Resort's " New Normal " Rule - No AIR 2 or diving your long hose

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IMHO, I really doubt that a regulator immersed in water, regardless of configuration, would be a serious risk of contracting Covid.
If it's good enough for washing lettuce, it's good enough for diving in salt or fresh water.

I only dive in warm tropical water (my choice) and that includes mostly Coz and GC. I do DIR long-hose donate in OC single and it's never been an issue when I go over pre-dive stuff with my dive buddy of the day. (I travel solo for most dive trips.) I see lots of "Air-2" or "AirSource" setups too. (I used to dive with one) No biggy to me.

Back On-Topic...

I really think this no-primary donate thing is being blown out of proportion in so far as a genuine risk factor.
I would simply choose NOT to dive with a Dive Op that has this ridiculous mandate. No drama, no whining, no panties in a bunch.
JMHO/YMMV

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So I wonder what the sidemount divers will do...
They have to Duct tape label one tank as primary and one as secondary and only donate the secondary.

In all seriousness, it does beg the question why these types of dive ops and resorts don’t require the backup reg to be a neon yellow/orange so that the OOA diver knows where to look. Because, safety. All of my regs and hoses are black and chrome. Having one in my mouth may not be a good indicator of where an OOA diver should go for air.
 
Funny, I've seen Air 2s in Red Sea, Cocos, Galapagos, Revillagigedos, as well as all over the Caribbean. Maybe it's just your dive sites?
I have seen Air2 everywhere. But mostly used together with an octo..Or, even better, with an independent secondary teg mounted on the second post of the tank (posdibly twin).
Both cases are quite common also here in the Mediterranean. What is rare, deprecated snd unsafe is a configuration with just primary and Air2.
This seems to be used and thrusted only in US...
A decent octo is inexpensive and reliable, why one should remove it when installing an Air2?
 
What is rare, deprecated snd unsafe is a configuration with just primary and Air2.
Rather than repeating this as a fact, can you provide some justification as to why you think that this is so?

I totally get that there are people that do not like them, and there are limitations to their use, but to just say they're unsafe without justification is a huge stretch.
 
I have seen Air2 everywhere. But mostly used together with an octo..Or, even better, with an independent secondary teg mounted on the second post of the tank (posdibly twin).
Both cases are quite common also here in the Mediterranean. What is rare, deprecated snd unsafe is a configuration with just primary and Air2.
This seems to be used and thrusted only in US...
A decent octo is inexpensive and reliable, why one should remove it when installing an Air2?
Hi Angelo,

I dived a short hose primary and an AIR 2 for about 15 years/1400 dives, and did fine. I don't recall ever reading anything about the use of a combination inflator/regulator being implicated in worse outcomes in scuba emergencies. Do you have such data?

I generally respect what you say, not this time. Perhaps this is mainly a sociocultural diving equipment issue
 
I think that using a primary and secondary octopus AND an Air 2 on a normal recreational set up, has very limited benefit and introduces another hose (O-rings and fittings) , more failure points, more cost and more complexity.

I also would like to hear exactly why the device is unacceptably dangerous when used as a replacement for an octopus and perfectly fine as a redundant back up for the octopus? I can understand (to some extent) why people hate AIr2's, but the idea of using them in this manner (as a third breathing option) seems strange?
 
I think that using a primary and secondary octopus AND an Air 2 on a normal recreational set up, has very limited benefit and introduces another hose (O-rings and fittings) , more failure points, more cost and more complexity.

I also would like to hear exactly why the device is unacceptably dangerous when used as a replacement for an octopus and perfectly fine as a redundant back up for the octopus? I can understand (to some extent) why people hate AIr2's, but the idea of using them in this manner (as a third breathing option) seems strange?
I occasionally use mine as a third breathing option, but that's only on dives where my second option is a pony tank.
 
i have been diving since 1969. the only octo I have ever used is the air 2
that may be because the group i dive with (about 10 divers ) we all-use air 2. our group has dived
all over the carib and florida with no problems in diving 40 + years. our group has practiced
ooa many times. we always donate primary
 
i have been diving since 1969. the only octo I have ever used is the air 2
that may be because the group i dive with (about 10 divers ) we all-use air 2. our group has dived
all over the carib and florida with no problems in diving 40 + years. our group has practiced
ooa many times. we always donate primary
Well, clearly you'll have to mount an octo if you go to Buddy Dive and do any boat dives! You can still use your AIR 2, but your buddy gets the octo, not your primary.
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I hope everyone understands that Bonaire (along with Saba and St Eustatius) are closely tied to the Netherlands, and has to operate under European guidelines for things like safety rules of COVID-19. The island also needs to reopen its borders, which requires European/Netherlands approval, so operating under guidelines like those they've published is part of their campaign to be allowed to reopen. Those published guidelines are not some Draconian Buddy Dive attempt to penalize tourists for daring to come to their island; rather, they are an attempt to get approval to have the tourists even be allowed to come to the island. If that approval comes, it will surely be staged...perhaps with those published guidelines in place for a while, then slowly relaxed with experience and data being supportive. When? Who knows. Will they even open this summer? Who knows. But I see the publication of those guidelines as a necessary and welcome first step to reopening.
 
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