Buoyancy question how do you maintain a sitting hover?

[Blackcrusader]

I find the idea of a seated hover to be more more showmanship than practicality.

Sure. In a nice drift I will sit like this not moving but passing all the divers in horizontal position finning and using more air. As they are horizontal they are not being pushed along as I am. It's funny to see divers following other divers looking at me as I ride my magic water carpet not moving yet passing them as they fin. They are wondering what secret propulsion system I have. I also tend to be farther away from reef walls in faster water and from there I get a great view of the things divers close to the walls do not see. It's quite practical. For the divers who cannot do this they then learn to adjust their gear and practice their buoyancy skills and improve on them.

Don't need to pay for a peak buoyancy course when you can simply learn from other divers.

Showmanship nothing wrong with that. People do showmanship when in horizontal trim using frog kicks as well. Or flutter kicks. Or helicopter turns. As the OP noted a useful skill to have which he struggles with as he has not mastered buoyancy yet.

 

[FishWatcher747]

Props to all the great responses. But Chairman and Collium7 nailed it. ( Spooky how accurate they are of my trim which is the factor that is presently holding me back.) Were they secretly watching my crappy trim?

I have been diving with my arms at my side, which causes my feet to be down, head up (I was unaware how to fix my trim). On the end of my last dive last week I put my arms forward ( I envisioned steering with my arms) and my trim got way better.

By the way I love the head down hover. Lots of ledges to look under. Easy to use dump valve on Right hip to maintain hover. If there is current I just drift head down looking under the ledge for all kinds of fish and critters. Yeah it does feel like showing off.

 

[Colliam7]

I have been diving with my arms at my side, which causes my feet to be down, head up (I was unaware how to fix my trim). On the end of my last dive last week I put my arms forward ( I envisioned steering with my arms) and my trim got way better.

Good for you! Sometimes, the best way to move toward that truly horizontal position is to move your arms OUT, in front of you.

Now, what that also says to me is that you still have an opportunity to work on you weight distribution, to move it 'up' on your body. I - personally - prefer to swim with my hands clasped together, slightly in front of me, rather than extended in front of me. But, that is just MY preference, and needn't be yours. If you need to move your arms out in front, possibly you need to move more weight up 'higher', i.e. toward your head. Just a thought.

 

[FishWatcher747]

I guess this means either more weight in trim pockets on tank band of jacket BCD (less weight in dumpable weight pockets) or moving tank more towards head. My tank is pretty far towards head already. In my avatar picture could the tank go higher?

 

[Blackcrusader]

I guess this means either more weight in trim pockets on tank band of jacket BCD (less weight in dumpable weight pockets) or moving tank more towards head. My tank is pretty far towards head already. In my avatar picture could the tank go higher?

You can see my tank is higher up than many others. I also have trim weights in my inserts at top back of BCD and inserts in the side. So yes take you time and move the tank and the weights to where you can get comfortable, you should then find you can move to any position and maintain buoyancy.

 

[MichaelMc]

I guess this means either more weight in trim pockets on tank band of jacket BCD (less weight in dumpable weight pockets) or moving tank more towards head. My tank is pretty far towards head already. In my avatar picture could the tank go higher?

That BC does not seem to offer many options for lead higher up, making setting it up for a balanced weight distribution more difficult. The one tank band is not very high above the waist. Does the BC allow using a second tank strap higher up? If not, you could put a cam band around the tank near the top and add trim pockets with lead to that band, without any connection to the BC. Or an ankle weight to the tank neck.

If those fail, switching to a BP/W will give you a higher upper tank band, ballast higher up in the form of the plate, the option of attaching lead high up on the plate, and webbing shoulder straps that are easy to attach trim pockets to in the rear shoulder area. But I'd try the other options first unless you've been intrigued by the switch already.
(I think BP/W is the way to go, I'm not saying it is the only way but some BCs make getting a balanced weight distribution much more work.)

 

[The Chairman]

Were they secretly watching my crappy trim?

It's all a matter of physics. Once you understand the physics, it becomes quite easy to figure out your trim.

I guess this means either more weight in trim pockets on tank band of jacket BCD (less weight in dumpable weight pockets) or moving tank more towards head.

Or learning a different fin stroke. Most people extend their legs straight behind them which then act as a lever with a weight on the end. I dive with my knees mostly bent. In fact, my hovering position is with my heels lightly touching the bottom of my tank and my head slightly down so I can look at things. When I move my legs to the rear, my body starts to pivot. Of course, I rarely use any kick but a frog kick, so I can skim just above the bottom while looking under all the ledges and not create a cloud behind me.

My tank is pretty far towards head already. In my avatar picture could the tank go higher?

If this is an aluminum tank? If so, moving it towards your head is not what you want to do. Again, physics rears its logical head. Most people think only in terms of mass. IE, if you shift weight forward, you move your COG forward.

But, you're in water when you dive and you have to also worry about buoyancy and your COB... center of buoyancy. If you put your aluminum tank in a pool, you'll see that the valve sits in the bottom and the butt kinda floats. So positioning your AL80 is not so intuitive. Move it way down and the butt will act as a lever with a bit of a float on the end. No, it's not much, but it is there. If you're diving a steel tank, then just think in terms of shifting your GOG. But with most aluminum tanks, adjusting it one way or the other does very little. Oh, the buoyancy shift is there, but it's just not a lot. If nothing else works, get a click on circle weight and put it around your tank neck.

 

[mmerriman]

I find the seated hover to be a comfortable position to achieve 390 degree vision of the surrounding area and close proximity to the bottom. Lots of fun on drift dives.

agreed that's probably the only time I would use it.

 

[The Chairman]

agreed that's probably the only time I would use it.

As an instructor, it doesn't impress me much. I always try to set a good example in how I dive and I see this as nothing but a self-serving stunt. I dive to see the critters, not to show off, so I try to appear as fish-like as possible. Ergo, I propel myself only with my fins, since hand sculling scares the buggers off, I wear colorful clothing, because dark fish are usually predators, and I move as slowly as possible, again so I don't scare any critters off. I get a lot of satisfaction out of being in total control and I often see more critters this way.

 

[UCFKnightDiver]

Sure. In a nice drift I will sit like this not moving but passing all the divers in horizontal position finning and using more air. As they are horizontal they are not being pushed along as I am. It's funny to see divers following other divers looking at me as I ride my magic water carpet not moving yet passing them as they fin. They are wondering what secret propulsion system I have. I also tend to be farther away from reef walls in faster water and from there I get a great view of the things divers close to the walls do not see. It's quite practical. For the divers who cannot do this they then learn to adjust their gear and practice their buoyancy skills and improve on them.

Don't need to pay for a peak buoyancy course when you can simply learn from other divers.

Showmanship nothing wrong with that. People do showmanship when in horizontal trim using frog kicks as well. Or flutter kicks. Or helicopter turns. As the OP noted a useful skill to have which he struggles with as he has not mastered buoyancy yet.

Why do you feel the need to go fast on a drift dive?