Boat for tech diving?

[buckled plates]

The Wilkes-Barre (off the Lower Keys) is an easy 15 mile run from my dock. I'm an OC Divemaster and 6-pack dive boat operator. I'm looking for input from tech divers on what they're looking for in a well equipped and professionally run boat. Assuming the boat serving the wreck is sufficiently seaworthy, fast, and properly equipped for rec diving, what else is the tech community looking for (minimum two man crew; someone tech qualified; chase boat; permanent moorings to the wreck; etc? Also, has anyone been diving the WB recently and, if so, may I ask what dive operator you used for transport?

Any and all thoughts appreciated.

 

[OBXDIVEGUY]

Lots of space is needed for techies. For a single dive, imagine at least double back tanks, and 2 stage bottles for each team member. CCR guys might be a little more streamlined. Lots of techs like to bring scooters too, so you'll need a space for them. Emergency oxygen is a requirement also. I went with Keys Mobile Diver to the WB and he limits tech trips to just a team of 3 so there is comfortable space on the boat with all of the gear. Many tech divers despise hooking into a wreck and would prefer to do drift deco. That way, they're not kicking eachother in the face all holding onto an anchor line at the stops. I don't know about a 2 man crew, for me, the fewer people trying to help and touching my gear the better. I would just prefer someone giving me a ride out, and let me deal with set-up and everything. Some tech charters in S. Fl like to send a DM down when everyone is on their 10 or 20' stops to collect used deco bottles and to check gas supplies. Its a nice gesture, but I don't know that its entirely necessary. A giant, heavy duty ladder and swim platform are handy too.

If you can handle a team of 4 for a 200 mile round trip, I'm very interested.

 

[buckled plates]

The boat I'm using is professionally equipped but too small for anything more then a 2-tank rec trip for three to the local sites. We're looking at larger vessels (to accommodate a full six-pack compliment plus DMs, instructors, etc.) but buying a boat and equipping it is easy; keeping it working, not so much. We're a niche operation and the WB might hold promise if there was sufficient interest in the tec community to run at least 10-15 trips there (in addition to everything else were doing) over the season. Hooking into and, more importantly, unhooking from the wreck is the greatest challenge and could be mitigated by installing a permanent sub-surface line and ball. But if avoiding the hookup altogether is a safe possibility, then that solves a huge impediment to the operation. I assumed a descent and ascent line was a necessity given depth and current but if not, that's important to know. We run with a 2 man crew for safety in some ops (particularly drift dives since nothing ruins the day more than surfacing and finding no boat, our crusty old captain fallen overboard or dead on the deck). Other than that, we can do the trip with one and most of our clients are experienced and prefer we not touch their gear, so easy to comply there.

How many divers usually participate on tec dives? Is a six-pack generally sufficient, or do most tec dive ops run inspected vessels to accommodate larger groups?

 

[boulderjohn]

In my experience, the biggest issues are getting down to the wreck and getting back from the wreck. If you do a hot drop and miscalculate, your divers miss the wreck and have just spent a lot of money to look at sand. They will not be happy. The dive operator I use for most of my current tech dives will send a DM down to hook onto the wreck. Assuming that works (so far so good), we follow that line down, thus ensuring that everyone gets to the destination. Upon ascent, we USUALLY start following that line up. The crew has asked for dive plans and knows when everyone will start on the line. They come down and unhook then, meaning that the line will drop to vertical and allow for drifting deco near the line rather than clinging to it in heavy current. Sometimes we will instead send up SMBs instead and drift.

Space is important, and a little crew help is nice. Hooking up deco bottles (etc.) in cramped space can be a challenge, and it is nice to have some help sometime.

 

[buckled plates]

A tec qualified DM to handle the ground tackle would be great...if we had one. What about a down line instead, say, a 15-20 lb. mushroom anchor dropped upstream of the wreck in the sand, the boat standing by but unsecured to the line? You'd have a marker for a free descent, a visual on (or at least a reference for a good bearing) to the wreck, and the anchor to be recovered as the last item of the day? As for drifting deco, do you guys always deploy an SMB for the boat to follow as you begin ascent, or do you wait until you're at some point closer to the surface? Currents on all our wrecks can be very strong. Any delay in the boat following the divers is a serious hazard. Recently, a friends boat became disabled soon after his divers submerged for a drift dive. They were picked up (by pure good fortune) by another boat 2 miles from the boat they splashed from.

