A weird smell...

[delrey23]

at about 80 to 90 feet down in Lake Travis at the Windy Point dive area i smelled (tasted?) a noxious smell like sulfur or rotten eggs.

i told my dive buddy that we needed to hit the surface swiftly because i thought there was a problem with my air. we elevated just a bit and the smell went away.

we changed tanks for dive # 2. went back down and the smell repeated. but for some reason not at any level or timeperiod before 80ft and not at all points down that deep.

could there be something down there that we came across or have i lost it?

i asked the local dive shop attendant and she said i was going through menopause.

i've been diving for quite a while and have never experienced this. nor have i gone down this deep before.

any ideas?

 

[Thalassamania]

You must be down in an anoxic hole in the lake. It's not that unusual.

 

[ohmdiver]

Sulfer?

 

[Thalassamania]

Sulphur Dioxide. Rotten egg smell.

 

[ohmdiver]

sulfer in the water = rotten egg taste...

 

[amascuba]

I've read others posts in the TSD forum about people experiencing the sulfer dioxide rotton egg taste in lake travis as well.

 

[captndale]

The sulfurous smell is from hydrogen sulfide. Hydrogen sulfide is formed by anaerobic (also known as septic) bacteria. Anaerobic bacteria are bacteria that grow only in the absence of free (or dissolved) oxygen. Not only can hydrogen sulfide corrode the metal components of your scuba gear but can be a health hazard. The septic bacteria can also be unhealthy. Most small ponds and flood control reservoirs are today equipped with aeration fountains to get more oxygen dissolved into the water to prevent the growth of anaerobic bacteria.

 

[Garrobo]

Don't light any matches down there.

 

[Thalassamania]

I had a brain skip, of course it is hydrogen sulfide, not sulphur dioxide. Thanks.

 

[String]

Quite a lot of inland sites have anoxic layers which trap sulphur and give off Hydrogen Sulphide and other gases. Should be able to avoid by just getting out of that layer.

You do get them in the sea as well but thats mainly from vents and so on. Quite amusing to see it turn peoples jewellery black after swimming through it.