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That's funny. I also found my "backup" mask in 2007 or so. And it too became (and still is) my regular mask. It fits so well I just accept the less than perfect peripheral vision.
At what point would it be recommended to carry a back up mask?
- Thread starter Daniel M. Thomas
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You will need a backup mask in a number of situations:
- the water is very cold
- the water is unbearably salty
- you really need to see your gauges (mandatory decompression; deep diving beyond NDL)
- the dive site is a very remote one
- you have a tendency to sit on things
Scuba Client
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A back up mask is intended for divers doing stage decompression and overhead environments. And even then there might be one back up between the team.
My reply below is not relevant in Cozumel, but is worth noting globally:
Once 39F or 4C water hits your eyes on that OW dive, your opinion is subject to rapid change
It is like too much ice cream at once.
--- You can of course replace that mask with a glove but visibility will be 'somewhat' degraded.
Warm waters are more forgiving in this respect, though. So rick00001967 is correct, of course.
The time to need a back up mask is when you find you need one. That moment can be either underwater or on the surface. Underwater mask issues are usually a broken mask strap. Pressure gradient changes during diving create expansion and contraction of both hoods and straps. Vinyl and plastics crack, split, and wear out over time. A neoprene strap is probably more comfortable and has more surface area that has to split or break before it breaks.
Obviously the time to check their condition is pre and post dive. Surge's in wrecks can bounce you around too and dislocate a mask or crack a lens retainer. These plastic lens retainers can crack and leak o there own as well.
While diving deeper than 130 or penetrating a wreck or other closed environment I carried an extra mask in my right dry suit leg pocket. It is equal to my main mask in quality and condition.
Rule of thumb; Don't go Cheap if Diving Deep. If you are cutting equipment corners to stretch your dive depth you may want to rethink your priorities. You can survive without a mask if you don't have ceiling, either real or artificial( extended deco time) but needing to actually see to get out of a closed environment makes a quality back up a good thing.
All this being considered the most likely need for a back up mask is your primary mask getting stepped on on a dive boat. Or, smashed hanging it over the reg yoke, and having it damaged when the bungeed rocking cylinders smash it against the bulkhead of the boat. And of course the other reason to have a quality back up mask is the basic mantra of scuba 101: (right next to breath continually), mask, fins, and snorkel. If you find you left your mask out of your kit a back up would help. Which brings me back to my opening observation: the time you need a back up is when you realize you need a back up. Dive safe and don't skip the deco stops.
Obviously the time to check their condition is pre and post dive. Surge's in wrecks can bounce you around too and dislocate a mask or crack a lens retainer. These plastic lens retainers can crack and leak o there own as well.
While diving deeper than 130 or penetrating a wreck or other closed environment I carried an extra mask in my right dry suit leg pocket. It is equal to my main mask in quality and condition.
Rule of thumb; Don't go Cheap if Diving Deep. If you are cutting equipment corners to stretch your dive depth you may want to rethink your priorities. You can survive without a mask if you don't have ceiling, either real or artificial( extended deco time) but needing to actually see to get out of a closed environment makes a quality back up a good thing.
All this being considered the most likely need for a back up mask is your primary mask getting stepped on on a dive boat. Or, smashed hanging it over the reg yoke, and having it damaged when the bungeed rocking cylinders smash it against the bulkhead of the boat. And of course the other reason to have a quality back up mask is the basic mantra of scuba 101: (right next to breath continually), mask, fins, and snorkel. If you find you left your mask out of your kit a back up would help. Which brings me back to my opening observation: the time you need a back up is when you realize you need a back up. Dive safe and don't skip the deco stops.
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I been watching this thread
At what point would it be recommended to carry a back up mask?
The quite obvious answer:
Just before or after one loses the mask on your face.
I am a recovering literalist.
At what point would it be recommended to carry a back up mask?
The quite obvious answer:
Just before or after one loses the mask on your face.
I am a recovering literalist.
Divrtim made a great post with many valuable insights. Love them. I am commenting though on it as a means to spend leisure time. But that is what we do here, so let's go...
This is very much true of course. An example: I have been deliberatively diving down to -19m or -62ft to the bottom of my local UW playground single without a mask and without fins. I wore a drysuit (a.k.a. a balloon) and I chose NOT to wear fins or a mask on that simple and short test dive. I was an experienced (whatever that means) diver at that time, though. It went just fine. Frog kicks (or any kicks) felt strange though, wearing boots only. It took some getting used to. Also, I could not see a thing... certainly not my depth gauge... as everything was blurred, but as the site was familiar and I could recognize walls and shelves and other larger geological (/industrial) features, I was safe. I knew my approximate depth. I knew my approximate ascent speed (low/ok/too much). No problems. Hence, loosing a mask is not a life threatening crisis, but it does indeed ruin your dive as you cannot see things. If the water is cold though, it hurts. In that case you will need some willpower to maintain a safe ascent rate - or at least to empty your lungs on ascent.
If you DO have a ceiling though, you had better to be properly trained to handle no-mask-situations. All true cave divers and trimix divers are, of course.
If you are doing any overhead dives without the no-mask-capability, then I must remind you of the fact that you really only have one life. Diving without a mask is simple and easy (and annoying) but you have to try it once before your life depends on it, OK?
Or when you sit or land your tank on it.
You paid for that dive, and it sucks to skip it because of a broken mask.
ps. I am not a native american/english speaker, so if something sounds funny, pardon my French
This is very much true of course. An example: I have been deliberatively diving down to -19m or -62ft to the bottom of my local UW playground single without a mask and without fins. I wore a drysuit (a.k.a. a balloon) and I chose NOT to wear fins or a mask on that simple and short test dive. I was an experienced (whatever that means) diver at that time, though. It went just fine. Frog kicks (or any kicks) felt strange though, wearing boots only. It took some getting used to. Also, I could not see a thing... certainly not my depth gauge... as everything was blurred, but as the site was familiar and I could recognize walls and shelves and other larger geological (/industrial) features, I was safe. I knew my approximate depth. I knew my approximate ascent speed (low/ok/too much). No problems. Hence, loosing a mask is not a life threatening crisis, but it does indeed ruin your dive as you cannot see things. If the water is cold though, it hurts. In that case you will need some willpower to maintain a safe ascent rate - or at least to empty your lungs on ascent.
If you DO have a ceiling though, you had better to be properly trained to handle no-mask-situations. All true cave divers and trimix divers are, of course.
If you are doing any overhead dives without the no-mask-capability, then I must remind you of the fact that you really only have one life. Diving without a mask is simple and easy (and annoying) but you have to try it once before your life depends on it, OK?
Or when you sit or land your tank on it.
You paid for that dive, and it sucks to skip it because of a broken mask.
ps. I am not a native american/english speaker, so if something sounds funny, pardon my French
Swedinsidemount
Contributor
I only carry a spare mask on tech, and psd dives when i'm on FFM.....other wise for basic OW it's really not necessary...<TG>
I frequently dive with a full-face mask and always carry a conventional "split" mask, as a back-up, in case I have to remove the FFM, underwater, for some reason, and don a safe-second . . .
Recreational dives? No.
Solo dives? Yes.
Technical dives? Yes.
Solo dives? Yes.
Technical dives? Yes.
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