Do you turn the air off or leave it on after setting up on a tank?

[BlueTrin]

As long as you make it part of the routine to turn it on when you kit on and to check it as part of your check, you can turn it off when the kit is unattended?

 

[Bob DBF]

OK. I think the biggest thing here is to get into a routine and don't vary it. As mentioned, I shore dive from the trunk of my car. I attach the reg and turn on the air, then don the wetsuit, belt, etc. So I KNOW the air is on-- always the same way. I also take a few breaths before walking into the water anyway. I turn it on when I attach the reg because that's when I re-check my PSI, and because 3-4 times years ago I walked in the water forgetting to turn the air on. If you did the same thing as me but left the air off until you had the wetsuit on and were now going to don the unit and at that time always turned the air on, that would work too. Maybe if boat diving this may have to be re-thunk.... Are we making too much out of this?

The routine is probably the key, it is for me.

On shore dives, some are like yours, but others it's a walk to the beach, and since we spend the day there is a lot more to take. I set up the rig and check it first, so I can make sure it works take care of problems. No sense doing the carry if it doesn't work. Then I shut it down and bleed it so the SPG is empty or low. It may be an hour or more before I dive.

Whenever I leave the rig, I turn it off and bleed it down so I won't think it's on and get in the water with the valve off. It happened.

 

[inquis]

Whenever I leave the rig, I turn it off and bleed it down so I won't think it's on

Same for me. Also keeps air in the tank during rough zodiac runs when equipment bangs around/shifts. After I switched to a transmitter, the same process results in longer battery life.

 

[TMHeimer]

The routine is probably the key, it is for me.

On shore dives, some are like yours, but others it's a walk to the beach, and since we spend the day there is a lot more to take. I set up the rig and check it first, so I can make sure it works take care of problems. No sense doing the carry if it doesn't work. Then I shut it down and bleed it so the SPG is empty or low. It may be an hour or more before I dive.

Whenever I leave the rig, I turn it off and bleed it down so I won't think it's on and get in the water with the valve off. It happened.

Makes sense. If I had an hour before the dive it would be off as well. When I first started diving I would turn it on then DRIVE to the site. Until one day I threw on the brakes and something pushed in the reg purge button......

 

[Polarorbit]

Why should getting in the water with your air off be a crisis for a recreational diver? If you are properly weighted, you should only be around 4lbs negative with no air in your BCD at the start of your dive (remember your OW buoyancy check). Unless you’re in a thick wetsuit and you manage to get deep enough to compress it, before realizing you aren’t breathing, you should be be able to swim to the surface.

 

[Boarderguy]

Why should getting in the water with your air off be a crisis for a recreational diver? If you are properly weighted, you should only be around 4lbs negative with no air in your BCD at the start of your dive (remember your OW buoyancy check). Unless you’re in a thick wetsuit and you manage to get deep enough to compress it, before realizing you aren’t breathing, you should be be able to swim to the surface.

Have you ever gone in on a rocky beach? One with current? Maybe some chop? Slip and end up face down with 60-70lbs of gear on you and you'll be hard pressed to get back up. With air on you could maybe get to your reg and breathe while you sort it out. Most of my dives have and unseen hazard that can make you question your sanity.

 

[Polarorbit]

Snorkel?

What recreational configuration weighs 60-70 lbs?

Anyhow, back to my original point, once in the water you should be close to neutral. This will remain true regardless of current or surface conditions. Just get your head out of the water and inflate your BCD. Crisis over.

 

[SlugLife]

OK. I think the biggest thing here is to get into a routine and don't vary it.

Mostly agreed. In a much earlier response, I absolutely emphasize consistency.

There still is some risk that your valve may be messed with though if you turn it on and leave it on. The other point I usually bring up is redundancy. In other words, being properly weighted or having an inflated BCD when you hit the water should make a tank-off scenario an annoyance and non-fatal.

For consistency, my routine is:

• Well before the dive:
  • attach regs to tank.
  • Pressurize regs, check for leaks.
  • Close valve, and depressurize.
• As I'm getting ready to dive, or a couple minutes before:
  • re-pressurize
  • do standard checks.

The reason for the initial checks, are they can be used to discover any leaks well before the dive, and start to address them, such as something not tightened enough, a missing o-ring, etc. This saves me from 99% of unexpected maintenance issues right before jumping in the water.

The valve is closed for reasons of possible ultra-slow leaks or reg getting bumped accidentally.

The reason for depressurizing, is consistency: 1) I'm semi-nervous I'll mistakenly jump in with my valve closed, or 2) I need the routine to be CONSISTENT, meaning the valve ALWAYS needs to be opened, and there's no guessing.


With multiple scuba-tanks/regs, it may take a moment to figure out which reg is free-flowing. Even doing side-mount, solo, and only 2 potential sources, my ears don't immediately pick up which regulator it is. I guess the "hissing" means you don't really get nearly as good "spatial audio."

 

[TMHeimer]

Mostly agreed. In a much earlier response, I absolutely emphasize consistency.

There still is some risk that your valve may be messed with though if you turn it on and leave it on. The other point I usually bring up is redundancy. In other words, being properly weighted or having an inflated BCD when you hit the water should make a tank-off scenario an annoyance and non-fatal.

I too mostly agree. A somewhat inflated BC and a 7 mil wetsuit (perhaps other thicknesses) should mean you're OK jumping in, even if you use 40 pounds like me. OTOH, if your air is off and you do start to sink a bit-- and you are inexperienced enough to start to panic and forget that you also can drop weights-- well, it's just a good idea to make sure your air is on if you're jumping off a boat or anywhere right into deep water.
Valves being messed with can only occur if you are on a boat or around anyone who thinks it is their job to make sure your air is on (as it probably is).

 

[Belzelbub]

Why should getting in the water with your air off be a crisis for a recreational diver? If you are properly weighted, you should only be around 4lbs negative with no air in your BCD at the start of your dive (remember your OW buoyancy check).

Agreed, but many are not properly weighted.

I follow the same routine each time, so forgetting to turn on the air is unlikely. Even if I were to forget, I would not be plummeting to the bottom.

When I assemble the gear, I turn the gas on to confirm pressure. I then turn off the gas and purge the lines by hitting the power inflator. That at least puts enough air in the BC that I’ll likely be only slightly negative. When I am ready to dive, I turn the gas on, don the BC, and reconfirm all is working before entering the water. I’ll usually add a couple puffs to the BC again to make sure I’m positive.