Dry top snorkels

[gcarter]

(Quoted from another thread)

Need to find the right kind of snorkel if you plan to use one for that. Snorkels with purges will not work. Dry snorkels are even worse and actually should be against standards for divers to use.

Jim (and others),

I have seen this opinion expressed in a number of different threads, but I have never seen a good explanation as to why so many seem to feel this way.

Opinions? With reasoned explanations, preferably

 

[Peter_C]

The only time I ever use a snorkel is for snorkeling and I am probably one of the few that likes my dry top snorkel with a purge. Yes it can fail, and I can pick my head up and breathe while casually swimming back to shore, if I can't just stand up. I have had a few small waves wash over me, and was darn glad my snorkel closed off and stopped me from taking a breath, otherwise I might have tried to inhale water. Also on a shallow dive it is nice to not have to clear hard once back on the surface.

Freedivers hate anything but a J tube snorkel.

 

[supergaijin]

If the dry snorkel works as it is advertised, wouldn't it become a positively buoyant noodle pulling at the side of your mask?

Semi-dry works well for snorkeling and diving, but the purge valve can and does deteriorate or become kinked. Once it is broken, they're difficult and expensive to replace.

The J-snorkel is the only design which allows mouth-snkl rescue breaths.

 

[RJP]

My snorkel remains bone dry at all times... unless my basement floods as high as the shelf I put it on six years ago.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Yes, freedivers and old school divers hate anything but J tube snorkels, and for a reason.
No balls, no valves, no gimmicks, no swively swingy crap, no stretchy flexy, no kelp caught up in the "Special patented exhaust valve"
If you're going to use a snorkel then use a REAL snorkel, not some overly engineered convoluted wanabee snorkel.
No wonder people hate snorkels, they never used a proper simple snorkel.

 

[supergaijin]

no wonder people hate snorkels, they never learned to use a proper, simple snorkel.

fify

 

[Peter_C]

Plus a J snorkel allows you to shoot water at your buddies Something I learned growing up with a swimming pool in our backyard.

I use my snorkel about 1 day out of 730 days. Is it still snorkeling with a tank on?

 

[AfterDark]

Yes, freedivers and old school divers hate anything but J tube snorkels, and for a reason.
No balls, no valves, no gimmicks, no swively swingy crap, no stretchy flexy, no kelp caught up in the "Special patented exhaust valve"
If you're going to use a snorkel then use a REAL snorkel, not some overly engineered convoluted wanabee snorkel.
No wonder people hate snorkels, they never used a proper simple snorkel.

Spot on there. I've used a large bore, flex, wrap around snorkel for ???? years. I had a J tube an L tube and a purge type, even had the cage and ball toy snorkel when I was a kid.
The large bore flex wrap around snorkel fills the bill for my use. The simple things are usually the most useful. The only dive I ever made without a snorkel that I can remember is the picture on my profile page, my 1st dive into the palor rug.

 

[dive_turkey]

So, no real answer so far. I'm not sure why people think the dry snorkels should be banned from use with scuba. I would venture a guess it has something to do with mouth-to-snorkel rescue breathing... So really, you just need a dry snorkel with a quick-release top that can be twisted off and removed, thus turning it into a J-snorkel right there on the spot.

...I should patent that, huh? Probably too late now.

 

[AfterDark]

So, no real answer so far. I'm not sure why people think the dry snorkels should be banned from use with scuba. I would venture a guess it has something to do with mouth-to-snorkel rescue breathing... So really, you just need a dry snorkel with a quick-release top that can be twisted off and removed, thus turning it into a J-snorkel right there on the spot.

...I should patent that, huh? Probably too late now.

Some would want to see all snorkels banned from scuba!