An actual legitimate use for spare air???

[BlueTrin]

You really think chilling at 15 ft on a spare air is putting yourself in danger of dying? Why?

Are you worried it will run out and you can't make it from 15 feet to the surface after resting comfortably for a few minutes as you wait for the signal that the tank is MT?

I was suggesting if he ran out of air on his backgas, he should not do a safety stop with the spare air if that’s his only gas remaining.

I am scared of someone reading this and doing what he said when he runs OOA. If the person is overweighted and for some reason dumps too much air at the stop and then forgets to ditch his weights after panicking due to running OOA, then this could be trouble. I think it is better to remember that safety stops are optional.

Also I don’t see the advantage of the safety stop outweighing the advantage of being at the surface in this case.

Are you recommending to do the opposite and complete optional safety stops on spare air if you ran out of air ?

Maybe I should have worded this less strongly ? And only say that it would be safer to skip it rather than saying that he is in danger of dying ?

 

[lowviz]

Want to run something by the community...

I've been thinking about those little 3 cu ft. bottles and if they have any legitimate use at all in actual SCUBA

Thoughts?

IMHO Yeah, I have thoughts. You guys do this every year at just about exactly this time. Start a nonsense thread with some moronic premise for a [MY OPINION] dangerous product. Really helps with sales at the incoming holiday season. Monterey/Huntington Beach, do the math...

New community member? @spitfiremac do you have any financial or familial connections to Submersible Systems LLC Huntington Beach (Orange County), California?

 

[hroark2112]

If it’s good enough for cave divers it’s good enough for me.

 

[Bowers]

By that thinking, just don`t run out of air. Problem solved.

That logic is sound, but not at all derived from my statement...

 

[AfterDark]

I could use a 3cuft tank to inflate my wing when I'm using my double hose regulator!

 

[AfterDark]

I was suggesting if he ran out of air on his backgas, he should not do a safety stop with the spare air if that’s his only gas remaining.

I am scared of someone reading this and doing what he said when he runs OOA. If the person is overweighted and for some reason dumps too much air at the stop and then forgets to ditch his weights after panicking due to running OOA, then this could be trouble. I think it is better to remember that safety stops are optional.

Also I don’t see the advantage of the safety stop outweighing the advantage of being at the surface in this case.

Are you recommending to do the opposite and complete optional safety stops on spare air if you ran out of air ?

Maybe I should have worded this less strongly ? And only say that it would be safer to skip it rather than saying that he is in danger of dying ?

My B/P wing has an oral inflator! I use it when I dive my double hose regulator because there are no LP ports on it.
Also it is likely that at 15FSW the "empty" tank at 30FSW now has enough air for BC inflation.

Death is not an option.

 

[johndiver999]

I was suggesting if he ran out of air on his backgas, he should not do a safety stop with the spare air if that’s his only gas remaining.

I am scared of someone reading this and doing what he said when he runs OOA. If the person is overweighted and for some reason dumps too much air at the stop and then forgets to ditch his weights after panicking due to running OOA, then this could be trouble. I think it is better to remember that safety stops are optional.

Also I don’t see the advantage of the safety stop outweighing the advantage of being at the surface in this case.

Are you recommending to do the opposite and complete optional safety stops on spare air if you ran out of air ?

Maybe I should have worded this less strongly ? And only say that it would be safer to skip it rather than saying that he is in danger of dying ?

Perhaps your language was stronger than necessary. It always catches my eye when people say "NEVER". I prefer looking at situations on a more case by case basis.

If someone thinks 3 cu-ft is not worth the trouble, then I can understand that. But if someone exercises their right to dive the way they want AND they are at 15 feet and want to use the spare air to chill out and hang for a few minutes, (and presumably they feel comfortable doing so), then I am not going to think they are cheating death. To worry about them sinking out of control, with an empty tank at a shallow stop, is not too realistic, if they are weighted properly.

A safety stop IS optional, so I can't get too upset with someone selecting that option. Being 15 feet down and neutral when the air stops may really not be a big deal.

 

[tridacna]

I use an old one connected to an air nozzle to clean my keyboard. Really effective.

 

[BlueTrin]

Perhaps your language was stronger than necessary. It always catches my eye when people say "NEVER". I prefer looking at situations on a more case by case basis.

If someone thinks 3 cu-ft is not worth the trouble, then I can understand that. But if someone exercises their right to dive the way they want AND they are at 15 feet and want to use the spare air to chill out and hang for a few minutes, (and presumably they feel comfortable doing so), then I am not going to think they are cheating death. To worry about them sinking out of control, with an empty tank at a shallow stop, is not too realistic, if they are weighted properly.

A safety stop IS optional, so I can't get too upset with someone selecting that option. Being 15 feet down and neutral when the air stops may really not be a big deal.

I agree that my words are too strong but what you describe at the end of your post is not what I understood from his scenario.

What I understood is that you may run out of air at a deeper depth, then you ascend and elect to do a safety stop, because you have a spare air.

To me it’s iffy to say that this the recommended way to deal with an OOA situation at 100ft:

• run out of air at 100ft
• come back up to 15ft
• finish your spare air doing an optional safety stop

@AfterDark makes a good point that you’ll get more air as you get up.

Also to clarify, I am sure that you or @AfterDark can do this without any problem (hanging out and , it is not just what I’d recommend to everyone on the basic discussion forum if you run OOA.

 

[Graeme Fraser]

it could be a useful escape aid on a sinking or burning boat

I agree that it's a false sense of security, but also that a CESA with 3-6cf of extra gas to breath is better than a CESA with zero.

Several times a week, we run HUET (Helicopter Underwater Escape Trainer) training at our LDS, which is mandatory for offshore workers based in the UK. One of the exercises is impact, 180°spin and breath from STAS (spare air) for 30 seconds before exit.

For the last couple of years we've also had the Ineos Americas Cup team use the unit to practice escape procedures in the event of capsize. These guys have a STAS built into their lifejackets with a mini pop out reg under a flap on their chest (just visible on the two guys in the left of the photo).