Do I want a Spare Air

[scubadada]

6 cubic foot spare air?

Dive Gear Express sells a 6 cubic foot bottle with a valve. Add a basic 1st and 2nd stage regulator and a button pressure gauge. A spare air that actually breaths as good as a regulator. Later it can be cannibalized and all the parts will be useful at a later time.

I know one person who has a small pony bottle they always travel with, it is a 13 foot. Don't think it has ever been used in the decade I've known him. But it is his insurance policy. Just the way he is.

I got a used spare air once. Breathed like crap. Only used as a pool toy.

Seems like it would be best to simply buy the right size AL bottle in the 1st place. It is so simple to calculate your gas needs for your intended uses. I use twice my average RMV in the calculations.

 

[arew+4]

If you take it on every dive and maintain it properly, even if you only get two breaths out of it that gives you 3X the time for your CESA, and therefore a real shot at avoiding the possible complications it can cause. As long as it does not give you a false sense of security I see no problem with carrying one. Odds are you will never need it, I don't own one, and likely never will.

 

[yle]

Now I will prepare myself for the usual flaming of someone who actually recommended a Spare Air.

I completely agree with you that some air is better than none. I've never carried a pony or Spare Air, but I regularly read through the debates. It seems that most arguments against SA come down to the fact that the cost of a small pony is comparable to that of a SA, provides a decent amount of air (13 cu ft vs the 3 cu ft of a traditional SA), and is more versatile (i.e. standard reg and cylinder that can be replaced and maintained as standard equipment).

Which means that when someone asks "should I buy a Spare Air?" the advice to spend the money on a small pony instead is pretty sound. The reasons people tend to buy a Spare Air are:

1. They get hooked by the clever marketing and
2. They don't ask for the opinions of neutral third parties (e.g. here on SB) before buying.

 

[James79]

I completely agree with you that some air is better than none. I've never carried a pony or Spare Air, but I regularly read through the debates. It seems that most arguments against SA come down to the fact that the cost of a small pony is comparable to that of a SA, provides a decent amount of air (13 cu ft vs the 3 cu ft of a traditional SA), and is more versatile (i.e. standard reg and cylinder that can be replaced and maintained as standard equipment).

Which means that when someone asks "should I buy a Spare Air?" the advice to spend the money on a small pony instead is pretty sound. The reasons people tend to buy a Spare Air are:

1. They get hooked by the clever marketing and
2. They don't ask for the opinions of neutral third parties (e.g. here on SB) before buying.

The other possible piece to that, is a small (Spare air size) tank that gets carried is more use than the bigger pony that is seen as a hassle and gets left at home. Never know, though, until you see what you yourself will do...
Respectfully,
James

 

[yle]

The OP isn't really asking "Is the Spare Air a viable emergency air source?" They're really asking "If I want to carry an emergency air source for dives that could be to around 100 fsw, is a SA the best way to spend my money?"

No one is arguing that the SA does not contain breathable air. But many are arguing (appropriately) that if someone is looking to spend money on an emergency air source, a small pony is a much better value (even if it costs a little more than a SA.)

 

[yle]

The other possible piece to that, is a small (Spare air size) tank that gets carried is more use than the bigger pony that is seen as a hassle and gets left at home. Never know, though, until you see what you yourself will do...
Respectfully,
James

Absolutely! Which seems to be the logic behind offering the tiny 1.7 cu ft Spare Air. It can fit in some BCD pockets. Limited air supply, but better to have 1.7 cu ft of air that you bring on every dive than a larger cylinder that is left behind because it's too much hassle.

The advice to invest in a pony is best aimed at people that are 100% determined to always bring that emergency air source with them on every dive.

 

[W W Meixner]

Absolutely! Which seems to be the logic behind offering the tiny 1.7 cu ft Spare Air. It can fit in some BCD pockets. Limited air supply, but better to have 1.7 cu ft of air that you bring on every dive than a larger cylinder that is left behind because it's too much hassle.

The advice to invest in a pony is best aimed at people that are 100% determined to always bring that emergency air source with them on every dive.

