What equipment do I need for night diving

[Bubbletrubble]

Apparently I'm in the minority here, and only have 4 night dives under my belt, but in a group night dive I appreciated the different tank marker light colors and light patterns. It made identifying my buddy easier.

@sdiver68: I can see that you might find tank lights helpful. It's common that novice divers don't have enough bandwidth to deal with controlling a light, maintaining buoyancy control, illuminating gauges, operating in limited visibility, and being able to identify various divers on the dive team. That's a lot to worry about! It's probably far simpler to remember: "I need to stick close to the guy with the ____-colored tank light."

I'm curious what you will think after you gain more night diving experience. I bought a $15 tank light several years ago. It was absolutely useless for the shore diving that I do. It flooded on my 10th dive using it. I never replaced it. I wish I had that $15 back! Over the years, in 130+ night dives, I've only been separated once from my buddy. I was inexperienced...and both of us were using tank marker lights. Have your buddy mark his equipment in a unique way, maintain close buddy proximity, use passive light communication, and check on his position often. If you do all of these things, you won't need a tank light, I assure you.

 

[RJP]

@sdiver68: I can see that you might find tank lights helpful. It's common that novice divers don't have enough bandwidth to deal with controlling a light, maintaining buoyancy control, illuminating gauges, operating in limited visibility, and being able to identify various divers on the dive team. That's a lot to worry about! It's probably far simpler to remember: "I need to stick close to the guy with the ____-colored tank light."

I'm curious what you will think after you gain more night diving experience. I bought a $15 tank light several years ago. It was absolutely useless for the shore diving that I do. It flooded on my 10th dive using it. I never replaced it. I wish I had that $15 back! Over the years, in 130+ night dives, I've only been separated once from my buddy. I was inexperienced...and both of us were using tank marker lights. Have your buddy mark his equipment in a unique way, maintain close buddy proximity, use passive light communication, and check on his position often. If you do all of these things, you won't need a tank light, I assure you.

I bought one when I first started diving, like you. Now I always bring one every liveaboard trip...someone always forgets their's. happy to lend them mine, since I haven't used it in years.

 

[sdiver68]

@bubbletrouble

I very much appreciate the voice of experience as right now I only have 24 open water dives and still have written coursework to complete my AOW rating. However, I had no trouble with buoyancy, controlling a light, gauges, or visibility and was not task loaded. In fact I passed my perfect buoyancy and navigation tests at night on the first try. OK I was somewhat task loaded between buoyancy and compass heading when I allowed 2-3 ft of change the 1st couple of tries but that was because I was determined not to cheat with vision and stared only at my compass. Blame my IFR flight training on that where they blindfold your vision and one must rely on instruments alone.

It was not a "stick with" situation. With 12 people in the water, when I stopped to examine something or did my own thing for a minute, I could easily see my buddy amongst the group from 10 ft. I could also see if he swam away from the group or stopped to examine on his own so I would catch up and make sure he had a buddy near. In your situation, if I was YOUR buddy and WAS task loaded, why wouldn't you make it as easy as possible for me to locate you?

$15? If were worried about $15 I'd have been dead many times over doing the sports I've done. I'm going to turn the $15 argument around, if you have any question in your mind about buying a tank light it is only $15. If nothing else, your buddy may appreciate it, the dive op may require it, or you may be someone's "hero" by lending it out. If on the other hand you are so experienced you know you don't want one, then you don't need to come here and ask the question in the 1st place. This is the new diver forum, buy a tank light or wish you had.

 

[H2O 70]

$15? If were worried about $15 I'd have been dead many times over doing the sports I've done. I'm going to turn the $15 argument around, if you have any question in your mind about buying a tank light it is only $15. If nothing else, your buddy may appreciate it, the dive op may require it, or you may be someone's "hero" by lending it out. If on the other hand you are so experienced you know you don't want one, then you don't need to come here and ask the question in the 1st place. This is the new diver forum, buy a tank light or wish you had.

Tank lights.

Dive Ops tend to require them. Classes tend to require them. Personally I don't think they are a bad thing. I could easily come up with a half different arguments for everyone to actually use them vs. the means bubbletrouble mentioned.

I've had a mixed bag of results with the FX Glo tubes. I've had one for 4 years, and one for two years. The other two have flooded, I've repaired, flooded again, replaced. It has been sort of a drama. The two good ones were zip tied to one of my 1st stages for over a year. If I want them on, I can turn them on. If I don't, I don't.

I agree with you, buy a tank marker or wish you had.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

@bubbletrouble

I very much appreciate the voice of experience as right now I only have 24 open water dives and still have written coursework to complete my AOW rating. However, I had no trouble with buoyancy, controlling a light, gauges, or visibility and was not task loaded. In fact I passed my perfect buoyancy and navigation tests at night on the first try. OK I was somewhat task loaded between buoyancy and compass heading when I allowed 2-3 ft of change the 1st couple of tries but that was because I was determined not to cheat with vision and stared only at my compass. Blame my IFR flight training on that where they blindfold your vision and one must rely on instruments alone.

It was not a "stick with" situation. With 12 people in the water, when I stopped to examine something or did my own thing for a minute, I could easily see my buddy amongst the group from 10 ft. I could also see if he swam away from the group or stopped to examine on his own so I would catch up and make sure he had a buddy near. In your situation, if I was YOUR buddy and WAS task loaded, why wouldn't you make it as easy as possible for me to locate you?

$15? If were worried about $15 I'd have been dead many times over doing the sports I've done. I'm going to turn the $15 argument around, if you have any question in your mind about buying a tank light it is only $15. If nothing else, your buddy may appreciate it, the dive op may require it, or you may be someone's "hero" by lending it out. If on the other hand you are so experienced you know you don't want one, then you don't need to come here and ask the question in the 1st place. This is the new diver forum, buy a tank light or wish you had.

