An argument for always having a snorkel

[Jim Ernst]

I'm wondering, there are instructors here giving advice, to anyone who will listen, that a snorkel is the most useless piece of equipment ever. Do you tell your OW students this or do you let these birds fly, hoping they'll figure this out on their own. If you let them go without telling them, you are doing them a grave injustice, according to your own words. If you tell them, you go against the principles you are contracted to teach. Which way is it???

If I am in big water with 500 psi left in a tank & a snorkel, I use the snorkel. Reason being, if things don't go as planned (I don't make land or the boat), I can always take a break using the reg, get my act together & go back to the snorkel. Survival basics, never use what you have until absolutely necessary.

Bubba105.

Speaking only for myself here, PADI as you may know requires students to have a snorkel.

I do explain that, As well as the fact that after they are certified it is up to them witch way they want to go.

I have no problem if I am asked , That ** I ** Personally don't like and don't use a snorkel when diving for my own pleasure.

My statement that Snorkels suck, Well ... it is just MY personal Opinion and no harm was meant!

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I'm wondering, there are instructors here giving advice, to anyone who will listen, that a snorkel is the most useless piece of equipment ever. Do you tell your OW students this or do you let these birds fly, hoping they'll figure this out on their own. If you let them go without telling them, you are doing them a grave injustice, according to your own words. If you tell them, you go against the principles you are contracted to teach. Which way is it???

I tell them pretty much what I wrote above ... right after I tell them that NAUI considers it an important piece of gear, and that because my agency requires it, both they and I will be wearing one for the duration of the class. I also tell them that, due to my chosen gear configuration when I'm diving outside the class, I don't generally wear one when scuba diving. And I tell them why.

Then I take them to the pool and show them how to use it.

I like to assume that, given all the information, they're perfectly capable of making their own decisions once they've completed their training.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[shoturtle]

I tell them pretty much what I wrote above ... right after I tell them that NAUI considers it an important piece of gear, and that because my agency requires it, both they and I will be wearing one for the duration of the class. I also tell them that, due to my chosen gear configuration when I'm diving outside the class, I don't generally wear one when scuba diving. And I tell them why.

Then I take them to the pool and show them how to use it.

I like to assume that, given all the information, they're perfectly capable of making their own decisions once they've completed their training.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

This is the proper way of instructing, teach the curriculum with no bias and then giving your view on equipment config. This way the student gets both side of the story, and can try it out. Then can make a decision with all the facts. And choose the one they prefer. Now if all other instructor uses this approach we would not have this silly snorkel tread lasting so long.

 

[ruready7]

During my checkout dives this past couple of days I realized I would make sure that I had a snorkel with me at all times. The water started white capping due to wind and the terrain. It was whole lot easier with snorkel to keep water out of mouth.

 

[MikeFerrara]

WOW, some thread...

I don't teach anymore but I agree with Bob and Jim concerning how to handle the snorkel thing with students. I don't generally use one when scuba diving but I never had any problems with being required to teach snorkel use or use a snorkel when teaching. I think it's entirely appropriate for students to learn how to use one and it can be a good teaching aid. Of course, I'm old fashioned enough to think that divers should know how to swim too. For that matter, we used to do a lot of swimming in rough seas with no gear at all.

 

[redrover]

I'm with the OP on this one. However, more often than not, my snorkel has bothered rather than benefited me. I simply have not figured out a decent way to stow it. Clipping it off is awkward and creates an entanglement hazard, plus I don't need more things to clip off. Already dive with a pony and a big camera rig. I heard about folding snorkels. Anyone have experiences with those or any other suggestions on how to carry a snorkel without it being in the way all the time?

Oh, and no, having the snorkel strapped to my mask is not an option. Always in the way, and in strong current, it tends to pull on the mask, causing the seal to break.

Yet to think of one possible situation where a snorkel would be useful on any sort of dive….useful for snorkeling

Is this not what the OP said, he would have preferred to have snorkeled on the surface?

I looked at the made to be folding ones and found them to be the same size when folded as my TUSA Hyperdry folded. The keeper is on the mask strap, clip on, clip off and stowed in a pocket.

 

[spectrum]

Last week while doing our morning drop-off dive at Coco View in Roatan I had a learning experience.

At Coco view the second boat dive is a drop-off dive on either Newman’s Wall in the southwest or Coco View Wall in the Northeast side of the channel. You then swim to shore. On this dive we were dropped at Newman’s.

We, group of 4, were coming in with the wall to our left and were at about 90 ft. Somehow, we crossed the channel and were headed out Coco View wall. Bad mistake in that we all assumed the wall was still on our left and didn’t check our compass heading – lesson #2, group consciousness isn’t always right!!

We came up to 45ft at 750psi and surfaced at 500psi, but had gone a fair distance down Coco View wall. I was down to 250psi after the SS.

What would have been a simple surface swim back in the other direction became a pain in the ^%^%^ back swim rafting on the BCDs.

I will never dive again without a snorkel!

cfelliot

I'm with you 100%. I think you will find the result delightful here at home as well.

To debate it further is a fools errand since us usually comes down to someone trying to prove a negative or a purely preferential decision,

Pete

 

[gr8white]

If you want to take a snorkel, take a snorkel! I don't have any particular issue with anyone who does or doesn't, my only point was that taking a snorkel for the next time the nav was off is not really a solution to the problem; better nav skills are. Of course nobody is perfect and life would be less interesting if everyone was but striving to not have to repeat this scenario because of nav errors seems a more proactive course of action than bringing a snorkel.

R

"taking a snorkel for the next time the nav was off is not really a solution to the problem." I don't agree with this logic. That is like saying a backup reg is not the solution to running out of air, or a sausage is not a solution to getting in trouble. S#$T happens. Even to the best. You should dive safe and plan well and part of planning is having a back up solution. If you have trouble, separated, whatever and need to swim and the water is rough, a snorkle could make a huge difference in getting back safely. Hey, why carry a back up reg? If you run out of air, just do a rapid ascent and take your chances. You have enough residual lung air to make it to the top. Just doesn't make safe sense.

I just keep a folding snorkle in my pocket along with my sausage and safety light.

Ok, so now start the barrage of posts..."Well, then why don't you just carry snacks to hold you over til you get to the boat or a radio to call in the boat, or an U/W Ipod to while away the hours til the boat finds you, or a bang stick in case you run into a shark in open water or...or...or" but I don't.

So carry a snorkle or don't. The Great Debate continues...

 

[bdorough]

I agree with gr8white in carrying one in a pocket, I carry an Aqualung Snap snorkel (coils up into a small format) in my BC with all the other stuff I need, Rescue Mask, light, sausage, finger spool, etc. I have never had to use it, but it is there if I do.

Now, saying that, if the ocean is rough, I will generally pull the "normal" snorkel out of the bag and put it on before the dive.

As far as the navigation issue, we all have made mistakes and that is why we carry the emegency we do, see my list above. No one hurt, all came back and a good story to boot, sounds like a good dive to me.

 

[ryshannon]

I never wear the snorkle but I do have a roll up one I carry in my BC pocket for emergency it can be used for Rescue breathing or for the long swim if caught in a strong current. We sometimes get Frieghters that will send us off course.