How bad to be considered a blow out?

[Dectek]

Every area considers different conditions good or bad.
What is warm here might be cold there. Small waves there may be thought of as big here.
Some divers might think of 48 degree air ..42 degree water ..wind 15 mph .. and 6 foot seas .. with 12 foot visibility a minor inconvenience while others would not dream of diving 65 degree air ..70 degree water with 30 foot vis and 3 foot seas.

I once had somebody cancel the day because it rained. Ironic that he was afraid of getting wet. I thought that was the whole point.

How bad does it have to get to be considered a blow out in southern FL?

 

[eandiver]

water temps below 45.......waves above 4'........air temp doesn't matter as long as no ice is forming in the rigging. Vis below 5'

If it's 45 on the surface and 54 on the bottom with 3 footers and 10 feet of vis I'm good.

I think the folks on the SE coast have higher standards though.

 

[espenskogen]

water temps below 45.......waves above 4'........air temp doesn't matter as long as no ice is forming in the rigging. Vis below 5'

If it's 45 on the surface and 54 on the bottom with 3 footers and 10 feet of vis I'm good.

I think the folks on the SE coast have higher standards though.

10 feet vis ?! Is that bad? As long as it's more than 2 feet vis, it's cool. 10 feet is a good day in the english channel...

Don't enjoy it much when it gets colder than 40 though... - Those deco stops get mighty cold...

E

 

[eandiver]

10 feet is a good day in the english channel...


E

I knew this was going to happen.......OK........we only cancel the dive if the hurricane is above a cat 3

 

[matts1w]

I knew this was going to happen.......OK........we only cancel the dive if the hurricane is above a cat 3

and WE dive in three inches of of viz...

...in 32.2 degree water...

...wearing nothing but speedos...

..while it sleets...

...after carrying steel 120s up giant hills...errr...make those mountains...

...and filling them them with bicycles pumps...

 

[espenskogen]

and WE dive in three inches of of viz...

...in 32.2 degree water...

...wearing nothing but speedos...

..while it sleets...

...after carrying steel 120s up giant hills...errr...make those mountains...

...and filling them them with bicycles pumps...

Altitude diving in the himalayas - Twin 20's, 15 litre sidemounts, 1 c water, carrying all gear up to 5000 m... Bicycle pumps? Luxury - We have to inflate the cylinders with lung power..

No, seriously - 4 meters visibility is not bad (At 8 meters, people are raving about it..) - Gives it a bit of an eerie, titanic like feel... It's an experience worth doing at least once...


See the dive site here...

 

[KBeck]

Every area considers different conditions good or bad.
What is warm here might be cold there. Small waves there may be thought of as big here.
Some divers might think of 48 degree air ..42 degree water ..wind 15 mph .. and 6 foot seas .. with 12 foot visibility a minor inconvenience while others would not dream of diving 65 degree air ..70 degree water with 30 foot vis and 3 foot seas.

I once had somebody cancel the day because it rained. Ironic that he was afraid of getting wet. I thought that was the whole point.

How bad does it have to get to be considered a blow out in southern FL?

Decktek, to actually answer your question, generally if seas are over 4-6 feet, many charters won't go out. (Often those seas occur when the winds are coming directly from the East/Northeast....remnants from the "nor'easter's" up north) Some charters will still go out, but I personally won't be on them. In general, in comparison to many northern/west coast boats, the charter boats here are smaller (under 30 ft.), and more susceptible to the whims of the weather. Additionally, they often have little or no indoor space to get a chance to get out of the wind/warm up a little.

Beyond that, the cold/vis is secondary. We've had Conch dives when the daytime air temps were in the 40's.....lots of hot cocoa flowing, but we are there.
Viz is a concern to a degree, but plenty will still dive with low viz. Less so, though, when talking beach dives.

Hope that helps.

 

[wreckchick]

My only concern is really the seas. If people want to go dive, we go diving! I don't like winds out of the south over about 15 kts, or the north over 17 kts. The seas are not horrible on the reef (2-3'), but the boat ride will beat the crap out of ya!

Rachel

 

[eandiver]

I was serious with my first post.

I was enjoying the rest until matts1w mentioned speedos.....................bad move.

Good web site espenskogen. If the water was clearer it would look like a great lakes or lake champlain wreck. Hopefully this summer I will be able to do some dives around lake superior.

 

[JRScuba]

The worst day in South Florida is better then the best day in New Jersey....LOL


Replanted from N.J.