Max depth?

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mempilot

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I've been diving OC and have entertained getting into SC or CC. What, if any, are the depth limitations of SC and CC rebreathers?

Added note, I'm not talking about gas mix, just operational limitations of the type and equipment. I currently dive to max depths of 185 fsw. I'll be eventually pressing deeper into the 200's.
 
mempilot:
I've been diving OC and have entertained getting into SC or CC. What, if any, are the depth limitations of SC and CC rebreathers?

Added note, I'm not talking about gas mix, just operational limitations of the type and equipment. I currently dive to max depths of 185 fsw. I'll be eventually pressing deeper into the 200's.

The maximum depth of the rebreather varies by the rebreather itself. I have been reading Bozanic's Mastering Rebreathers. He focuses namely on recreational depths. As I understand, the Dolphin and the Ray are both limited to 130' operational depth.

TwoBit
 
inspiration has been down to over 600' ( that wasn't problem free). It can handle 300' on a regular basis.
Do donkeys really kill more people annually?
 
deepblueh2o:
inspiration has been down to over 600' ( that wasn't problem free). It can handle 300' on a regular basis.
Do donkeys really kill more people annually?
actually much deeper than that.. most of the problems occurred around 700fsw+ (max depth as I remember was about 225m)

The problems were with the audible alarm.. the air cavity within the alarm imploded.. The unit that had the alarm removed didn't have any issues on while the other units did..

A certain rebreather was tested last year for doing 2000 ft sub lockouts..
 
deepblueh2o:
inspiration has been down to over 600' ( that wasn't problem free). It can handle 300' on a regular basis.
Do donkeys really kill more people annually?
Well, my personal limits will be in the 200's, so sounds good. The Inspiration is CC, right? What about SC units?


Yes, the stat is true about donkeys, usually.
 
OK, that's deep!! I've got a lot of money tied up in OC. What kind of cost is involved with the equipment and training for CC RB? I'm all about training and experience, and I dive about 2-4 times a week. 1-2 of those are tech.
 
mempilot:
What, if any, are the depth limitations of SC and CC rebreathers? ... OK, that's deep!!
The Megalodon has been taken past 500ft., as has the Cis-Lunar. MK series RBs have been in that neighborhood, too.

Except for the Cis which was rated at that depth, most CCRs are rated for and tested to less. Usually 300fsw, still deeper than you dive currently.

The RB80 SCR has been used deeper than 100 meters (330)ft.
It is the only civilian SCR build for such depth, from gas switch block (same gases as OC, same deco) to scrubber size.

I've got a lot of money tied up in OC. What kind of cost is involved with the equipment and training for CC RB? I'm all about training and experience, and I dive about 2-4 times a week. 1-2 of those are tech.
Electronically controlled CCRs usually fall between $7500 and $8500, with used MK series around $10,000 (depending on condition & electronics) and used MK-5p even higher.

Training for basic certification should be somewhere between $1200 and $1800, depending on the instructor and any deal you may be able to get by purchasing a unit.

The RB80 is the only serious SCR contender (save some knock-offs for which training/certification might not be available), all training is GUE. DIR-F and Tech-1 are required to get RB training, so depending on your current c-cards that may be a long and expensive way to go. The RB itself isn't cheap either, complete with frame and plumbing probably more than the average CCR.

I'm all about training and experience, and I dive about 2-4 times a week. 1-2 of those are tech.
All initial RB training will be for recreational diving, 130 ft. max and no deco.
When going from OC to CC you'll need to start over again, learn to dive whatever you select, become proficient, move up.

When you read reports about CCR accidents and fatalities you'll see that too many of them happened to divers who went past their RB experience. So you'll have to take a break from the weekly tech dives for a while ... .
 
caveseeker7:
Electronically controlled CCRs usually fall between $7500 and $8500, with used MK series around $10,000 (depending on condition & electronics) and used MK-5p even higher.

The KISS CCR (manually controlled) costs about half that, but you have to provide tanks, backplate, harness, and wings (which you probably already have since you are doing some tech diving).
 
Thanks for all the great info everybody. I've got a lot of research to do, but you guys are the 'horses mouth' if you know what I mean. I probably will go CCR, but I'm not really interested in record setting. I'm interested in wrecks in the the 200 to 300' depth range and would like to lighten the load a little. Starting over is no problem. You always learn something new that way, and I'm looking forward to it. I've got some go fast toys to sell, since my hobbies now require little speed. We'll se what happens in the next year, and whether I can pursue this facet of diving.

Thanks again.

Mem
 
mempilot:
Thanks for all the great info everybody. I've got a lot of research to do, but you guys are the 'horses mouth' if you know what I mean. I probably will go CCR, but I'm not really interested in record setting. I'm interested in wrecks in the the 200 to 300' depth range and would like to lighten the load a little. Starting over is no problem. You always learn something new that way, and I'm looking forward to it. I've got some go fast toys to sell, since my hobbies now require little speed. We'll se what happens in the next year, and whether I can pursue this facet of diving.

Thanks again.

Mem

You should contact Mike Roach in Delray Beach, He's an inspiration instructor and trimix inspiration. He dives primarily in that range. I know when I was out that way he took me on some fantastic wrecks ith the 260-300 ft range. RBJ ? Lowrance, and papas reef...Hed probably give you a pool intro for nother or next to nothing....You are definately in the right area for that range. The inspiration or meg should be your short list with thosr goals.
 

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