hose set up??

[Ben_ca]

Hey Evad.... Can you come with me behind the barn? I have something to show you.....

 

[divad]

Hey Evad.... Can you come with me behind the barn? I have something to show you.....

Ummm................I don't like barns.

 

[jeckyll]

Ben_ca: Nice

Evad: I'm curious why you find 24" too short. Is it just hard to get a look at?

 

[divad]

Ben_ca: Nice

Evad: I'm curious why you find 24" too short. Is it just hard to get a look at?

Yes, but I haven't tried it with the hose over the arm.

 

[Ben_ca]

Try it...Pinkie your hose and loop it around your elbow....

better yet start diving with your local DIR guys... try to pick up a mentor/big buddy and tag along...

 

[UnderSeaBumbleBee]

Jason, for now and some time to come I will be diving singles. Unless I win the lottery and then I will be diving doubles off my own live aboard.

I also posted a question in the reg section about a reg I am thinking of purchasing from Scuba Toys. I have already talked to the guy at the local tech shop and he said he had no problem with me getting a great deal and he would be glad to do the service and warranty work on it. I plan to get a single pressure gauge and then wear my computer/bottom timer on my wrist. If anybody has any reg thoughts, in response to my question in the reg forum, I would appreciate it. I know the reg it not the typical DIR choice. However, I considering going with that reg for the following reasons.
I can get local service and support
The shop guy dives this reg down to 300' and says it does well.
It is a good price for my budget
Still thinking that through. Thanks for the help again guys.

 

[dlegros]

I would say for the primary - always go for the 7'

It's easy to route, nicer to share and works on any rig.

Dom

 

[shadragon]

Jason, for now and some time to come I will be diving singles. Unless I win the lottery and then I will be diving doubles off my own live aboard.

Is it too late to call shotgun if you do this...???

I have a single tank setup with 5' Octo hose. The only time my buddy had an low air situation we locked arms and she used my Octo without difficulty for the majority of the ascent from 90 feet. She swapped back to her own tank during the SS and ascended from there. She ended with a couple of hundred PSI. I have been told (by far more experienced folks than I) that the longer hose is for wreck and cave diving where space is confined and you may not be able to be side by side to share air, which makes sense to me. For normal open water rec diving the 5' length should be fine.

 

[DIR-Atlanta]

I have been told (by far more experienced folks than I) that the longer hose is for wreck and cave diving where space is confined and you may not be able to be side by side to share air, which makes sense to me. For normal open water rec diving the 5' length should be fine.

That's partly the reason - a 7' hose is an absolute requirement for situations where you must share air during a single file exit (such as from a cave or wreck). Obviously, that should not be the case for an OW dive, but that's not the only consideration.

The biggest advantage of a long hose for OW diving is that it gives you many more options for dealing with an OOG situation. With a standard octo hose (36-40") about the only choice you have is a direct vertical ascent while facing each other. With a longer hose, you have that option, as well as the option of swimming a little ways if you choose to (and if you have sufficient gas to do so).

A good example of a situation where this might be an issue is on a shore dive, where the number of egress points is limited. You may choose to swim to a location that affords an easier means of exiting the water. Typically you would plan this type of dive using the thirds rule, which usually means sufficient gas reserve to swim back. Even on a boat dive it might make more sense to swim underwater partway back to the boat, rather than taking your chances at the surface - this is particularly true in areas with a lot of boat traffic, or on a night dive, or anytime the surface conditions are not to your liking.

It's actually possible to do an air-sharing swim on a standard octo hose, but it's not very easy. The divers need to either swim face to face, or the OOG diver must be above and slightly behind the donating diver. Neither orientation is conducive to swimming more than a short distance - the second option is probably more manageable, but that places the OOG diver out of sight of the donating diver, which is not good.

The single file swim is much more efficient. The donating diver keeps the OOG diver in full view at all times, and the swimming orientation is much more hydrodynamic. The donating diver can "draft" off the other diver, which helps to preserve the remaining air supply (relative to two divers swimming side-by-side, both pushing through the water).

I usually recommend that people start out with the full 7 foot hose. If you decide that you don't like it, then you can always sell it and buy something shorter (resale value of a 7 foot hose is much better than a 5 foot). Be sure and give yourself plenty of time to get used to the longer hose, and if can, try and find a local dive group or buddy that knows a little about DIR to help you with placement, deployment, stowage, etc.

 

[shadragon]

That's partly the reason - a 7' hose is an absolute requirement for situations where you must share air during a single file exit (such as from a cave or wreck). Obviously, that should not be the case for an OW dive, but that's not the only consideration. (snip)

Excellent description and solid points, thanks. If you have a surplus of gas then you can certainly do as you described to get back to an ascent rope, or shore exit point. At the time I only had an AL 80 with shared Octo so that was not an option. As dictated by the training I received, if you have a low or out of air situation you call the dive immediately as you no longer have an alternative air source and make a safe ascent. Today I have an HP steel tank with separate 40 cf Pony which certainly gives me a lot more gas and flexibility.

Cheers.