500 psi on the boat?

[fisherdvm]

If it were up to me, he would have left the class after the water treading.

Oh, I forgot to add. His comment was "don't worry, I'll be hiring a divemaster."

 

[AbyssalPlains]

My personal feeling is that it is almost ridiculously dangerous to be traveling on a small boat for the purposes of diving, if you are someone who would panic in the water without a fully inflated BC and a snorkel. What happens if you fall overboard?

I agree that in rough seas, having a regulator is a nice thing. If I surface with 500 psi in my 95s, I've got over 30 minutes of gas on the surface. If I'm in really heavy seas and it takes the boat longer than 30 minutes to pick me up, somebody has made a significant judgment error (probably me).

I have read a story about an experienced diver and instructor who got blown away from the boat in heavy current in the Galapagos, and surfaced where two currents intersected, and the seas were six feet or more. He breathed his tank absolutely empty, and then tried to use his snorkel to help. He was a couple of hours in the water before they picked him up by his EPIRB. That's a pretty terrifying situation, but no new diver should be in the water in anything close to those conditions.

I'm a believer in reserves and gas management/planning, but telling new divers to keep a third of their tank in case they have to breathe it on the surface is a little overkill in my opinion. Learning to swim, however, is NOT.

As usual, TSandM is spot on IMHO.

 

[Blackwood]

I disagree. Its perfectly acceptable for a real diver to use a snorkel... if they're after a lobster... during their surface interval.

I disagree. It seems to me that free diving during a SI would potentially shrink a bubble enough to allow it to pass from the Venous to the Arterial side. In other words, it invites a Type II hit.

 

[wedivebc]

LOL !!!! not being from B.C why do you call them sealion treats?? Do sealions eat them?

It would give them something to grab and I am sure bright colour would help attract them too.
Since I never wear a snorkel I can't say for certain but sealions like to play with dive gear that dangles

 

[fisherdvm]

It would give them something to grab and I am sure bright colour would help attract them too.
Since I never wear a snorkel I can't say for certain but sealions like to play with dive gear that dangles

Since they like things that dangles, probably best not to go skinny dipping where there are sealions, eh?

 

[Blackwood]

Since they like things that dangles, probably best not to go skinny dipping where there are sealions, eh?

Only if it's cold water.

 

[Teamcasa]

500 psi back on the boat – just a rule by the local boat.

As for the comments about non or weak swimmers, they should be more worried about learning to swim before worrying about how much air they have left when the re-board.

I have seen a few threads lately about weak or non-swimmers getting certified. I must say it troubles me. If asked to buddy up with a weak or non swimmer, I would have to consider the conditions, who else would be near by or if I could get a third before deciding if it is worth the risk before agreeing.

I don’t think poor swimmers should not be in the ocean unless the conditions are near swimming pool like and projected to stay that way.

A sure recipe for trouble is, one cup of weak swimmer, two cups of new diver, add a pinch of poor navigation skills, mix in a weak buddy, stir in worsening seas, bake for 20 minutes and you will have a perfectly seasoned sea snack. Hopefully, no deep diggin’ and sad singin’.

 

[rrrru4ril]

I'm not sure where the get rid of the snorkel bit came in. I both dive and snorkel and free swim with no gear. In terms of effort and fatigue, both breathing with a snorkel or from a regulator is easier than breathing directly from the mouth and you at least have a lower likelihood of swallowing water as well. As pointed out by an earlier poster, if you are in a high sea state and you are breathing through your regulator but you run out of air, the snorkel is much easier to use than constantly fighting to breath through your mouth. I know that I can float and slowly swim while snorkeling with very little effort. It takes more effort to swim without a snorkel for no other reason than that I need to rotate my head to take a breath. I am a fairly strong swimmer but recognize that snorkeling makes it easier. That is why I take a snorkel with me when I dive, potentially to save air in my tank but also as a backup for an alternate breathing aid if I am somehow separated from the boat, especially in a high sea state.

 

[String]

I disagree. It seems to me that free diving during a SI would potentially shrink a bubble enough to allow it to pass from the Venous to the Arterial side. In other words, it invites a Type II hit.

Who said anything about free diving?

 

[Ed Hatfield]

I like the point that was raised about being paired with a weak or non swimmer. I have never before questioned this when I climbed aboard a dive boat with a bunch of stranges down south. Usually, like most divers, my snorkel is safely stashed back in the room until my wife decides she wants to go snorkelling. I guess that if my life were in the hands of a weak/non-swimmer in an emergancy I would appreciate having every/any tool that could help - including a snorkel. Maybe I'll rethink this - maybe the snorkel should be on the boat until I can at least size up the buddy. Maybe even bring it on the first dive and shrug off the 'you wuss' looks I'm sure to get.