Yle...

Agree...but...making the right redundant ''bailout choice''...based on needs/physical limitations/depth/training...is important...and there are lots of choices...ideally the user wants to make the right choice ''the first time''...

To provide a simple answer to the OP's simple question...''do I want a Spare Air''...as a 90 ft depth bailout...the simple answer is no...with ''Spare Air'' being as indicated in the attached photo...

W...

 

[woodcarver]

I completely agree with you that some air is better than none. I've never carried a pony or Spare Air, but I regularly read through the debates. It seems that most arguments against SA come down to the fact that the cost of a small pony is comparable to that of a SA, provides a decent amount of air (13 cu ft vs the 3 cu ft of a traditional SA), and is more versatile (i.e. standard reg and cylinder that can be replaced and maintained as standard equipment).

Which means that when someone asks "should I buy a Spare Air?" the advice to spend the money on a small pony instead is pretty sound. The reasons people tend to buy a Spare Air are:

1. They get hooked by the clever marketing and
2. They don't ask for the opinions of neutral third parties (e.g. here on SB) before buying.

What I see as lost on a number of people is the need to remove the valve to travel. Overall weight is another important factor. That limits the options.
While the SA reg doesn't breath anywhere close to a good regulator, it does breath, even at depth, and doesn't weigh nearly as much as a good reg. Since the purpose is to get me to the surface in an emergency, I don't care if it breaths like crap, just that it allows me to breath.
While my H2Odyssey does breath better than my SA, it doesn't breath as well as my primary reg. Again, that isn't important. And it does weigh more than the SA reg.

If you're diving local or at least driving to dive, where weight and the ability to remove the valve is not a consideration, by all means, get a larger pony with a standard reg. In that case, forget about the SA. But if traveling by air is your norm, and you want the backup of a pony, then the SA is a viable option; especially now with the 6cu option.

 

[tursiops]

That being said, some gas is better than no gas.

I'm not a fan of this statement. It is like trying to jump across a chasm in two jumps. Sometimes, a little bit is no help at all, and may even give false confidence.
A lot of people who use SpareAirs says they only need enough air to get to their buddy. Right. Even that is suspect; at 66 ft (3 ATM) a 3 cuft SpareAir might last one minute while you looking for and going to your buddy, but more likely if you are somewhat excited and breathing hard, it will last half a minute. At 99 ft (4 ATM) I wouldn't count on more than 20s.
If you actually run low on gas, don't spend any more time at depth...get shallow where a little gas will last longer!
Equipment failures are VERY rare. People failures are much more common.

 

[agilis]

I am soliciting opinions on carrying a Spate Air secondary air source for emergencies. I am a relatively new diver that is starting to dive down 70 to 90 feet. My primary fear is equipment failure and needing to rely on a buddy. How common are equipment failures at depth? Is the Spare Air a good option for deeper dives?

On a no decompression dive in less than 100 feet 6 cf will get you to the surface just fine if you remain calm. I use a 6cf pony bottle on dives deeper than 40 feet SW, with a small vintage Aqualung regulator with a Mikron second stage I picked up used for a song. In years past, when I did a lot more diving than now, I used this rig to surface just to see how it performed. From a depth of 100 ft I used slightly more than half the volume according to the little button gauge, ascending slower than my bubbles as we used to do, and stopping for about a minute at 15 feet. I've never had to make an emergency ascent and never saw anyone with significant equipment malfunction in more than 50 years (is it really 60 now?) of diving. I've seen a number of out of air situations, mostly because some people are too dumb or stubborn to check their SPG every 5 minutes or so. I've also seen a few cases of panicked divers attaching themselves to the DM who slowly brought them to the surface. Modern equipment is wonderfully reliable, far more reliable than a lot of certified divers. A 3cf Spare Air is cutting it close at 80 ft, though it will get you to the surface more often than not if you don't dilly- dally and keep your cool. I don't recommend them, but as others have said, it's better than nothing if you foolishly run out of air. Don't worry too much about equipment failure. You're about as likely to get struck by lightning.