 

[OBXDIVEGUY]

A HUGE advantage for you if you want to run tech trips down your way; It is nearly impossible to get good trimix fills anywhere in the Keys. Shoot, even if you don't end up doing the charters, you'd still have my business just for fills.

Yes, the down line is handy and that is a very good point about the possibility of doing a sand dive. It essentially ruins all dive plans for that day and damn, that gas is expensive. I've been on a boat that hooks in, but still allows drift deco and liked it. They still sent a DM down to tie the buoy in, and the boat did not hook up, it was just a very large buoy and when everyone was ready to drop, the boat brought us slightly upcurrent of it and we swam to the buoy. The DM sometimes would remain at the hook in, and when he counts all divers are down, he'd unhook and ascend. Being secured to the wreck would be advantageous because if there is a bad current, the divers may have to climb down the line and a mushroom anchor would not hold. A chain and snap shackle are normally used. The hot drop is still my favorite, but we have to really trust the captain to judge the current.

Even the larger 46' Newton boats in the Fort Lauderdale area that primarily run rec trips, will limit tech trips to only 6. More than that and it is difficult for the captain to keep track of profiles, particularly if it is a drift deco and not everyone is launching their SMB at the same time. Again, the space thing is another reason they only allow 6 on a boat that would normally hold 24.

Another common contingency is everyone comes to an agreement for bottom time. At a predetermined time, everyone drifts off the wreck, but may not launch a buoy until they hit their 100' stop or something. The captain would have to judge where he thinks he may see the buoy pop and be in that position to follow it. I'm not a huge fan of this procedure. I prefer to launch the SMB as soon as I leave the wreck. That is the procedure for people diving off my boat.

 

[boulderjohn]

I agree that the mushroom anchor would be nice if the current was not too strong, but I frequently find I need to pull down the line in heavy current, meaning a mushroom anchor would not work. The only time I ever used one in South Florida worked fine, but when we were done with 45 minutes of "drifting deco," we surfaced only about 20 feet from the boat, which had not moved an inch during our deco. With currents like that, you can do anything you want. On my dive this past Sunday, I can't begin to guess how far we drifted in 60 minutes of deco. We shot bags when we left the wreck.

 

[buckled plates]

Try MDEA (305) 743-6188 in Marathon. They're a small but high end shop that sells rebreathers and other rec and tec gear too. Not sure about trimix, but worth a call. Odd hours sometimes, but they'll get back to you so leave a message. Don't bother looking for them online. Just call.

Any boat we run would have to be economically sensible for a six-pack charter outfit. Going head-to-head against he local headboats for the conventional OC rec market would just damage everyone. I've worked on a 25 Privateer that managed 6 rec divers, 1 DM, an instructor, 16 alum 80's, and me as captain. It was a boatload but workable in good weather. I'm thinking a 30' workboat with good seakeeping ability would handle 4 tec divers, captain, DM and equipment acceptably.

What's the price for the tec dives in Southeast Florida? Do they price it by diver, or boat for the trip?

 

[rivers]

Note: From a UK perspective
Our standard boats are for 10-12 divers with 2 crew (skipper and deckhand), with twinsets and multiple stages or rebreathers with multiple stages. Twinsets and rebreathers are lashed/tied off to rails. Stages generally are underneath the seats, along with gear bags. All boats have multiple sets of O2, as well as required SOLAS equipment.
The wheelhouse generally has a place for some divers to sit, as well as tea/coffee/hot drink making facilities and occasionally pasty making facilities. The bunk area is usually reserved for dry bags/changing/the occasional napper on long trips out. Most importantly, every UK dive boat (except for ribs), are fit with a diver life for ease of getting back on the boat.
There are very few wrecks that are permanently shotted. Skipper/deckhand will shot the wreck, divers will descend on the line and the last diver(s) down will send the shot back up. All ascents are done on a DSMB.

 

[buckled plates]

last diver(s) down will send the shot back up.

That's the most sensible solution, and the advantage of your "loser pays" tort system. Here in the US, any diver handling gear for the operator becomes, in essence, an employee of the operator for legal liability; furthermore, our Jones Act permits a piercing of the corporate veil for maritime issues which means virtually unlimited liability for the operator if the uninsured diver is injured while handling boat gear.

I suppose if it was easy everyone would be doing it...