Buddy breathing vs Octopus

[Vlane]

From a new diver's perspective, i can see how buddy breathing could be stressful especially if it's an OOA situation. Not holding your breath is a big no no but if you're panicked and new i wouldn't be surprised if someone new forgot to let out bubbles.

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

From a new diver's perspective, i can see how buddy breathing could be stressful especially if it's an OOA situation. Not holding your breath is a big no no but if you're panicked and new i wouldn't be surprised if someone new forgot to let out bubbles.

Avoiding panic is the key point, and only training in buddy breathing and practice can prevent it. But the incidents I have first hand knowledge of ALL involved new divers with less than a year of diving, and they did not panic.... "stressed" certainly, but no panic. This was because they had been taught to buddy breath in OW. It is a very "learnable" skill, and it is a shame it is not in everyone's "toolbox".

Best wishes.

 

[Gen San Chris]

If there is a diver with no Octopus of alternate air source then he will not be my buddy! It sounds very Macho to dive with the bare minimum of equipment but such people should realise that they are putting themselves and others at risk by not using all the safety gear that is available!
If you dive correctly and monitor your air usage then there should not be hardly any divers running out of air!
If your baggage allowance does not cover the weight of all your gear then take the most necessary and rent the rest at the place you are going to dive!

 

[Slonda828]

If there is a diver with no Octopus of alternate air source then he will not be my buddy! It sounds very Macho to dive with the bare minimum of equipment but such people should realise that they are putting themselves and others at risk by not using all the safety gear that is available!
If you dive correctly and monitor your air usage then there should not be hardly any divers running out of air!
If your baggage allowance does not cover the weight of all your gear then take the most necessary and rent the rest at the place you are going to dive!

This is your opinion, and you are entitled to it. I dive without an octo unless I am mandated to use one, and I'm entitled to do that as well. Equipment dependancy does not supplant training. It has nothing to do with being macho, it has to do with being proficient. Ask yourself, do you have any evidence that an octo is safer than buddy breathing?

You are an MSDT, you are supposed to know what is going on according to the agencies. Where are your statistics that diving without an octo is unsafe? Any anecdotal evidence? Maybe someone drowning because his buddy didn't have an octo? Anything at all?

 

[samaka]

I too remember the time before the octopus was common use. But I can't recall anyone ever having to use buddy breathing. I've got around 3.000 dives and most of them after the octopus was introduced and I've never been OOA.

Obviously it's a matter of training to make a safe buddy breathing ascent but all it takes is that your buddy is not trained enough or starts to panic. Nowadays I would never dive without octopus and definitely not with a buddy who didn't have one.

To take the octopus off to "minimize" and streamline the equipment is border lining madness in my opinion...

...a...

 

[Dzscubie]

I remember the days prior to having an octopus on my rig. We were taught how to buddy breath in our basic scuba class because that was the way of the world at that time. My first regulator was a Heathway double stage and a SPG and I dove that rig for many a year. I have used buddy breathing once when I blew an exhaust diaphragm in my second stage at 110 feet, my buddy and I shared air to the surface with no problems. But remember, this was in the mid 70s and everyone knew how to buddy breath. Nowadays I have an octopus on my rig, but I also have confidence in buddy breathing with my buddy because she and I practice together every few months (my wife is my buddy). Both of my sons have been taught to buddy breath by myself and my wife because we believe it to be a necessary diving skill weather taught in basic class or not. I believe from discussions with newer divers that most if not all are not taught how to buddy breath anymore and would not know how to if needed. I expect old divers like myself still believe in the concept of trusting in training and not relying solely on an octopus. I still believe buddy breathing should be taught to all students. For me it is like, just because we have air bags in a car does not mean we can forget how to drive safely.

 

[samaka]

For me it is like, just because we have air bags in a car does not mean we can forget how to drive safely.

I agree... However it works in both ways. Just because we know how to drive safely doesn't mean we should take the air bag out of the car.

I also think buddy breathing should be taught but I also think octopus is a better solution. Best is of course a pony...

...a...

 

[Walter]

There are lots of folks who will tell you that octopus breathing is safer, that buddy breathing leads to two deaths, but that's all speculation. You'll hear that all the agencies stopped teaching buddy breathing because people were dying in pairs because of it. That's simply not true. As hard as it is to believe, people are often irrational. Buddy breathing involves taking a regulator out of the mouth of someone you may not know very well (or at all) and putting it in your own mouth. While it cannot happen, people, being irrational, feared HIV transmission from buddy breathing. Before dropping the buddy breathing requirement, agencies sent out bulletins to their instructors explaining why HIV transmission could not occur via buddy breathing. They also sent out bulletings explaining how to disinfect second stages. The fear did not go away. I remember in early 1990, I had some referral students who were openly gay. My fellow instructors, who should've known better, expressed concern about buddy breathing and AIDS. Most agencies did not eliminate buddy breathing from their training, they made it optional. Some still allow it to be manditory in training if two second stages are strapped together so both divers don't use the same mouthpiece. These changes are the result of an irrational fear of AIDS.

Those of you who've received training in buddy breathing know that it is an amazingly easy skill. I can't imagine anyone not being able to do the skill correctly the first time. I've never stopped teaching it, in fact, I require a buddy breathing equipment exchange of my OW students. I've never had a student who didn't do the skill well on the first attempt. It's really, really easy. Fear of buddy breathing and statements about refusing to buddy with someone diving without an octopus are irrational. Hey, you have every right to be irrational, so knock yourself out.

 

[NEWENGLANDCHARTERS]

If you try buddy breathing with someone who is a bit panicked - you will discover the difference.

Have ued Buddy Breathing on a few occations, pretty much used to be common when diving with single tanks before we had gages.

the rule of theumb: Dive till there is no more Air.

Pull your J Valve and Dive till there is no more air.

Go Up, the air in your tank will expand and you will get anouther breath

In the event that you cant go up. Likehaving your tank stuck under a dock on a old spike (True Story) simply take a few Breaths of your Buddiys Regulator and then take off your take and Go Uo.


One thing we used to opractice regulary that has seem to fallen out of favour is the blow & Go.

1) Drop tank and regulator into 30 ft water to start. Make diver freedrive down to retrieve tank. Breath and then leave tank on bottom . Return to Surface

The Advanced Blow & Go was dive to 100 feet. remove tank and trigger CO2 on HorseColler BC Return to surface. Once you have done it a couple times its no big deal.

Capt Walt

 

[EastEndDiver]

When I took my basic , back in the days of dinosaurs, we had to buddy breath using a snorkel ( on the surface obviously).This was a "skill" which had no real value EXCEPT to add confidence and make you feel comfortable in the water.We were required to snorkel buddy breath in open water NOT just the pool.Another "skill" which we were required to do was breathing from a tank without a regulator and without a mask which again was a confidence builder,we also had to swim around the pool from tank to tank to tank without a mask and breath off each tank without a regulator.We also had the Doff and Don and exchange ALL equipment with a buddy without surfacing.These were "skills" which had no realtime uses BUT had you gain confidence and made you comfortable in the water .

Back then the Basic course was 12 weeks and the Advanced course was another 10 weeks.