Diving Speigel Grove without Nitrox...

[RTee]

jbop65...a lot of good advices already given so I will not repeat them. However, here is a very good example of what could easily be two multi-level dives...using either the wheel or the ERDPml.

This is what I got using my son's eRDPml: 120 ft (NDL 13 mins) 10 mins (including descent) PG G:
80 ft (NDL 13 mins) 2 mins PG H,
60 ft (NDL 22 mins) 2 mins
Safety Stop 3 mins a 15 ft...required. PG after dive I

Surface Interval 1h30 mins: PG B

Dive 2:

100 ft (NDL 14 mins) 10 mins (including descent) PG H,
60 ft (NDL 17 mins) 5 mins PG N,
40 ft (67 mins) 5 mins PG P.

Now...you need to consider your SAC (Surface Air Consumption) let's use .75cft/min:

120 ft = 4.64 ATM, 100 ft = 4 ATM, 80 ft = 3.42 ATM, 60 ft = 2.82 ATM, 40 ft = 2.21 ATM, 15 ft = 1.45 ATM

Dive 1...34.8 cft + (1.33 mins climb = 4 cft) + 5.13 cft + (.66 mins = 1.55 cft climb) + 4.23 cft + ( 1.5 mins climb = 2.0 cft) + 3.3 cft + (30 secs climb = .4 cft) up time from 15 ft= 55.5 cft or about 2100 psi out of a 3000 psi 80 cft tank...all that to say that it should be feasible if your SAC rate hovers around .75 cft.

Dive 2: 30 cft + (1.33 mins = 3.5 cft climb) + 10.6 cft + (.66 min = 1.25 cft) + 8.3 cft + (.8 min = .8 cft climb) + 3.3 cft + (30 secs climb = .4cft) = 58.15 cft or 2180 psi out of a 3000 psi 80cft tank.

Nitrox vs air... if your SAC hovers around .75cft/minand you are using a 80cft tank...your limiting factor for the above-mentionned profiles (Multi-level dives) will end up being ...the size of your tank as you will run out of gas before you run out of NDL ...(as an example you could have easily stayed 10 mins (instead of 2 mins) at 80 ft and 10 mins (instead of 2 mins) at 60 ft but this would have required an additional 37 cft for Dive 1...thus necessitating, as a minimum a 100 cft tank for the dive).

 

[blackcloud]

Just to give you an idea some of the dive shops in the key largo also rent al100s on a dive like the spiegel an extra 20 cubic feet of air is not a bad thing.

 

[ScubaInChicago]

Just to give you an idea some of the dive shops in the key largo also rent al100s on a dive like the spiegel an extra 20 cubic feet of air is not a bad thing.

Some even offer doubles, tech training, and scooter rentals....

 

[dvan1901]

I think one of the problems with your plan is having a dive shop that will let you do the dive on air and not nitrox. I know the shop we used mandated nitrox, if you were were doing multiple dives on the site and proof of nitrox cert was required. Also, you won't go much past 100' on the Speigel; once you get to about 90-100', all there is to see is the hull of the ship...nothing real interesting.

 

[Blackwood]

I think one of the problems with your plan is having a dive shop that will let you do the dive on air and not nitrox. I know the shop we used mandated nitrox, if you were were doing multiple dives on the site and proof of nitrox cert was required.

Minors aside, I don't think dive shops should be dictating the gases divers use.

 

[Atom]

I would plan my first dive on the Speigel at a max depth of 70'-80'. This is where the the majority of things to see are located and gives you the most amount of time to get a good overview of the ship. Also, the currents there can be in the 2-3 knots range which have had some divers out of gas before hitting the deck.

Just because you have a card that says you can go to 100' doesn't mean that should be the goal of every dive you do after getting the card. Make the most of the money and time you'll spend on the dive and enjoy.

Totally agree, there's ton of cool stuff on the super structure and around (60ft to 80-90ft). There's really no need at all to go to 120 ft (that's below the deck), especially since it'll be a very short dive.

But make sure the boat ties to a mooring ball on the super structure and not on the stern (depending on other boats already on the wreck this may be impossible), the ones on the stern take you directly to 100ft and there's often too much current to swim directly from the line to a shallower part without being thrown off the wreck.

 

[suzette]

Agreed- from a planning perspective you're assuming you'll be at 120', when in reality that's very nearly to the sand and you won't see anything there. I did the Spiegel last week and really watched my computer- I was at 90' to 100' the entire time. We (my buddy and I) did a 3 minute stop at 60' on the way up and then a 5 minute stop at 15'. Of course you need to plan your own dive, but that's how ours went. The current was very swift, so make sure you have a snorkel so that getting to the down line doesn't suck up your air and wear gloves for better grip on the lines as well as prevention of fire coral burns, etc. Have fun!

 

[F106A]

I think one of the problems with your plan is having a dive shop that will let you do the dive on air and not nitrox. I know the shop we used mandated nitrox, if you were were doing multiple dives on the site and proof of nitrox cert was required.

Agreed, time for the guvmint to step in and mandate nitrox use on EVERY dive, and establish enforcement procedures, just to keep these fringe operations from needlessly risking their customers lives, all for the sake of the almighty buck!

 

[Mr Carcharodon]

jbop65,

Assuming you did want to go to 120 fsw you would be limited to EAN30, and EAN28 would likely be a better choice. EAN30 gives you a ppO2 of 1.4 ATA which is as high as most agencies recommend currently. Keeping the ppO2 down closer to 1.2 ATA makes more sense for a dive where you may have to swim a lot due to current.

But let's say you chose to dive EAN28 to 120 fsw. In that case you gain about 3-5 minutes of NDL time depending on whose tables you use. Is that worth it? Well not for me, but it is your choice. As has been noted most of the dive is around 80 fsw. Where you can do a 30 minute dive on air. EAN32 would be helpful in that depth range, but 30 minutes is still quite awhile to look around. Good luck.

 

[scubadada]

I have 20 dives on the Spiegel Grove, 15 of them after the ship was upright. Max depths lately have ranged from 100-110 ft with avg depths of 66-73 ft. All these dives have been on EAN 32 for a total dive time of 40-48 min.

This is a great dive, enjoy,

Craig