Banked Nitrox in San Diego

[mathauck0814]

Anyone aware of a shop in San Diego that banks nitrox? Any info on fill costs and what mixes are available?

 

[Bubbletrubble]

I'm not a technical diver, so I'm not sure where one can get trimix or high O2 mixes in the San Diego area...

Ocean Enterprises in Clairemont Mesa has banked 32% available. Call 858-565-6054 for current prices.

IB Divers in Imperial Beach does nitrox, trimix, oxygen, and argon fills. Not sure whether it's partial pressure mixing or off of a membrane system. Call 619-424-6547 for more info.

Lonnie Sharp used to be the store manager at IB Divers. I heard that recently he broke away and started up a new dive shop in the Sorrento Valley area (not too far away from La Jolla) called San Diego Divers. The shop offers nitrox, trimix, oxygen, and argon as well. Call 858-458-1348 for more info.

Hope this helps...

 

[blkirk91]

Waterhorse Charters on Quivara banks 32%. They have 2, 23,000 CU (I think, but they are frikin huge. Like 15' long and about 5 ft around) tanks of it right next to the shop. I am not sure what they charge for fill but they can also blend from that to make what ever mix your looking for.

And if your headed there for vacation check them out for boat dives as well. Nicest operation in SD and they have set the bar for service. Wrecks, Kelp, or Coronados. They have the fastest boat and the most interactive, safest crew. Just a great group of people that know the dive sites and know how to make the day enjoyable.

Their contact page.

http://www.waterhorsecharters.com/contact/contact_us.html

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Waterhorse Charters on Quivara banks 32%. They have 2, 23,000 CU (I think, but they are frikin huge. Like 15' long and about 5 ft around) tanks of it right next to the shop. I am not sure what they charge for fill but they can also blend from that to make what ever mix your looking for.

And if your headed there for vacation check them out for boat dives as well. Nicest operation in SD and they have set the bar for service. Wrecks, Kelp, or Coronados. They have the fastest boat and the most interactive, safest crew. Just a great group of people that know the dive sites and know how to make the day enjoyable.

@blkirk91: I haven't been on the Waterhorse boat (Humboldt) in a long time.
Do they still just do head-counts or are they conducting a formal roll-call at time of boarding and before/after all dives?
Is the boat's emergency UW diver recall system just a crew member banging on the swimstep ladder with a wrench or is there a more high-tech audible recall system?

 

[blkirk91]

@blkirk91: I haven't been on the Waterhorse boat (Humboldt) in a long time.
Do they still just do head-counts or are they conducting a formal roll-call at time of boarding and before/after all dives?
Is the boat's emergency UW diver recall system just a crew member banging on the swimstep ladder with a wrench or is there a more high-tech audible recall system?

I usually dont respond to comments like yours since they serve no useful purpose but today I will make an execption, if you feel that Waterhorse is subpar that is your choice but at least offer what you consider to be a suitable alternate.
I have dove with the 3 current recreational boats and the 1 defunct operation in the SD area, and to use the qualifier you used, it has been a while. You are right, the high tech recall systems the other operations had were amazing, turn the key and rev the motor. In my opinion the weight on the ladder is a more distinct sound than a running boat motor. As far as the counting system I am not sure what system they are using at this time. My experiance on the Humboldt with the accounting system was no different than any of the other boats in the SD area or any of the boats where I currently live. I have yet to find a boat that does rolls before and after every dive or uses a sign in and out system.

My posting is based on my personal experiance of over 100 dives off the Humboldt. I tried all the other boats before I decided to use them exclusively. My intent was to share my experiance with the person that origianlly asked the question and the crew of the Humboldt is in my opinion hands down the best in the SD area.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

I have yet to find a boat that does rolls before and after every dive or uses a sign in and out system.

You must not be looking very hard.

The fact that the Humboldt just did a "head-count" after dives was the reason I stopped using that particular dive op several years ago.

I've been on several different SoCal dive boats that conduct a formal roll call shortly after boarding and after all dives. DMs mark down when a diver enters the water. As one can imagine, with divers moving around on a boat, it can be difficult for a DM to get an accurate head-count.

I would think that the Humboldt, of all the boats in the San Diego area, would have implemented a formal roll call or sign-in system by now.
There was an incident in September of last year when they accidentally left a diver (Robert Clampitt) at the Yukon. It turns out that the diver died, but it probably wasn't related to the boat leaving the dive site prematurely. Still, it made the dive op look very bad. Very unfortunate incident for the Humboldt captain, the DM, and victim that day. Here's a link to the news story on the News 10 website.

I'll agree that the Humboldt crew has always been very friendly and helpful. From what I hear, the boat is well maintained.
There are just certain safety practices that I find make me more comfortable with a dive op.
A simple head-count or tank-count is just being lazy, in my opinion.
I wouldn't recommend using the Humboldt if "just a head-count" is still standard operating procedure.

With regard to the high-tech audible recall system, I wasn't talking about turning on the engine and revving it up. I'm talking about a bona-fide UW recall system. This can be an issue particularly in cold water diving when divers are almost certainly wearing a thick neoprene hood for exposure protection.

In my mind, having adequate safety procedures is the most important factor to consider when selecting a boat dive op. Other people are free to choose their dive ops for other reasons.