A few questions before certification

[lamoon]

I just finished the NAUI course and will do OW at Dutch Springs in a few weeks. I'm very excited - I have always wanted to learn scuba diving. I had no problems with the textbook stuff but I had a few issues in the pool and I'd like your input.

The thing that most concerns me is equalizing my ears. No matter how much I equalized, I always had to ascend a bit a equalize again. I had no idea a depth of 11 ft. could cause that much pain. Maybe I'm being paranoid, but the biggest fear I have about diving is damage to my ears.

I also had a problem with buoyancy contol. I know that's something that will improve with experience, so I'm not too concerned yet. From some of the threads I've read here I think I might be carrying too much weight. The person at the LDS just asked how much I weighed and told me how much weight to buy. Also, the rental BC's suck. Majorly. The two I used (the only smalls they had at the Y) were too big on me. I made the straps as tight as possible, but after a few minutes in the water they would loosen and the BC and tank would shift around me. I had originally planned to buy a BC, regulator, and computer after having a few logged dives but now I feel that I have to buy the BC before OW. I tried on an XS Cressi-sub Aqualight BC at the store that I liked but my instructor said it was too short for me. I also tried a women's BC (can't remember the name) that fit well, but it was so much more expensive - it cost about $480. I'd rather not spend that much when I still don't know how much I'll be diving. Any suggestions on BC's for tallish people with narrow shoulders that don't have pain-inducing prices?

That's it for now. I'm sure I'll think of more later.

 

[JonAustin]

I can't make any specific suggestions. However, I would say your initial inclination is probably correct--don't drop a lot of money on a bunch of equipment that you may not use. Instead, you might rent a BC from another dive shop, with a different brand of equipment. They may have something that fits better. Plus, BCs are pretty cheap to rent.

 

[laurelgsc]

Lamoon,

You know my #1 fear before I did my OW dives is equalizing my ears. If you can equalize in the pool to get down to 12 feet, then you can equalize in the ocean. I like to clear my ears on the dive boat as I am gearing up, I equalize when I get in the water before I descend and I equalize going down before I feel any pressure, so every few feet. Take your first ascent slowly, use a line, that helps a lot. Just relax and you should be fine.

Being correctly weighted is something that you will figure out during your check-out dives. You are going to have to play with it a bit. Being a little bit heavy during your first dives is not neccessarily a bad thing. You don't however want to have so much led on you that you have to add a lot of air to your BC to keep you off the bottom. When you are doing your dives, get a feel for if you are adding a lot of air to your BC. IF you are take away a few pounds on your next dive until you are adding hardly any or no air to your BC to make you neutrally bouyant. Your instructor will also help you with this. In case they don't make sure you ask.

Having gear that fits is really important. You don't want to buy anything that doesn't fit properly though just to get through your OW checkout dives. But having your tank sliding around on your back is not good either. That will negatively impact your learning during your check-out dives. You may want to go rent your gear from another LDS for your check-out dives, I think you will be much more comfortable in gear that fits. I would hold off on getting your gear until after your OW check-out dives. Have fun!

 

[JonAustin]

Also, these articles are helpful regarding ear squeeze:

http://www.scubadiving.com/training/your_body/end_ear_pain/

http://www.scubadiving.com/training/your_body/so_long,_big_squeeze/

 

[nolatom]

If it helps your concerns, remember that the first 30 feet doubles your pressure, the next 30 feet increases it only by a half, the next 30 by a third, and so on....percent of pressure change is less the deeper you go.

So the pool is actually a more "sensitive" environment than the deeper dives you'll do, and hence the pressure-change forces are greater, relatively speaking, in the pool, for both equalizing, and getting neutral buoyancy for a given depth. So Laurelgsc above is right, both of these things are going to be easier in the ocean than in the pool.

And keep trying til you get a bc that fits--an ill-fitting one can make even Joe PerfectDiver look like a dolt.

You're doing better than you think, and it'll get better...

 

[Damselfish]

Normally I would say wait at least until you get certified to buy a BC, especially if you're not sure how much you will be diving. Looking around to rent from someplace else that might has something that fits you better is a really good idea. But if that doesn't work out, then maybe it is worth buying, as trying to learn in a BC that fits so badly will not be fun. And diving afterwards won't be fun either, if all you can rent is something that fits poorly so you probably won't dive much for sure! The problem is that if you are very cost driven, and do this in a rush, you'll wind up compromising and buying something that fits somewhat better but you're still not all that fond of. On the bright side, from trying something bad you've got a little better idea of what to look for now.

You mention that the straps loosen up after a few minutes in the water. Does it really fit ok at first and then they slip? If so maybe there is something that can be done about that, though hard to say what without seeing it. There's even a small chance that something is threaded incorrectly and causing it to slip, worth a look anyway. Also, were you practicing in the pool with the same weight wetsuit you will be wearing at Dutch Springs? If you will be wearing something heavier for OW and the BC was simply a little big, the heavier suit might be enough to get by.

 

[Cynthia]

I understand about the ear fear! I had an instructor (early on) tell me that if I have a trip planned start clearing my ears at home a couple of days before I leave. He said to think of it as "getting my ears used to being cleared". I haven't had a whit of a problem since I began doing that.
As far as the bc...if you find one that you like, but you aren't sure, ask the dive shop if you can take it for you OW "just to try" and return it, if you don't like the way it feels. (???) I've had shops let me buy equipment and return it if it didn't work once I got it in the water. If that doesn't work, maybe you could find a shop that rents the brand you like, perhaps.
Give the ear thing a try...fingers crossed here for you and just know that you're doing really well to even know what issues you have!!

 

[lamoon]

Damselfish, I thought the BCs fit fine outside the pool until I tried on a few at the LDS that did fit well. And I will be wearing a 7mm for OW. I'll take that into account when I choose a BC.

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions! I'll definately shop around for good rentals. I hadn't even considered that. And I'll work on equalizing my ears. Those articles were very helpful.

 

[MoonWrasse]

Ear equalization problems are one of the bigger problems for OW divers.
One trick is to use a reference line and slowly walk down it (inches at a time) during descent.

 

[CompuDude]

Damselfish, I thought the BCs fit fine outside the pool until I tried on a few at the LDS that did fit well. And I will be wearing a 7mm for OW. I'll take that into account when I choose a BC.

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions! I'll definately shop around for good rentals. I hadn't even considered that. And I'll work on equalizing my ears. Those articles were very helpful.

One thing to consider if you can't find a nice-fitting BC to rent is to try to find a used one. Once you find a style (hopefully more than one) that fits you well, considering prowling around a bit and find a used one (in the same brand/style and size) to buy cheap. Used BCs tend to be pretty inexpensive (especially women's BC's, I've noticed... I thionk there is a higher drop-out rate among women pressured by their S.O.'s into diving who end up not being as into it), and as long as it is in good enough shape to get you through your first year, let's say, that might be long enough to give you an idea of how much you'll be diving. If you end up not diving very much, well, a used BC probably won't cost much more than renting it several times anyway. And if you end up diving a lot, you can decide whether you are happy with the used one (score!) or if it's worth it to upgrade or buy a newer/better one. At least then you'll know you aren't wasting the money, should you go for the expensive new one.