Do you dive with or without your snorkel attached and why?

[STOGEY]

I always dive with my snorkle. That way when I'm either swimming to where I'm going to submerge or ascending, if the water is too rough I can use my snorkle and save on air.
Also during a boat dive, after I enter the water and am waiting for the dm/instructor to enter the water. I use the snorkle while I'm at the line waiting to submerge.

 

[wchenss]

I see a lot of divers without their snorkels, new divers tend to have them attached, and was wondering if the more experienced divers were not using them becsuse they didn't want to look like a newbie, or just don't see the need for them. How anybody would not wear one doing a drift dive is puzzling

I have not used one since OW classes except when I sometimes assist an instructor friend and play the part of a drowning swimmer/diver.

As soon as I completed OW I did AOW and began cave certification...no snorkles for cave diving...too much of an intanglement problem and too much drag.

 

[MikeFerrara]

And here is the reason why some of you deem it neccesary to carry a snorkel.
Its in PADI standards to have all OW students have either a reg or a snorkel in their mouth at all times when in the water and its been banged into your heads.
I seem to remember someone explaining why to me once but it was such a bad reason that I forgot what it was.

Unless it's real new there isn't any requirement for a student to always have a reg or snorkel in their mouth.

The standards state that the student must have a snorkel and there are several skills envolving the use of a snorkel. I don't remember anything beyond that.

Don't read in things in t aren't there.

 

[Rick Murchison]

Well, if I'm drifting along a reef or a wall at 15 or 20 meters or whatever - what use would a snorkel be to me? At the surface I just find it easier to breath through my mouth - rather than a tube.

Ah, but aside from the occasional check on the boat's position, it is much more interestng to drift looking down at the pretty critters than it is at the waves & clouds. Why waste the time in the water not looking in the water?
S

 

[cyklon_300]

As soon as I completed OW I did AOW and began cave certification...no snorkles for cave diving...too much of an intanglement problem and too much drag.

snorkels aren't used in cave diving...

 

[Stryker]

There are certain places by where I live (shore diving) where the life guards in the area will actually write you a ticket if you do not have a snorkel. I guess they have had some incidents where people have drown and did not have one. It can never hurt to have one, but if you have somewhere to stow it, I dont see why it would hurt to not have it attached.

 

[2TH DIVR]

A regulator is for diving,
a snorkel for snorkeling

 

[racerbruce]

Don't dive with a snorkel on my mask because I dive with the long hose configuration. I do however keep a folding snorkel in my pocket.

Mark Vlahos

At 1031 dives I've had this debate with myself many times, especially when I was
waiting to get picked up by the boat on a drift dive. Drift dives; yes , night dives;yes
wreck dives; no. I would say it's situational, but like Mark I now carry a fold-up in my BC pocket just in case>

 

[pufin]

I always wear one and use it while I am waiting before going down to conserve my air supply. It also useful while waiting to get picked up by the boat.

 

[simbrooks]

Is it just me or does anyone else not mind "wasting" a couple of cuft of air on the surface for BC/wing inflation and the odd breath to check regs are working or to look UW before going under or at the end of a dive? I mean if i am only using 0.3cuft/min, i can stay for about 40+ mins on the surface if i came up with 500psi or so in my tank or something of that order - it seems like a while to me and not much air at all if needed. Just see this brought up once in a while regarding snorkel use to save air, not just by one poster either. Particularly once i am back up on the surface, why am i actually going to worry about conserving air? To get back on the boat with 500psi like the DM says? Of course if i dont see the boat, we have another issue, but if its just bobbing around time what harm is there in keeping the reg in and looking around once you have signaled you are ok to the boat?