Diving watches

[scubadada]

Per dive computer mfg's, diver training agencies (all of them), DAN, etc., if your computer craps out, dive is over and go up ending the dive if you don't have a back computer.

Many experienced divers are more flexible than that, this strategy would have little to no risk.

 

[M-Cameron]

Many experienced divers are more flexible than that, this strategy would have little to no risk.

im not sure what you expect from an industry turning out divers taught not to think and to "just follow the computer"

and many of the comments here are just testament to that fact.

 

[Thombalabomba]

To be honest continueing a dive as planned instead of safely aborting after a vital piece of safety equipment fails goes against everything i've learned in 25 years of diving.

I'll go as far as saying i still hold this up if i dive with a backup dc. Failing primary equipment kills the plan so i thumb the dive. If my primary 2nd breaks and starts freeflowing i'm not going to continue the dive on my secondary until i hit tank pressure limits. Dive is over.

I suppose that's quite personal, but i am indeed not flexible as a diver in that aspect.

 

[scubadada]

To be honest continueing a dive as planned instead of safely aborting after a vital piece of safety equipment fails goes against everything i've learned in 25 years of diving.

I'll go as far as saying i still hold this up if i dive with a backup dc. Failing primary equipment kills the plan so i thumb the dive. If my primary 2nd breaks and starts freeflowing i'm not going to continue the dive on my secondary until i hit tank pressure limits. Dive is over.

I suppose that's quite personal, but i am indeed not flexible as a diver in that aspect.

Yes, that separates us. After nearly 2200 dives, I'm confident in making statements like this. It's not rocket science.

 

[yle]

Nonsense, there is no correlation and no chance to extrapolate and counting on the extrapolation to be right. If your computer goes down while diving, the only thing to do if you don't have a back up DC, you go up as slow as you can and do a precautionary stop for as long as you can and reasonable at what you can guess is 5 meters.

The dive is OVER if your dive computer fails and you don't have a back on you, NO WAY should you continue the dive at all. The only proper action in case DC fails u/w, is make an ascent trying to go up slow and make a precautionary stop.

I would agree that this is good advice for people that have no situational awareness. I alluded to this in my first post, i.e. divers that never check their dive computer, have no idea what their NDL is at any time in the dive.

Many years ago, PADI made a slight modification to the OW course. In the beginning of training, students were to check their spg when asked for their remaining air by the instructor. After a bit of that, students were asked to give their remaining air before checking their spg. I liked this subtle change, and found that the students adapted to it well by increasing their awareness of their remaining air. I included this tactic in the AOW course, where additional focus was placed on awareness of the NDL.

So I would have no problem sharing my original advice with my students. But certainly... people that were not trained to have decent awareness should end their dive as soon as their dive computer fails.

 

[yle]

Per dive computer mfg's, diver training agencies (all of them), DAN, etc., if your computer craps out, dive is over and go up ending the dive if you don't have a back computer.

Oh goodness. Yes, I totally agree. Because again, all of those recommendations are directed at the lowest common denominator and are motivated by CYA.

I am not disagreeing with you. Everyone should dive within the limits of their experience and training, as well as their level of comfort. If this means ending a dive immediately upon the failure of a dive computer, even if you have a dive watch to use as a backup, then please... do so.

But I believe there are some divers that have the experience, training and comfort to properly use their dive watch to safely continue the dive. Should this be a standard practice for all divers? Of course not... which is why the recommendations you reference exist.

 

[yle]

@yle suggestion is perfectly reasonable. Go no deeper, cut off a few minutes to be conservative. I have no problem with that. I always know what my NDL is within a few minutes.

Thank you. I understand that there are plenty of divers that have trouble relating to this. It's not for everyone.

 

[yle]

Nonsense, there is no correlation and no chance to extrapolate and counting on the extrapolation to be right. If your computer goes down while diving, the only thing to do if you don't have a back up DC, you go up as slow as you can and do a precautionary stop for as long as you can and reasonable at what you can guess is 5 meters.

I have a scenario question for you: one of my favorite beach diving sites has a max depth of 40 feet (i.e. the reef ends at around 40 feet... after that it's just sand). I'm diving there and 5 minutes into my dive my computer fails. I have a separate spg; I only use my DC for depth and time. I know the NDL for 40 feet is over two hours, and I know I'll go through my air in less than that.

I know that according to all dive agencies, DAN, my computer's manufacturer, I should abort the dive. I get that. But why? Can you explain the danger I would be in if I continued my dive until my air was at about 1/3 tank, maybe around an hour?

I'm always willing to learn, and willing to admit I don't know everything.

 

[Thombalabomba]

I have a scenario question for you: one of my favorite beach diving sites has a max depth of 40 feet (i.e. the reef ends at around 40 feet... after that it's just sand). I'm diving there and 5 minutes into my dive my computer fails. I have a separate spg; I only use my DC for depth and time. I know the NDL for 40 feet is over two hours, and I know I'll go through my air in less than that.

I know that according to all dive agencies, DAN, my computer's manufacturer, I should abort the dive. I get that. But why? Can you explain the danger I would be in if I continued my dive until my air was at about 1/3 tank, maybe around an hour?

I'm always willing to learn, and willing to admit I don't know everything.

I like to just drill consistency so that if i am diving in the north sea at 35m and something fails i don't have to contemplate the relevance of the piece of equipment to my safety.

While there are instances like your hypothetical situation where an abort would have no practical neccesity dus to the gas limitations, i feel safer sticking to certain protocols. Being strict on these protocols perhaps gives me a little extra margin when i run into some issues when i am half narc'd in cold water. Moving onto deco diving imo these rules become more and more relevant.

My standpoint comes more from drilling consistency for dives where an abort can be vital for your health, and taking the fact that your 12m dive on single tank didnt have to be aborted for granted. Rather not get bent or worse in the otherone, can't get good at being narc'd.

 

[Thombalabomba]

I think continueing a dive after equipment failure is outside anyone's scope of training, the potential danger comes when perhaps some hubris originating from a lot of experience with little emergencies lead to an increase in comfort levels and next expanded limits? Unfortunately there have been a significant amount of rec instructor fatalities as a result.

Again it depends on how you view your pieces of equipment. If something's designated "backup" i've always been taught in diving, aviation that the use of such a piece of equipment automatically means that there is now an emergency. On most rec dives people won't run a backup anyway. Perhaps there's different considerations if you're a DM somewhere and your backup is there specifically to finish a dive for paying customers. My cave diving buddies with 3 or 4 lights abort no questions asked if 1 fails.