Can you reach your tank knob to turn it on?

[dannobee]

B.W.R.A.F. is good to practice too, religiously.

Wait, what's that stand for again? Bad Women Are Really Fun? Boogie With the Rich and Famous? Bruce Willis Ruins All Films?

Oh, that's right, Begin With Review And Friend.



http://wrolf.net/scuba_slang.html

 

[Willie]

... I was diving a single in a pool and a friend snuck up and turned my air off while I was at the surface.

I would probably use a different adjective than 'friend' if this had happened to me.

Willie

 

[TSandM]

Frankly, I think it's important to be able to reach the valve and manipulate it, even in a single tank. I can't do it very well. That bothers me a lot, and I practice the skill (even unsuccessfully) most of the dives I do, trying to figure out what strategy will allow me to do it reliably.

But in the event of a freeflow, if my buddy can't get to that valve and get it turned off in less than 30 seconds, something has gone horribly wrong with our team skills. I have been through it. I can tell you that it would have been done much faster than that, had my buddy not been waved off by the instructor. He recognized the problem and knew the solution immediately . . . and he is NEVER far enough away to delay appropriate action.

 

[Packhorse]

I would probably use a different adjective than 'friend' if this had happened to me.

Willie

too right. If someone did that to me i'd make damn sure that they never did it to anyone else.

 

[radinator]

To the others that have replied to the thread, specifically stating that turning on the valve of a single tank is useful: Why is it so imperative to reach the valve?

I'll give you a local example that was described to me.

Guy and his wife are in a small boat suiting up. Another boat goes by and the wake hits the small boat, and the husband rolls backward off the side into the water and descends since he hadn't yet inflated his BC - his air was off.

The wife sees her husband go into the water, and is a bit miffed because he didn't wait for her. So she continues getting ready and finally goes into the water.

She finds her husband on the bottom - dead.

I actually don't know if he had a weight belt or was in doubles (so had no ditchable weight). However, whatever the detail, being able to reach the valve is not just another tool in the box - I consider it an essential component.

The last thing I do as I'm walking toward the water (or edge of the boat) is to reach behind me and turn on my air. I do this not only as a check that it is on, but more importantly as a check that I can reach it. If I can reach it standing on land, I *know* I can reach it in the water since gravity isn't pulling down as hard when submerged.

Also, to repeat what an earlier poster said, it helps to be horizontal in the water when trying.

 

[ChillyWaters]

Frankly, I think it's important to be able to reach the valve and manipulate it, even in a single tank.

You still haven't answered WHY you think it's important.

- ChillyWaters

 

[ChillyWaters]

Another boat goes by and the wake hits the small boat, and the husband rolls backward off the side into the water and descends since he hadn't yet inflated his BC - his air was off...

Yeah, but as mentioned before, why did the person sink like a rock to the bottom? It shouldn't happen if properly weighted, and he can still orally inflate the BCD. Perhaps more was at play in your scenario -- e.g. knocked head on boat before hitting water. Or worse, perhaps he knocked his head on his tank valve as he hit the water. Thus, even in this specific scenario, we don't know if reaching the valve was important.

However, whatever the detail, being able to reach the valve is not just another tool in the box - I consider it an essential component.

Why?

There is SOOOOOOOOO much more that people should practice on than something than this. Even after many posts, nobody has come up with a realistic example of why you need to reach the valve.

The last thing I do as I'm walking toward the water (or edge of the boat) is to reach behind me and turn on my air.

Of course you've done your buddy check, right? And even if you're still not sure, you could put a puff of air in your BCD. Unless you're doing a beach entry, you probably want some air in your BCD as you approach the water anyways, no?

Can't someone give ONE reasonable reason why we should all take up yoga in order to properly reach our valve on our single tank? I mean, isn't this up there on the list of important skills to practice? If you're all doing it, then WHY are you doing it? It shouldn't be a tough question to answer properly.

- ChillyWaters

 

[tracker]

I practice that a lot. One tip a buddy taught me is to push your elbow with your free hand. You'll get an extra 4-5" of reach than just trying to reach back.

I like this idea. Made me think about doing a warmup stretch.

 

[JeffG]

grab my spareAir

Awesome

 

[Kim]

Fourth, you can still orally inflate your BCD until your buddy can help you turn your valve on.

That might be hard to do if your valve is off. Where are you going to get the air from to inflate your BCD from your lungs?

The fact is - some people have actually died because they hit the water with their valve off and not enough air in their BCD. If they had been able to reach their valve it wouldn't have happened.