DIY scuba Hookah

[Akimbo]

I quite agree. Building a hookah is no more difficult than, say, installing a water system or rebuilding a carburettor, and can be a lot of fun if you have reasonable mechanical skills. You don't need to be an engineer, since rule of thumb or copycating will handle any calculations or sizing issues that need doing...]

Agreed. Miscalculating compressor size results in readily perceived depth and performance limits. The greatest risk is the compressor sucking engine exhaust and various flavors of pneumothorax. For the depths relevant to this discussion, a check valve is probably overkill on a downstream demand regulator.

 

[Firefishvideo]

thanks for all the responses i am a certified diver but i wanted to make a scuba hookah because i used one and i like it more than having all the gear on your back. I thought i could save some money making my own . plus its easier for me at least to spear fish.I wanted to make one powered by 12volt marine battery i dont want a gas one for the risk of breathing in fumes thats why i i want electric. I dont know what king of regulators i have to use for this thats what i was hoping you guys could help me with.??I dont have a lot of money to spend or i would buy one from brownies.

All you are getting rid of is the tank. - A hookah rig still requires weights, some sort of attatchment harness, and a regulator. In addition, you are limited to the length of the hose or you are having to drag around a float. I Don't think you will ever get enough power out of a battery to drive a compressor at that volume/pressure, and the whole mess is just to contrived to be any fun. I personally wouldn't be caught dead fighting a fish while attatched to a hookah rig of any sort.
I would just invest in an aluminum 40, rig like stage bottle, and clip it to the weight belt....NO harness, no BC, No 100' hose. - I have done it to collect scallops in shallow water, and it's lighweight, and easy to manage. For those of us who wern't born freedivers, its the next best thing.
Just don't forget your SCUBA Rules.

 

[terallan]

I've been using a keene hookah rig now for about 15 years, gold sniping down on river bedrock.

Quite late in coming in here as I've just found this thread, which interests me. If it's of any interest to budding hookah users:

I modified the intake on my keene hookah so that the incoming air goes through a 10" carbon cartridge filter followed by a 1 micron 10" particulate filter. Air always tastes clean, if you know what I mean by that.

I'm pretty sure commercial SCUBA tank filling stations use carbon filters to clean the compressed air, so I feel quite safe even if a 'whiff' of exhaust gets blown up into the intake.

I think hookahs tend to have basic particulate air filtration, I'm probably one of few who have modified the intake of air through carbon for extra safety.

Agreed. Miscalculating compressor size results in readily perceived depth and performance limits. The greatest risk is the compressor sucking engine exhaust and various flavors of pneumothorax. For the depths relevant to this discussion, a check valve is probably overkill on a downstream demand regulator.

 

[noreastDIVER84]

If you are finding that all the gear is an issue, you have gotten into the wrong sport. For spearfishing in 30 feet of water it is much easier to free-dive than to tug around a 50 foot(or so) hose off some sort of boat or float.

I don't think you are going to find much in the way of 12 volt compressors that are going to be able to produce enough quick enough to even use a regulator. Not to mention you will drain down a 12 volt battery(yes even a group31 deep cycle) rather quickly and then you are S.O.L.

Oooppss, I just realized after posting this that the thread is about 2 years old now.

 

[corman]

It's never too late to post or respond. I have used the dive sled in 30' of water without any problem hunting or sightseeing. Just my experience.

 

[terallan]

Hi Corey,
The recreational gold dredging and underwater prospecting world has successfully been using hookah for years. The kit is robust and reliable and as someone else has already suggested, keene engineering are the guys in the 'know'.

By nature, dredging and moving large boulders underwater is very strenuous so any concerns about air delivery, regs, etc., are well sorted. Coaxing bugs out of hidey holes, I think your average keene hookah could handle that ok ;-) My system uses the Thomas T80 compressor unit and works great.

The keene site has a good selection of hookah parts.

From what I read generally, the SCUBA world tends to get a little bit hung-up on the ins and outs hookah, but there is a world of responsible and safe hookah users out there doing all sorts of niche jobs with it

 

[yardpro]

lol....
i get a kick out of all the knee jerk comments here.

for those that worry about air contamination, have you actually seen the compressor that fills your tank at the lds?

They they are scaled up versions of a standard compressor.. many use a k&N cone type air filter on the intake... that's it..


I do however agree that is is cheaper and less problematic just to use tanks with a hookah..

i run a landscape pool business and we do a lot of pool repairs. I used to pay a diver $75.00 to dive to do simple things like putting screws back in draincovers, etc.....

i ebayed a primary, secondary, tank and 50' of hose for less than $250...

at $4.00 per fill, it has been WAY cheaper than a hookah system. i looked at building one myself, but it was going to be over $500 to make one diy..

i also use it to clean my boat bottom, check and set moorings, etc..

 

[Rich Keller]

lol....
i get a kick out of all the knee jerk comments here.

for those that worry about air contamination, have you actually seen the compressor that fills your tank at the lds?

They they are scaled up versions of a standard compressor.. many use a k&N cone type air filter on the intake... that's it..


I do however agree that is is cheaper and less problematic just to use tanks with a hookah..

i run a landscape pool business and we do a lot of pool repairs. I used to pay a diver $75.00 to dive to do simple things like putting screws back in draincovers, etc.....

i ebayed a primary, secondary, tank and 50' of hose for less than $250...

at $4.00 per fill, it has been WAY cheaper than a hookah system. i looked at building one myself, but it was going to be over $500 to make one diy..

i also use it to clean my boat bottom, check and set moorings, etc..

All you need to do is splice 50' of hose between your 1st and 2nd stage and use your existing equipment.

 

[Lee Taylor]

I have heard that if you don't use a unit designed for scuba you are asking for death. Something to do with "oil" or "oil impregnated bearings" or "oil-less bearings". Definitely not a area for trial and error.

Another thing to give consideration to, is that you are on the bottom wearing weights. Eventually the motor will conk out, run out of gas, jam, or stop for some unknown reason (and it will).

You will need to swim the weights to the surface and back to the boat OR leave them behind.

You can wear a scuba unit for a back-up, but in time, you will want the freedom and ease of using just the Hookah alone, with no tank on your back

 

[fstbttms]

I have heard that if you don't use a unit designed for scuba you are asking for death. Something to do with "oil" or "oil impregnated bearings" or "oil-less bearings". Definitely not a area for trial and error.

It is a common misconception that hookah compressors are somehow different than other compressors. They are not. Every commercially available, recreational-level hookah rig is based on a compressor that was designed for another purpose. It is true that these hookahs use oil-less compressors, but these are again, very common and not specifically designed for hookahs. Further, the large diesel compressors typically used in commercial hard hat dive operations are not oil-less, but use a special oil that is not harmful when used in surface supplied air equipment.