28 Hours of No Fly Time?

[Diver0823]

I am diving on a Suunto Eon Core. After my last dive of the trip earlier today, I surfaced with my watch showing a "no fly" time of slightly more than 28 hours. My flight is at 4 p.m. tomorrow, at which time I will be almost exactly at 24 hours. All of the guidelines I have seen, and some of the prior discussions here at Scuba Board, indicate that 24 hours is a good and safe rule of thumb for no-deco recreational divers (and generally seen as a conservative one at that), and that some guidelines (e.g., DAN) suggest even less time before flying.

As background, I have been diving the last 3 days – 2 dives today, 3 dives yesterday, and 3 dives the day before yesterday. All have been fairly conservative profiles – nothing close to deco. Maximum depths today were 78 feet on dive #1 and 89 feet on dive #2 (about 22 minutes were spent near the bottom, mostly between 75 and 80 feet, and then a gradual ascent with a length period of time spent in the shallows).

"No fly" time on my Suunto after my first dive today was 24 hours, which had reduced to about 20 hours after my surface interval, before exceeding 28 hours after my second dive. I recall that the "no fly" time similarly jumped to about 28 hours earlier in the trip after a different day of repetitive dives.

I have heard Suuntos are conservative. Should I feel safe following the 24-hour (conservative) guideline and flying home tomorrow? Or should I miss my flight to comply with the computer? (Note – I am in Bonaire, so not that easy to just hop on the next plane.)

I am thinking the watch is just being overly conservative and the 24-hour rule is safe, but I am cautious by nature. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Doc]

Any advice would be appreciated.

I’ll buy that Suunto, tell your g.f. to hold it for me, I’ll catch her at the service.

Seriously, now. With less than 24 hours to go, you’re coming to a message board for advice on how to bet if you’re going to be dead tomorrow? (Or not)

How much is it to rebook the air and expenses? We’ll need your age and a quick health history to run the remaining actuarial value of your life as a basis for comparison.

Just pull the batteries out, it will prolly reset.

Or, select from the advice from the follow-on posts....

 

[Mike1967]

Suunto sucks. Fly dude.

 

[tursiops]

Just curious: how long were your surface intervals, and were you on Nitrox?
To where are you flying....a sea-level location, or altitude?

What is your diving history.....is this your first multi-dive/multi-day and then fly experience?

There are certainly situations where 28+h would be advised, even 48h, but the chances are you are not in one of those situations.
Note that the 18h "rule" and the 24h "rule" come with a lot of caveats.

 

[Diver0823]

Just curious: how long were your surface intervals, and were you on Nitrox?
To where are you flying....a sea-level location, or altitude?

What is your diving history.....is this your first multi-dive/multi-day and then fly experience?

There are certainly situations where 28+h would be advised, even 48h, but the chances are you are not in one of those situations.
Note that the 18h "rule" and the 24h "rule" come with a lot of caveats.

Surface interval of 3 hours, 51 minutes between today's two dives.

On Nitrox for both dives today and most of the dives this week, except for one shallow afternoon dive yesterday.

Have been diving for 6 years, about 80 total dives. Have had similar multi-day dive trips before and then flying out, but I cannot remember the exact timing.

Flying from Bonaire to Atlanta.

I am 40 years old, generally pretty healthy, although a bit overweight.

 

[Diver0823]

I’ll buy that Suunto, tell your g.f. to hold it for me, I’ll catch her at the service.

Seriously, now. With less than 24 hours to go, you’re coming to a message board for advice on how to bet if you’re going to be dead tomorrow? (Or not)

How much is it to rebook the air and expenses? We’ll need your age and a quick health history to run the remaining actuarial value of your life as a basis for comparison.

Just pull the batteries out, it will prolly reset.

Or, select from the advice from the follow-on posts....

I sense the sarcasm, but cannot figure out what is your actual advice, if any.

 

[tursiops]

Surface interval of 3 hours, 51 minutes between today's two dives.

On Nitrox for both dives today and most of the dives this week, except for one shallow afternoon dive yesterday.

Have been diving for 6 years, about 80 total dives. Have had similar multi-day dive trips before and then flying out, but I cannot remember the exact timing.

Flying from Bonaire to Atlanta.

I am 40 years old, generally pretty healthy, although a bit overweight.

If it were me, in this situation you describe, I'd fly. and I'd sell the Suunto.
If this was my first dive trip, I'd be more careful. You have to calibrate your own body to off-gassing...the tables are not made for YOU. New divers might have a PFO, for example, and not know it until they get to altitude and the pains start, or worse.

 

[ibj40]

OP - just out of curiosity, was the computer set to your Nitrox mix?

 

[Diver0823]

OP - just out of curiosity, was the computer set to your Nitrox mix?

Yes, it was. Actually a 31 blend on dive 1 and a 30 blend on dive 2.

 

[Streydog]

Personally I would feel comfortable flying after 24 hours. This falls within DANs recommendations. I use a Suunto as my primary computer, if you were wearing another brand it would indicate you are OK to fly. Not recommending it but I have flown much sooner, personal decision, after more diving. Only issue I had was I would get paranoid with any itch I felt.