Divers Found Drifting Way Offshore

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Deploying at 15' is harder than at 30' (I do it at about 45'). You need to roll a bit on your back, unraveling the SMD and inflate. I try and be a little negative boyant because while inflating (2 breaths) since the SMB tries to pull you up (make sure you are not close to bottom).
I have seen people try at 15' and bounce to the surface if they are not really careful.

The deeper you deploy, the less you need to inflate it.

That's why I like depth markings on a DSMB to know how much to inflate (I have markings for 33, 66 and 100 feet).

You don't need to roll onto your back. DSMB deployment is a basic skill that many lack. Oral inflation is the way to go to avoid suddent positive buoyancy.

 

[ggunn]

DSMB deployment is a basic skill that many lack. Oral inflation is the way to go to avoid suddent positive buoyancy.

Yes, but you need to remember to let it go before you inhale.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Yes, but you need to remember to let it go before you inhale.

Is that hard to do?

Nevermind. I have to forget the quality of the average open water class. Most probably only do SMB inflation at the surface: the "hurry up and blow that thing up before that boat runs you over" skill.

EDIT: I spend a fair bit of time teaching DSMB deployment as it is a good buoyancy/task loading skill. I use the 3' DSMBs in confined water, 6' in open water (for obvious reasons).

 

[ggunn]

I have seen people try at 15' and bounce to the surface if they are not really careful.

That happened to me the first couple of times.

 

[ggunn]

Is that hard to do?

Not really, but there is a sequence of things to do (unclip and unroll SMB, put spool on finger, take reg out of mouth, inflate SMB, put reg back in mouth, release SMB, inhale) and until you practice a few times you might inhale after you have inflated the SMB and before you let it go.

 

[DandyDon]

My home bud and I were in Santa Rosa NM's Blue Hole on practice dives before a trip when I deployed my DSMB at 70 feet, then he did, then he drifted up and got tangled in his line. I had to hold my line out of the way while I unwrapped him. After that we agreed that only one of us should deploy at a time.

 

[kelemvor]

I've never heard any Coz dive op even recommend that divers carry a DSMB much less require one. I've probably dived with at least 10 different ops.

I bought my first DSMB in 2015 because I was diving with Dive Paradise who required them. Reading your post was a real head scratcher for me.

I'd been diving in SE Florida for two years before that without one. Most Florida ops want a flag, as SMB does not meet the legal requirements for diving in Floridian waters. I do tend to favor larger "cattle boat" operations, so maybe that's the difference in our experiences.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Not really, but there is a sequence of things to do (unclip and unroll SMB, put spool on finger, take reg out of mouth, inflate SMB, put reg back in mouth, release SMB, inhale) and until you practice a few times you might inhale after you have inflated the SMB and before you let it go.

That's what a proper open water course teaches. Unfortunately, proper open water courses are the exception, not the rule.

 

[kelemvor]

The Internet is chock-full of people making up stories and stringing people along, apparently for their own amusement. Not so much on Scubaboard, but SB isn't immune. In this case, OP says there was a very serious dive mishap that no one else heard about. No verification at all. No gossip amongst boats, no report to authorities, no news. Just hours of unfolding disaster with nothing happening. Then the miraculous sighting and rescue. But still, no verification. There's good reason to flesh out the story, and no legitimate reason not to. Despite that, no details that might not only confirm the story but save lives going forward. It smells funny.

Re-read the thread. There is verification from a separate person in this thread. That person identified the boat as one that belongs to a company who rents boats out for the day. Therefore the "operator" of the boat may not even been a Cozumel resident. Naming the company that rented the boat would serve no purpose.

That's what a proper open water course teaches. Unfortunately, proper open water courses are the exception, not the rule.

No. Since in Florida, a smb is not proper dive equipment (only a flag with the red stripe is adequate by law) their use is often not included in scuba classes. The use of a flag, however, was covered in my class, my wife's class, and my daughter's class. All three of us took classes from different instructors teaching with different agencies.

 

[NDL_Diver]

That's why I like depth markings on a DSMB to know how much to inflate (I have markings for 33, 66 and 100 feet).

You don't need to roll onto your back. DSMB deployment is a basic skill that many lack. Oral inflation is the way to go to avoid suddent positive buoyancy.

I said a roll on back "a bit" not full blow laying on back. I probably should not have said roll, but it more of a lean back.

YMMV