Using your vision is not cheating when navigating underwater. I make sure that students do not get that focused on the compass. Getting that engrossed with it can be dangerous and it actually adds to the stress. And if you start out with a buddy it absolutely is a stick with situation. If you stop to look at something so does your buddy and vice versa. Even if what you are looking at is your buddy. If you were my buddy and was that task loaded Then my job is to assist you with that by not adding to it.

What was your buddy doing while you were that focused on the compass? He/she should have been right next to you monitoring depth, taking note of features, keeping track of time, air, etc. Otherwise you did not have a real buddy. On the return or next leg you then should have switched roles. bubble trouble is correct and the sooner new divers realize this the better. You should not be getting separated on these dives. The "herd mentality" can cause serious issues and reinforce bad habits. How do you locate your buddy on a night dive? Simple- look at them or reach out and touch them. They should be right next to you.

 

[sdiver68]

Using your vision is not cheating when navigating underwater. I make sure that students do not get that focused on the compass.

What was your buddy doing while you were that focused on the compass?

The "herd mentality" can cause serious issues and reinforce bad habits. How do you locate your buddy on a night dive? Simple- look at them or reach out and touch them. They should be right next to you.

Yes, I get that now. I was used to the strictness of IFR training but that was not the point of this basic navigation exercise.

My instructor was right there with me, tugging me when I varied my depth by a couple of feet and making me use vision. That's how we learn, by making a couple of small mistakes in a controlled training session and correcting them. I did further my skills by using the compass and computer only, I'm now confident I could navigate in a mid-water or blackout situation if it ever came to that.

Buddy-Herd answer in a separate thread.

 

[H2O 70]

OK I was somewhat task loaded between buoyancy and compass heading when I allowed 2-3 ft of change the 1st couple of tries but that was because I was determined not to cheat with vision and stared only at my compass. Blame my IFR flight training on that where they blindfold your vision and one must rely on instruments alone.

Just don't turn off you most important instrument...your head.

Using your vision is not cheating when navigating underwater. I make sure that students do not get that focused on the compass. Getting that engrossed with it can be dangerous and it actually adds to the stress.

What was your buddy doing while you were that focused on the compass? He/she should have been right next to you monitoring depth, taking note of features, keeping track of time, air, etc. Otherwise you did not have a real buddy.

Yes, I get that now. I was used to the strictness of IFR training but that was not the point of this basic navigation exercise.

My instructor was right there with me, tugging me when I varied my depth by a couple of feet and making me use vision. That's how we learn, by making a couple of small mistakes in a controlled training session and correcting them. I did further my skills by using the compass and computer only, I'm now confident I could navigate in a mid-water or blackout situation if it ever came to that.

I was following a student. The objective was to go from one platform to another. Both platforms were at 20ft. The student was going to be responsible for both their depth and direction. I was simply going to follow. The student is staying on the azimuth perfectly, but not at all paying attention to their depth. All of a sudden we were on the item that the platform was attached to on the bottom. The student looked at me. I tapped his depth gauge which was right below his compass. You could see the look of surprise and confusion in his eyes. We made our ascent to the platform above. He learned a valuable lesson that day. We got a good laugh later on shore. He was amazed at how quickly he got focused on the compass that he forget to look at his depth and that instrument was virtually touching his compass.

Your IFR training can come in very handy while diving. But you need to use your instruments, unlike the student above.

I don't know about having or not having a real dive buddy, but there something to be said for learning how to be self sufficient and not counting on other. Maybe one day you'll end up with a DM like me who will let you learn through experience.

 

[MauiScubaSteve]

Neither of you two are diving in the ocean I'm assuming. It would be a miracle if there was no surge and current in the ocean, so instrument only navigation is going to "at best" get you back to shore. Getting where you want or need to get "just with instruments" in the ocean would be similarly miraculous.

I did further my skills by using the compass and computer only, I'm now confident I could navigate in a mid-water or blackout situation if it ever came to that.

I was following a student. The objective was to go from one platform to another. Both platforms were at 20ft. The student was going to be responsible for both their depth and direction. I was simply going to follow. The student is staying on the azimuth perfectly, but not at all paying attention to their depth. All of a sudden we were on the item that the platform was attached to on the bottom. The student looked at me. I tapped his depth gauge which was right below his compass. You could see the look of surprise and confusion in his eyes. We made our ascent to the platform above. He learned a valuable lesson that day. We got a good laugh later on shore. He was amazed at how quickly he got focused on the compass that he forget to look at his depth and that instrument was virtually touching his compass.

Your IFR training can come in very handy while diving. But you need to use your instruments, unlike the student above.

I don't know about having or not having a real dive buddy, but there something to be said for learning how to be self sufficient and not counting on other. Maybe one day you'll end up with a DM like me who will let you learn through experience.

 

[H2O 70]

Neither of you two are diving in the ocean I'm assuming. It would be a miracle if there was no surge and current in the ocean, so instrument only navigation is going to "at best" get you back to shore. Getting where you want or need to get "just with instruments" in the ocean would be similarly miraculous.

If only we were all so lucky as to live in Maui.

Sometimes in 40degree water, with >6ft vis, at 100ft on a flat featureless bottom instruments are all we have to get from A to B.

 

[sdiver68]

Neither of you two are diving in the ocean I'm assuming. It would be a miracle if there was no surge and current in the ocean, so instrument only navigation is going to "at best" get you back to shore. Getting where you want or need to get "just with instruments" in the ocean would be similarly miraculous.

Errr, last time I checked the Caribbean is part of the ocean. And somehow my compass took me from the the plane wreck to the bow of the ship wreck on a 90* heading.