Buoyancy Control Training

[boulderjohn]

Am I correct in that PADI eliminated the Fin Pivot skill from the OW course a few years ago?

Very possible. When I was actively teaching, I found it worked very well, especially to show the effects of breathing on buoyancy.

Yes and no.

The purpose of the fin pivot from the very start was to introduce the idea that inhaling makes you more buoyant and exhaling makes you less buoyant. That's it. The act itself has no application in diving.

That simple, no-big-deal exercise became a monster. People started teaching the fin pivot as a critical skill, and it became in many cases by far the hardest part of the class. In the classes where I first assisted and then taught, it took forever to get everyone in the class doing it perfectly, with the fin tips on the floor, the legs perfectly straight, the arms folded on the chest, and the diver rising and falling without touching the floor and without losing touch with the fin tips. Instructors simply lost sight of what the exercise was supposed to do, and that is why PADI ended it.

It was replaced with an unnamed exercise to teach the student about the effect of breathing on buoyancy. You can do something like the fin pivot--the point is not to get all anal about what it looks like. It is not a skill that needs to be taught to any standard. In fact, if you taught your classes as I did, with students doing the first skills neutrally buoyant in prone position with legs or fins lightly touching the floor, the students have it all done before you get to that point in the next CW dive.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Start with the “fin pivot” to establish buoyancy control. Realize your breathing has an effect on your buoyancy. Make small adjustments when inflating/deflating the bcd. Position gear to establish horizontal position. Know that you will have a tendency to go up if you look up and down if you look down. Use a cross check to constantly monitor your instruments. Becomes easier.

Good God no. That's just perpetuating poor weight distribution (feet heavy).

@Webmaster

You're in the Phillipines. Go see Andy Davis in Subic Bay. Andy Davis Technical Diving | Scuba Tech Philippines

You may be interested in some of the ideas I use in teaching open water here:
Teaching Neutrally Buoyant and Trimmed -

Teaching Neutrally Buoyant and Trimmed: Pt2 - Mask, Snorkel & Fin Skills -

Teaching Neutrally Buoyant and Trimmed: How to weight properly, Part 3 -

 

[CRT2]

Good God no. That's just perpetuating poor weight distribution (feet heavy).

@Webmaster

You're in the Phillipines. Go see Andy Davis in Subic Bay. Andy Davis Technical Diving | Scuba Tech Philippines

You may be interested in some of the ideas I use in teaching open water here:
Teaching Neutrally Buoyant and Trimmed -

Teaching Neutrally Buoyant and Trimmed: Pt2 - Mask, Snorkel & Fin Skills -

Teaching Neutrally Buoyant and Trimmed: How to weight properly, Part 3 -

What I stated worked for me. Since I’m no longer teaching I defer to my betters. I’m sure new divers will readily adapt to your methods and become exceptional at buoyancy control.

 

[TMHeimer]

Yes and no.

The purpose of the fin pivot from the very start was to introduce the idea that inhaling makes you more buoyant and exhaling makes you less buoyant. That's it. The act itself has no application in diving.

That simple, no-big-deal exercise became a monster. People started teaching the fin pivot as a critical skill, and it became in many cases by far the hardest part of the class. In the classes where I first assisted and then taught, it took forever to get everyone in the class doing it perfectly, with the fin tips on the floor, the legs perfectly straight, the arms folded on the chest, and the diver rising and falling without touching the floor and without losing touch with the fin tips. Instructors simply lost sight of what the exercise was supposed to do, and that is why PADI ended it.

It was replaced with an unnamed exercise to teach the student about the effect of breathing on buoyancy. You can do something like the fin pivot--the point is not to get all anal about what it looks like. It is not a skill that needs to be taught to any standard. In fact, if you taught your classes as I did, with students doing the first skills neutrally buoyant in prone position with legs or fins lightly touching the floor, the students have it all done before you get to that point in the next CW dive.

That's about what I thought. Something I found doing fin pivot was after inhaling to rise, you exhale then you go up a little more, then descent. Reverse when you hit bottom. Maybe that's what screwed some students up? But yeah, the mechanics aren't used when diving.

 

[Still Kicking]

Hey ScubaBoard fam!

Been looking to improve on my buoyancy control for my next few dives. Any tips on what methods or techniques worked best for you guys?

Thanks in advance!

When you are about to descend on your next dive, release air from your BC slowly in small increments. As soon as your head goes underwater let go of your inflator. Exhale as deeply as you can and count to five. Resume breathing normally. See what happens.....

 

[AnotherDiverHere]

I second @wetb4igetinthewater in contacting Andy. Took a couple of courses with him and I would highly recommend him.

Another thing I would recommend is to take a GUE Fundamentals Course. One of the best courses I have taken. It will give you a solid foundation.

 

[Celt]

You’ll never be a diver unless you learn to do this, contact Staatliche Ballettschule Berlin, or you could simply remember if you add air you go up and if you dump it you go down.

 

[iliketopetsharks]

Yes and no.

The purpose of the fin pivot from the very start was to introduce the idea that inhaling makes you more buoyant and exhaling makes you less buoyant. That's it. The act itself has no application in diving.

That simple, no-big-deal exercise became a monster. People started teaching the fin pivot as a critical skill, and it became in many cases by far the hardest part of the class. In the classes where I first assisted and then taught, it took forever to get everyone in the class doing it perfectly, with the fin tips on the floor, the legs perfectly straight, the arms folded on the chest, and the diver rising and falling without touching the floor and without losing touch with the fin tips. Instructors simply lost sight of what the exercise was supposed to do, and that is why PADI ended it.

It was replaced with an unnamed exercise to teach the student about the effect of breathing on buoyancy. You can do something like the fin pivot--the point is not to get all anal about what it looks like. It is not a skill that needs to be taught to any standard. In fact, if you taught your classes as I did, with students doing the first skills neutrally buoyant in prone position with legs or fins lightly touching the floor, the students have it all done before you get to that point in the next CW dive.

I was struggling doing the fin pivot in my OWD because my feet just didn't stay on the bottom. The solution of the instructor: giving me ankle weights...

A better alternative would be to lay flat on the bottom and try to rise horizontally, which also requires good weight distribution.

 

[crofrog]

I second @wetb4igetinthewater in contacting Andy. Took a couple of courses with him and I would highly recommend him.

Another thing I would recommend is to take a GUE Fundamentals Course. One of the best courses I have taken. It will give you a solid foundation.

It would now be GUE performance diver.

 

[boulderjohn]

I was struggling doing the fin pivot in my OWD because my feet just didn't stay on the bottom. The solution of the instructor: giving me ankle weights...

This is a perfect example of the problem. Because you had trouble doing the fin pivot as prescribed, the instructor found a way to make it easier for you to do a fin pivot and harder for you to dive.