An actual legitimate use for spare air???

[Dan]

@gypsyjim & @lowwall
Thanks for the info.

 

[Snoweman]

I carry a cup of gas in my van, just in case I run out on the highway.

It amazes me how many people I see people walking away from their cars with an empty gas can. I guess they don't have to worry about dying from running out of gas.

 

[Scraps]

In mountain climbing there’s a saying, “If you carry bivy gear, you’re gonna need it’”. Ie: if you carry the extra weight of emergency camping gear you’re going to need to camp. Speed and lightness = safety. There’s certainly an argument to be had about the pros and cons of those sentiments, but it could similarly be made here. If you carry spare air, perhaps you’ll be too comfortable having a backup that causes you to push your plan further than you should.

As far as hiking goes, I carry a fairly heavy pack.

Sometimes I envy the speed of the ultralight hikers, but I just can't convince myself to head out into the woods knowing that a) I'll be okay if and only if everything goes right, and b) if I encounter anyone else who's in trouble, I won't have the means to assist.

I guess I have the same attitude regarding scuba gear.

But then again, I don't have the expertise or experience or resourcefulness of the mountain climbers or divers who can prudently go minimal. What would be reckless for me might be perfectly okay for others.

 

[OTF]

What a good, thought provoking analogy. There's a good case for both sides. I tend to pack heavy (in hiking, diving, travel, and everything) and sometimes the spares and tools save me, but I often debate the merits of trying to be more on the "ultralight" side of the equation.

I will say that a skilled, disciplined diver (or hiker) shouldn't fall into the trap of relying on extra emergency gear because they can. "Plan your dive and dive your plan". Problem is that nobody is perfectly disciplined all the time. Maybe the old adage that "nobody ever died by bringing too much gas" is debatable.

 

[M-Cameron]

for what you are going to spend on a Spare-air...you can actually buy a 16-19cu-ft pony bottle and regulator.

if you are concerned about running out of gas, or dealing with a dive partner who ran out of gas.....ide much rather have 19 cu-ft than 3-6 cuft....especially when they are the same price.

now learning how to check your spg is cheaper than both of those options.

but assuming you are someone who does solo dives.....or you are someone who deals with a lot of new divers....then maybe having some extra gas isnt a terrible idea.

regarding spare air, well i think they are great for what they are originally designed for (providing emergency air to aircrew)...maybe a handy thing to keep on a boat....or if you want to go for a swim and do some light diving......maybe find a dropped cellphone or wallet without having to strap on a whole diving rig?

but for actually scuba emergency use....ide much rather have more gas than what a spare air can provide.

 

[dmcutter]

My first open water dives after getting certified were in Aruba. The second day out, with all of 16 dives under my belt, we were doing some airplanes at around 80 fsw. I started with a light fill, maybe 2600 psi in my Al80. When my gas started getting too low for my comfort, I showed my SPG to the dive master and swam up above the group at around 30 fsw to conserve it. Even as a rank newbie I had enough smarts to be conscious of and manage my air supply. I was truly quite stressed about leaving my dive buddy, but I felt it was the lesser of 2 evils.

My Perdix alerts me when I'm at reserve pressure (700 psi), which is typically hanging around in the shallows killing time, but I have to push a button to acknowledge it and get back to a live read of pressure. I simply can't imagine being at 100 fsw at 200 psi...

 

[Scraps]

I think Spare Airs are useful mostly in situations divers should be able to get out of without them.

I had a buddy run out of air while we were cleaning a tank at an aquarium where we volunteer. We were no more than 15 feet down.

He didn’t signal he was out of air. He just gave a thumbs up, and told me he was out of air after we surfaced.

The funny thing is that we’re required to carry Spare Air when we dive there, and this guy who really was out of air figured it was easier to do a CESA than pull out his Spare Air. And he was probably right. He certainly betrayed no distress on his way up.

 

[skippy311]

I use spare air to inflate my drysuit to the point where I look like the blueberry girl from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. It's very relaxing after a dive /s

Is it true that an empty tank is prone to take in water?

 

[BRT]

for what you are going to spend on a Spare-air...you can actually buy a 16-19cu-ft pony bottle and regulator.

if you are concerned about running out of gas, or dealing with a dive partner who ran out of gas.....ide much rather have 19 cu-ft than 3-6 cuft....especially when they are the same price.

now learning how to check your spg is cheaper than both of those options.

but assuming you are someone who does solo dives.....or you are someone who deals with a lot of new divers....then maybe having some extra gas isnt a terrible idea.

regarding spare air, well i think they are great for what they are originally designed for (providing emergency air to aircrew)...maybe a handy thing to keep on a boat....or if you want to go for a swim and do some light diving......maybe find a dropped cellphone or wallet without having to strap on a whole diving rig?

but for actually scuba emergency use....ide much rather have more gas than what a spare air can provide.

Do you always carry a pony?

 

[M-Cameron]

Do you always carry a pony?

I don't carry a pony (or spare air) at all.

But if I were of the frame of mind that I needed redundant gas, I would carry a Pony over a Spare air.

A small pony tank isn't really that much more inconvenient to carry that a SA