... Safest choice by far for anyone that has to have a redundant air source...

That got me laughing. I'll let you guess which part....

 

[idocsteve]

This thread has been going off and on topic way to much, I am shocked that none of the SB staff has decided to lock this

There are Haitians recovering from an earthquake, there's terrorism all over the world, poverty abounds, crime happens everywhere on a constant basis, people are killed in random acts of violence...and here we have Atomic_Diver losing it over a thread that he thinks should have been locked by the moderators.

Will wonders never cease?

The question is of course rhetorical

 

[Blackwood]

That got me laughing. I'll let you guess which part....

I'm not sure. Is it the part that suggests the OP posed a question?

 

[Web Monkey]

No Matt, in fact that is not necessarily why one might carry a Spare Air.

Can you count how many other reasons there are in the "21 ways you can run out of air" in the list below that have nothing at all to do with poor gas management or buddy skills?

Good boy.

1. Forgetting to watch the time and staying down too long.
If you stay down too long (run out of NDL) a SA is only good for giving you a few seconds to contemplate your gruesome impending death.

2. Using air quicker than planned due to overshooting depth,
Dive your plan next time. If LOA/OOA, Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

getting caught in a current,
Current has nothing to do with OOA if you're not swimming into it. If you are swimming into it and are running LOA, end the dive with your buddy.

getting lost,
Lost has nothing to do with OOA.

nitrogen narcosis,
Poor training. Narcosis should be expected. If LOA, end the dive with your buddy.

diving in cold water,
Cold water has nothing to do with OOA or SA.

getting caught in kelp
Insufficient training and a SA won't get you out of kelp.

or fishing line.
Insufficient training, poor buddy skills and missing/improper cutting tools. A SA won't get you out of fishing line.
.
3. Sudden regulator malfunction due to corrosion or too much time between overhaul.
Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

4. O-ring failure on any of the First stage regulator ports.
Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

5. Regulator stuck in "free-flow" due to foreign particles or sand.
Share air with your buddy (if LOA), to the surface and end the dive

6. Regulator "freezing up" in cold water leaving you suddenly without air.
Improper equipment selection and training. End the dive and surface with your buddy. A freeflowing regulator is still perfectly usable.

7. Stuck Pressure Gauge reflecting incorrect pressure in your tank.
End the dive. If OOA, share air with your buddy

8. Air cut off due to tank valve not turned on all the way.
Share air with your buddy. Open your valve or have your buddy do it.

9. Rupture of SCUBA tank o-ring due to misalignment or wear.
Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

10. Second stage regulator diaphragm develops a tear or slips out of place.
Switch to your alternate second stage. End the dive and surface with your buddy.

11. O-ring failure on BC air inflator or valve stuck in the open position.
Disconnect inflator, end the dive and surface with your buddy.

12. Burst disc failure on SCUBA Tank valve due to corrosion or age.
Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

13. Clogged filter on first stage regulator due to sediment or rust from tank.
Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

14. Leak develops at any one of the High or Low pressure hose fittings.
Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

15. Mouthpiece on second stage suddenly coming off regulator.
Switch to your alternate second stage, and reattach mouthpiece.

16. O-ring failure on pressure gauge.
No Big Deal. It takes a really long time to empty a tank from the HP port.

17. Rupture of either High or Low Pressure hoses.
End the dive. If OOA, share air with your buddy

18. O-ring failure on Octopus regulator.
Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

19. Rental tank not filled completely.
Don't blow the pre-dive check next time. If LOA/OOA, see above.

20. Damaged First stage regulator due to falling object / impact.
Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

21. High or Low pressure hose cut or severed on sharp rock / impediment.
Share air with your buddy, to the surface and end the dive

Nothing in this list requires a Spare Air, and in fact, a SA won't help quite a few of them, and is insufficient for many others.

Terry

 

[Paladin]

I noticed that the "solution" to several of the situations mentioned above require the presence of a buddy. What buddy? And what alternate second stage? Oh, I forgot. You guys don't know how to dive the old way.

 

[idocsteve]

I noticed that the "solution" to several of the situations mentioned above require the presence of a buddy. What buddy?

The buddy that's always right there, and who will always have a few breaths for you when you really need them.

Spoiler

 

[DCBC]

...however MOST simply find Spare Air to be inadequate.

Again you make a good point, however to judge it inadequate a diver will have to know their actual free-ascent / CESA envelope beginning with a full and empty breath. I cannot be sure, but I believe most of the naysayers have absolutely no idea what they really require. More is better than less in most instances, but it's easy to throw stones at the unknown.

 

[DCBC]

I guess that since I'm usually either traveling to a lab or shipping gear to the site prior to travel or meeting a ship that I loaded, I don't really factor in the problems of having to carry a certain piece of gear somewhere.

Perhaps you should take a poll who takes a Pony Bottle with them when they fly off on a tropical vacation. Certainly not me! When I'm working that's a different story, the company pays for the tons of equipment that I'll require.

Thal pardon me for saying so, but you seem to have some difficulty relating to non-scientific divers. I could talk from a military or commercial diving perspective but again, this is the Basic SCUBA Discussion thread!

When I train a new diver, a good portion can accomplish an emergency ascent from 50'. One breath is required. For the others that have difficulty, certainly no more than one or two additional breaths are needed. If they didn't have an initial breath to begin the ascent another would be required. Now we are up to a maximum of 4 breaths of air that are required. If this is all that's required, a Spare Air provides more than enough gas. If not, perhaps they need more training.