Am I paranoid to consider analyzing recreational air?

[tphelps]

What is an el cheapo?

The "el cheapo" is basically all of the parts that you need to make an O2 analyzer yourself with step by step instructions and it saves you a lot of money.

But before that, I have to applaud you for posting this thread. If you really do have "0-24 dives," I am very impressed that you are already looking into incident reports and are looking for ways to be a safer diver. Your instructor should be proud!

I have been diving for about 5 years now and have gotten a lot of cylinders from different shops. So far, I have not heard of anyone I knew personally that breathed the wrong gas on a recreational level. In technical diving, which is what you read about, most accidents occur from switching to the wrong gas. It is uncommon for a tec diver to unknowingly have the wrong mixture of gas...because one of the first principles is analyze and immediately mark!

Analyzing your gas before you breathe is just safer diving. It is actually a good habit to get into. Like Dr. Lecter said, carbon monoxide is also a potential hazard. More so if you are getting fills from 3rd world countries or compressors that are near boats/cars. I remember reading a thread on here where one diver found lethal levels of CO in a cylinder he got. To answer your question no, you don't really need to be paranoid because these things are very uncommon. But if you have the means and finances to get these analyzers, it wouldn't be a bad idea.

 

[dive_turkey]

But before that, I have to applaud you for posting this thread. If you really do have "0-24 dives," I am very impressed that you are already looking into incident reports and are looking for ways to be a safer diver. Your instructor should be proud!

Well thank you! I completed my cert at the age of 12 back in 1993. I only had the opportunity to dive a few times since until recently, so I'm slowly getting back into it. I've always been very safety conscious, especially after being a Flight Medic in the Army (read plenty of accident reports). I just finished reading Diver Down and Last Dive. I stay in touch with my DM as she was a close family friend. She has completed over 2,600 dives since my certification dives and she still remembers my first OW dives. She sent me her logs from them and apparently I was a very quick learner back then.

I'm really excited to be getting back in to this sport, especially after my wife took a discover scuba course and is interested in her OW. I don't take risks with my family, so if its something we're going to do together, we're going to do it right. I will be obtaining an analyzer soon.

 

[pensacolaracer]

In technical diving, which is what you read about, most accidents occur from switching to the wrong gas. It is uncommon for a tec diver to unknowingly have the wrong mixture of gas...because one of the first principles is analyze and immediately mark!
.

That may be true, but the last 2 ox tox accidents discussed here came from tech divers breathing a rich gas from an otherwise marked tank. Well, that's the case from the man that died on the hydro in Florida.

The cave accident is a bit different as IIRC, the bottle was actually marked for the correct gas.



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[DiveNav]

.....who can recommend a solid analyzer for my applications?...

Since you asked ... if you are into smartphones, you might want to consider our Nitroxbuddy wireless Oxygen Analyzer

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[dive_turkey]

Not sure I trust my phone enough for something like this considering I can't even figure out how to turn off the damn voice control function.

 

[beaverdivers]

Are there any recreational divers out there that analyze their air before diving?

Yes.

How do you know it is 21% O2 unless you analyze it?

 

[dive_turkey]

So my next question may seem silly. Is there a reason air integrated dive computers do not contain an analyzer?

Also, I appreciate all the input guys!

 

[nimoh]

So my next question may seem silly. Is there a reason air integrated dive computers do not contain an analyzer?

Also, I appreciate all the input guys!

You only need to analyze before the dive on the surface, since the mix in your tank won't change during the dive (at least in open circuit anyway). So, it would be just unnecessary equipment you would be carrying on your dive.

 

[tplyons]

Possible? Yes. Likely? No. But I'd rather be safe than sorry.

I do 99% of my own fills, and STILL double check the contents before using.

 

[dive_turkey]

Never mind. That was silly because people who routinely dive mixes that need to be analyzed probably don't use air integrated computers off a single tank.

Also, it only needs to be done once. I was just thinking how nice it would be to have the reassurance of knowing what you're breathing and how much of it there is with each glance at the gauge. Which answered my own question when I said gauge. Of course, we use color detectors to indicate CO2 when a patient exhales. It'd be really cool to have an SPG with a faceplate that indicated the mix of gas present by color! (A little off topic from analyzing now, and more towards labeling)