first dive with doubles

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

Deal Me In

Registered
Messages
30
Reaction score
0
Location
Florida
i just had to share this expeirence here to get some hints and hopefully make some people laugh. yesterday i did my first dive with double tanks. now i have to start by saying that the conditions were horrible. we were at shark canyon off of west palm beach, vis 10 feet, 6 foot swells, bad surge.

now here i am with double 130 on my back for the first time as part of my decompression procedure class. now we gone over the gear configuaration, the classroom material and the skills we are going to go over. i'm feeling a little nervous but confident that i can figure this out.

first off, is it just me or is there alot more equipment on the boat in 6 foot swells then on land. finally get in the water for a bouyant entry. let a little air out, nothing. let some more out, nothing. let some more out, nothing. let some more out -- all of a sudden i feel like i'm skydiving. it's all i can do to clear my ears fast enough. looking for inflator button -- why did i put that deco tank there? -- clear ears -- find button -- little air -- little more air -- little more air -- clear ears -- little more air -- wow i can't see anything -- little more air -- hit bottom at 97 feet.

collect myself, look for instructor who is hovering over me with that what are you doing look? the surge is dragging me all over the bottom silting up the whole area. about this time i realize that my harness isn't tight enough. i get off the bottom and start to get a handle on my bouyancy. thanks to the surge my harness goes right, i roll over. push it back to left roll over the other way. surge is killing me.

man there is alot of stuff here. hoses everywhere, where did i put my computer, -- what is this stupid deco tank doing here, why does my manifold keep hitting me in the back of the head. i try to stop this by leaning a little forward which causes me to do a somersault. no i'm getting frustrated. pull on the straps to tighten my harness -- yelp into regulator, eyes pop out of head -- now i know what the crotch strap is for! can't seem to get the harness tight enough, it keeps shifting causing me to roll over. surge is still killing me.

instructor finally calls the dive after about 19 minutes. i won't bore you with the 10 ordeal of getting back into the boat in 6 foot swells. got back on the boat and everybody else was there wondering why we stayed down so long. they cancelled the second dive and we went home.

sorry so long, it was just a very interesting day. i learned alot about what not to do. back to the drawing board with the harness and will go and try again next week. hope everybody had a chuckle at my expense.

thanks for your time.
 
Dude

Not the best place for your first doubles dive. Especially with those massive tanks. Do some shallow dives with those things first. Do some pool work to at least get used to the weight and how slowly things change.

Actually surprised your instructor allowed this to happen.
Good Luck
 
I agree with Mike, 97 ft under is not the place to figure out things like proper descents, correct harness adjustment, equipment location and so on. Spend some more time in the pool and try it again.

Ben
 
I have to agree with the others you should practice skills with deco bottles and diving doubles outside of the class in a shallow shore area (20ft) during a deco class its not the best place to start learning doubles and sling bottles learn before

Good luck with the course learn as much as possible and do as many skill dives as possible outside of class with buddies
 
I'm curious...what kinda course allows you to do a dive in doubles and a deco bottle over a 97 foot floor having never dove a)doubles or b) with a deco bottle on your very first dive of the class?

Seems like way, way too much new stuff at one time with way way too far to the bottom...or the surface.
 
Ditto what everone else has said.

Now, How did you like that turtle effect.....LOL

Stay Belly down. Only a little of a Vert attitude. Go straight vert and be ready for a back roll. LOL..... Doesn't always happen. But I did it....

Man, I remember my first time. I was rolling on the bottom on my back most of it... Just pissed me off.... I was in 12 foot of water... Once I got used to it.. Got out to 25... next to around 55.... Then to 110... Make sure you can cope before deep diving. The turtle effect tends to freak you out...LOL My VIS was around 5 feet...LOL

Now it's like a velvet slipper. Just smooth....LOL

Go Slow. Don't dump all air. Only what you need. And get your harness tight.

Don't tip your body right or left. Do a tabletop turn. To look right or left. Tip those tanks and you'll get turtled.

I learned the old fashioned way. Bought them and dove them. No instructor. Although. I don't really recomend that. As the problems can easily kill you....

Do Shallow. Till you get used to them. And stay belly down. Don't tip your shoulders.

On the bottom. If you'd of rolled to belly down. Then Slowly inflated your BC till you were neutral without a breath. So when you take a breath you'd ascend. You'd of been OK more then likely.

Heavy steels do make a skydiver out of you though...LOL
 
bwerb:
I'm curious...what kinda course allows you to do a dive in doubles and a deco bottle over a 97 foot floor having never dove a)doubles or b) with a deco bottle on your very first dive of the class?

Seems like way, way too much new stuff at one time with way way too far to the bottom...or the surface.

There are so many things wrong with this situation. I can't believe the instructor even let you get off the boat on a first dive with that equipment. Sorry, but there is nothing here I find amusing.

MD
 
I find it amusing. Thanks for the narrative. Hilarious, and only so because we've all been there. You'll get better, and fast.

I am surprised that an instructor was willing to take that kind of liability risk, but not outraged. You had a floor at less than 100 ft, plenty of air to use while solving problems, and the instructor was right there with you. Closer supervision than I had on my first dive in doubles--also to 100 ft.

Best tip I can give you is don't ask for tips. . . especially here! Dive the doubles, and dive them often, mainly shallower and in easier conditions. Swim backwards and upside down, do barrel rolls, hover in every possible position. Even better if you can do so with someone who is already experienced with doubles. . . best if he is also in doubles so you can learn by seeing and emulating and asking questions after.

Dive safe, have fun, and take responsibility for your own actions and the conditions you are comfortable going into.

theskull
 
MechDiver:
There are so many things wrong with this situation. I can't believe the instructor even let you get off the boat on a first dive with that equipment. Sorry, but there is nothing here I find amusing.

MD

Maybe the instructor thought the surge would ease up after 20 ft. Since it did not ease up even at 97 ft, then it is definitely not a good idea to proceed into deco, and thus the instructor's aborting the dive was certainly a good move.

I agree with MechD in that the rough conditions at the surface would have been a good reason to call off the dive before anyone ever got into the water.

It looks as though you did learn a few things, even from the short dive time. First, you must control your descent better. Normally that means opening your drysuit valve all the way first, then emptying your B/C-wing slowly, and definitely not completely emptying all the air out of it.

You will have approx 10 lbs of breathing mix (TMX or EANx or air) in your twin tanks, and another 2 to 3 lbs more in your deco bottle. That will make you a net 13 lbs negative at the start of your dive. Your wing should always be inflated a little, to neutralize this beginning negative buoyancy. It is only as you approach the end of your dive that you will become more buoyant, and then there will be less and less air needed inside your wing.

The best way to control your descent is to dump air from your wing slowly, and exhale completely between breaths, so that your descent begins slowly, like Mverick said, supra.

Then as you descend, you will need to add air/argon to your suit to offset suit squeeze, and also add air to your wing to slow your descent even further. Then you won't crash into the bottom.

I also recommend doing a pool session with all your tech gear, before going to the ocean. Swimming around the pool in your doubles with your deco bottle clipped on, and your reels and bags in place, gives you a better sense of where everything is, and how to manipulate it. Unfortunately a lot of instructors skip over the pool session. You can do a pool session on your own, if your instructor skips over it.

Skull's advice about swimming upside down and sideways in your doubles is good too, and you can do that in a pool as well. A pool is also a good place to learn your valve shut-off drills.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/
http://cavediveflorida.com/Rum_House.htm

Back
Top Bottom