H2Odyssey Redunant Air System (RAS) - anyone using?

[Skeptic14]

I've been using a H2Odyssey EAS2 (valve and 1st stage combo) for years now. I don't think it can be beat.

https://www.amazon.com/H2ODYSSEY-H2...F8&qid=1486225875&sr=8-155&keywords=h2odyssey
...
All you need to do is add a tank of the size you want (about $100), either a yoke or station fill adapter, an octo (from your main tank reg) and a button SPG. Make your own sling for almost nothing and you are set.

Kharon,

Sounds like you don't use the 2nd stage that comes on it like this H2Odyssey Extra Air Source Regulator System but instead have your octo attached to the 1st stage.

Other than fewer regs/hoses any advantage/disadvantage to attaching your octo to your pony?

Thanks

 

[tbone1004]

@Skeptic14 what he linked is just the first stage. You linked something that has the second stage attached to it which is fairly easy to do.

there is no advantage to the system that you linked if you want a bottle of reasonable size and it is no better than a spare air at that point. The downside to what you linked is that you have to hold the bottle in front of you to breathe off of it, not good.

I don't believe in pony bottles, I think they're completely idiotic, but if you are going to use one, then remove the secondary from your backgas bottle, and put a long ish hose on your primary for primary donate. Sling the pony bottle or strap it to your tank, don't really care which, and put your secondary on that and up around your neck. If you put a secondary on your main regulator, it's not only a waste of a second stage, but also runs the risk of severely complicating your scenario if you have to use it because now you are fumbling with three second stages when you only needed two. The advantage of doing this, is that you have a redundant air supply that when you need to use it, either with a buddy that is OOA, or you have a reg failure, it's right there and you can get access to it. Personally if you feel you need that, then you should dive a redundant regulator system with either an H valve if you have personal tanks, or small doubles/sidemount

 

[mi000ke]

while you hope to never need to use it, make sure you do. When on a safety stop, practice deploying it. Not only is it critical for you to have the muscle memory, but it's also good for the regulators to get a bit of use to keep everything moved around

Absolutely

 

[Kharon]

I didn't buy the whole H2Odyssey system. Instead I bought just the valve/1st stage (EAS2), a pony bottle, the fill adapters, and a button SPG. Came to less than $200. Used the octo from my main 1st stage because it was not needed because of the pony setup. I also made a sling for the rig.

Keeping the octo on the main 1st stage is discouraged in the SDI Solo Diver manual for a number of reasons. One more snag point, one more fail point, it provides no benefit, I don't remember the rest.

As far as having the 2nd stage right on the bottle, I wanted a longish hose so I could pass the pony reg, detach the pony and hand it off to an OOA diver. That way we aren't tied together on ascent. I hardly ever buddy dive so that is only very "just in case" reason. The main reason is because I could assemble a pony systen for far cheaper than the H2Odyssey system cost - or the Zeagle, for that matter - by buying things seperately.