Buddy Breathing

[SolarStorm]

My take. I did my first dives in 1978 completely untrained. Then 30 years later came back to diving and got certified. I also got my daughter involved. What the OWD course did for her:

1. Started very nervous in the water, er under the water, she is a VERY strong surface swimmer.

2. The course load, thanks to good instructors, had her gain confidence through excersizes that increased her ability and comfort through "loading" her work load. However, due to the rate of which we covered the material, we were done early. We then got some toys were allowed to play. This did not overload or the stress the diver to the next comfort level.

3. In 1978 one of the skills the dive op had us uncertified divers do (before we entered a cave) was to buddy breath. It was easy to do and easy to teach, and probably used very infrequently. But I believe it is still worth while. This would be one more loaded excersize in under utilized pool time that teaches a skill that probably wont be used, but again will add to the confidence of the new diver. It probably reinforces the whole buddy idea as well.

 

[adambayam]

Another thought... while practicing the BB, it gives the new diver the experience of NOT having a regulator in his mouth while teaching him to keep his cool.

 

[rstofer]

I think it's good to get into the habit of holding the reg by the end of the hose as opposed to the second stage itself. This always allows access to the purge button on any regulator design. If you ever teach, doing this all the time builds a good example for students and buddies. After all, one day you might need access to the purge button when they're donating you a reg.

But buddy breathing, by definition, means I can't use my own octo while I donate my primary. I intend to TAKE BACK my primary, by force if necessary. Both knees to the victim's chest and PUSH!

I want a grip where I can yank it away from the victim. It is MY regulator, they're just lucky I'm willing to share.

Seriously, we were taught that the victim, under considerable stress, might be reluctant to return the reg. I can understand that. But I also want to be able to survive it.

I do see the regulator drills where the donor is holding the reg by the hose. I understand the technique and would (and do) use it for air sharing drills. I would NOT use it if I actually had to do BB.

But different people, in different times, were trained in different ways. Doesn't make it right or wrong...

Richard

 

[rstofer]

So good for aquatic skills not good as safety skill (for a laugh grab your old 1 stage regulator (mistral, aquamaster) and show some BB skills in the pool with it... it's quite a laugh when you're not used to it.)

I'm still working on this! I bought the old "The New Science Of Skin And Scuba Diving" and I'm slowly working my way through.

I gather it got a lot easier to BB when the cage valves were installed in the mouthpiece. It's my understanding that very early DH regs didn't have this feature.

BTW, I like my Mistral a lot. I'm reluctant at the moment to use it in the ocean because my buddy wouldn't know how to BB. If an OOA were to occur, it could be problematic for her (my wife).

So, I'm rigging up an 19 cf pony bottle as my secondary air source. I want to be a responsible buddy but I still want to dive that Mistral. Besides, I'm a wimp! I want air for my wing. I don't think I'm ready to orally inflate it using a DH reg. I need more pool sessions for that skill!

Richard

 

[rstofer]

BB is paramount when learning the basics. A new diver needs to know all of his options.

If the unexperienced diver runs out of air, he knows he has his partner's octo. If this does not work I would assume he would freak out and head topside. The thought of pairing up on ONE reg might not accure to him.

If you ask me its worth learning or at least mentioning it.

There are a number of divers who believe in donating their primary. The victim knows, for a fact, that this regulator worked a couple of seconds ago. Now the donor starts using his own octo (necklaced?) and, if it doesn't work, the process just became BB.

Maybe I better rethink holding the donated reg by the hose even in the simple air sharing case.

Richard

 

[DCBC]

But buddy breathing, by definition, means I can't use my own octo while I donate my primary. I intend to TAKE BACK my primary, by force if necessary. Both knees to the victim's chest and PUSH! ...But different people, in different times, were trained in different ways. Doesn't make it right or wrong...

Hey Richard, I knew it would be just a matter of time before we actually agreed upon something.

Even now divers are taught in different ways. For example, I never teach my students to donate the primary because it is against every rescue technique taught by every major life-saving organization worldwide i.e. never put the rescuer at risk! You know the primary works, but only can be reasonably sure that the secondary does.

Along the same vein, when buddy breathing you always keep control of your regulator. It's also important to hold it in a manner so the receiver can reach the purge button.

Although this is a bit off topic (to teach buddy breathing or not, and if so at what level) I didn't want the chance to pass by without saying something. Who knows when the opportunity will come along again that we will agree on anything...

 

[Blackwood]

Seriously, we were taught that the victim, under considerable stress, might be reluctant to return the reg.

You've not nothing in your mouth... bite his hand, I'll bet he lets go

 

[Soggy_Diver]

The other situtation where BB could be used, apart from one diver OOA and the buddy with one failed reg, would be one diver assisting two divers who are OOA. Not desirable or likely, but I think that I recall reading this kind of accident scenario, or something close to it, a couple of times. In practice though, I suspect that two victims who are OOA would not be able to handle BB with the rescuer, particularly given that most divers are not taught this anymore.

Dont' know if it should be be requird for courses, but I found it very interesting and not difficult to learn. After bring told in Rescue that we did not need to learn it, my buddy and I went ahead and tried it anyway, outside of class. We did it in three rounds: First we tried it on the bottom; then horizontal swimming; then vertical ascent.

 

[scubafanatic]

....well, I was certified 8 yrs ago ...N.A.S.E.(Thanks Scubatoys! .....and I honestly don't even remember having to EVER do the old-fashioned BB thing, even way back then.....we did the donate-the-octo thing.

 

[Scott]

I thought I read that PADI was just changing the wording to read "2 divers breathing off a single second stage"? (which is the same thing as buddy breathing of course). Anyone know if that is true or false?

That is the wording for the Divemaster equipment exchange exercise. This discussion is about dropping the optional BB skill from the OW course.