Mistakes on Rebreathers

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Messages
3
Reaction score
1
Location
Mexico
# of dives
200 - 499
I am a new rebreather diver and would like to hear other people's recommendations for a new RB diver and what mistakes have you have made on such a machine?

Asking to become wiser and better.

English is not my native language, so sorry for that.
 
Following this! Not enough experience on to give valid advice (only have about 50 hours on my machine).

As a fellow beginning CCR diver I would say:
- Checklists always!
- Manage your loop (min volume, exhale out of your loop prior to ascending)
- Go around stuff not over :p
 
Not following my check-list because "I've done this enough times" then having a mushroom valve fail during a dive (giving me a co2 fun time) because I forgot to do a stereo test.

Not following my check-list because "I've done this enough times" and then forgetting to connect my O2 feed to my unit -- I did catch this on my pos/neg test.

Not having my t-pieces fully connected (caught this on a pos/neg, see check-lists are good).
 
I've forgotten to turn on the o2 - that was a bad time.

I've forgotten to turn on the dil - that also sucked.

I've forgotten to bring a spare cell to the dive site - not good but not a major issue - I'm ok with only seeing 2 cells.

I've had loose lips and flooded my sidekick when I first started diving it.

I've adjusted my adv wrong and then it freeflowed - THE ENTIRE DIVE. very annoying - but not a major issue.

After a flood I neglected to clean my rb head right after the dive and the wet sorb hardened into place - that was VERY HARD TO CLEAN.

I've neglected to replace hoses every year or so and have had a few fail.

my advice to you is do your 5min prebreathe and always clean the unit after dives and keep up on the maintenance of the unit and use a checklist.
 
I have been certified on a few rebreathers, and bought the one I felt was the most fault tolerant on the market: the SF2. It has served me well, and while I haven't really made a huge mistake on it, I feel that's due to the design as much as my attention to detail.

The only real mistake was being totally under-weighted to the point I did not have enough dil in the loop to breathe when I lightened everything up enough to descend. Whoops! :D :D :D
 
Not following my check-list
I would love to see your SF2 checklist. Can you send it to me?
 
Only have had a few issues (so far)

Loose mouthpiece ziptie (not able to tell from a pos/neg test) dive was doable and annoying

Gas not turned on (first ever CCR ‘try dive’ dropped down 5ft, reached down and turned on the valve) unit in SCR mode. Gave the instructor the finger, smiled and carried on.

DIL Hose fitting on head worked loose at 45m... shut down and assess.

Had my weight dialed in, took a 40day SI, added a thin heated vest for the 3C water, stole a dozen lbs after I couldn’t sink, then still couldn’t sink, 3hr drive home...

_R
 
Mouth position. Basically I didn’t realize that I had developed a really sloppy way of holding a second stage in my mouth. It’s really terrible on the loop. Water in the loop hose is super annoying. You need a good seal on the loop all the time.
 
The only real mistake was being totally under-weighted to the point I did not have enough dil in the loop to breathe when I lightened everything up enough to descend.

This. After getting used to shedding weight with OC I was obsessive with avoiding being "overweight" with rb. Add two 80cf bailouts, breathing them really light during a bailout drill, and I had an unforgettable lesson about proper weighting. I must carry enough weight to handle bailouts also almost empty when they are clearly positive in water. In a real emergency you can always ditch empty cylinders and get new heavier ones from your team but that requires a lot of practice. The psychological barrier to get rid of a light cylinder with any gas in it is really high. I think this aspect of proper weighting wasn't discussed enough (at least in my training) until I started overhead training. If diving with only a single bailout, you must be able to hold a stop with that until empty. I know divers who can't get underwater without two full bailouts. I haven't seen how they manage a real bailout in that config.

So practice proper bailouts. Not only switching to bailout, but also real long (simulated) deco on BO including gas switches.

Please share your experience, how do you do/teach weight check with a rebreather for different configurations and dives!
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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