Deep Diving Bad Decision... Avoided

[Wibble]

A suitable shot and use for the wreck described would be, 3” stainless pipe long enough to hold 30 pound of lead. An eye on the pipe to take 5 feet of chain and enough 3/8 rope to go to the deepest wreck plus 1/3. Topside a float big enough to float all the weight and some. On the float a carabiner large enough to let the chain slide through. A sliding weight is on the other side of the rope to take up the slack. Going on the vis description get 100 feet up current of the wreck and drop the shot with the carabiner clipped in a bight of the rope. The heavy weight will drop to the bottom and the sliding weight will slide down the standing rope to take up the slack. The divers dress and are dropped at the float. They can drop down the rope and drift into the wreck maintaining the depth they wish to stay at. Any amount of divers can use the shot and when everyone is back on board the shot can be retrieved. To retrieve the shot the float is hauled but left in place, the counter weight is unclipped from the standing rope and attached to the stern of the boat when the boat is driven away from the wreck the float will run along the rope hauling the shot to the surface, the chain on the shot will run through the carabiner on the float and the shot will be hanging on the float for retrieval.

Sometimes a thinner 'waster' line is tied to the wreck and to the shot line by the first diver / pair to go down; other divers are held back. The anchor/grapnel is then sent to the surface with a lift bag and picked up by the boat. That's the signal for other divers to descend.

Once all divers are back on the boat, the shot line's pulled up breaking the waster line.

Coming up a shotline may be necessary if there's lots of shipping about, as would be the case when diving in a shipping lane. All divers would then be under "must come up the shot line" rules and will be like flags in the wind during deco if there's a lot of current -- although those dives would be done on neaps not springs.

If there's no shipping issues, divers may come up under an SMB. In that case it's very common for the last diver down to move the shot anchor off the wreck, or at least out of the wreck to ease retrieval. Skippers don't like losing anchors for some reason!

Some technical dives, typically deep with much longer deco times may use a lazy shot. This is where a "trapeze" is rigged with a line "teed" off (tied or clipped to) the main down line. Divers have to leave identification markers or flashing strobe lights on the way down which they collect on the way up the lazy shot. The last diver to come up will collect their tag/strobe and with no other tags on the shot will release the lazy shot (untie/unclip it from the main shot line) with all divers on it. The lazy shot will drift in the current so all divers are together floating free. The dive boat will then see the shot drifting off and the main shot line's retrieved.

Diving is normally done at slack water. This is measured by the amount of tide on the shot line Once the buoy slows down, the diving can commence.

 

[jadairiii]

Is there no slack water for that wreck?

No, it all is dependent on the current that day and the location of the Gulf Stream. There are times we would tie into the wreck but I have seen the current suck under large commercial float buoy's like they were Styrofoam lobster floats. Just way easier to hot drop South Florida wrecks.

Lots of boats will tie on that wreck regardless of current only because most divers dont know how to hot drop properly.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Sometimes a thinner 'waster' line is tied to the wreck and to the shot line by the first diver / pair to go down; other divers are held back. The anchor/grapnel is then sent to the surface with a lift bag and picked up by the boat. That's the signal for other divers to descend.

Once all divers are back on the boat, the shot line's pulled up breaking the waster line.

Coming up a shotline may be necessary if there's lots of shipping about, as would be the case if diving in a shipping lane. All divers would then be under "must come up the shot line" rules and will be like flags in the wind during deco if there's a lot of current.

If there's no shipping issues, divers may come up under an SMB. In that case it's very common for the last diver down to move the shot anchor off the wreck, or at least out of the wreck to ease retrieval. Skippers don't like losing anchors for some reason!

Some technical dives, typically deep with much longer deco times may use a lazy shot. This is where a "trapeze" is rigged with a line "teed" off (tied or clipped to) the main down line. Divers have to leave identification markers or flashing strobe lights on the way down which they collect on the way up the lazy shot. The last diver to come up will collect their tag/strobe and with no other tags on the shot will release the lazy shot (untie/unclip it from the main shot line) with all divers on it. The lazy shot will drift in the current so all divers are together floating free. The dive boat will then see the shot drifting off and the main shot line's retrieved.

Diving is normally done at slack water. This is measured by the amount of tide on the shot line Once the buoy slows down, the diving can commence.

Great explanation! Thanks!

 

[Wibble]

No, it all is dependent on the current that day and the location of the Gulf Stream. There are times we would tie into the wreck but I have seen the current suck under large commercial float buoy's like they were Styrofoam lobster floats. Just way easier to hot drop South Florida wrecks.

Lots of boats will tie on that wreck regardless of current only because most divers dont know how to hot drop properly.

It's fun to see how different diving and techniques can be in different parts of this planet