How far down can YOU go before you need to equalize?

[Progen]

I think it's a silly thing to even try. I start equalizing as soon as my head is underwater. I don't wait for my ears to tell me they need it, and as a result I don't have any problems equalizing.

James, I really wasn't trying to test my ears. Just found out by accident. Normally, I feel the squeeze around the 2 metre mark and sometimes even earlier. Perhaps around the 1.5 metre mark. I know that if I lie flat on the bottom of the 1.4ish metre pool which I usually practice in, I'll feel a little better if I do a little swallow.

 

[Quero]

Not far at all. Even equalizing at the surface of the pool, I still need to equalize when I go from the shallow to the deep part. When I had some chamber rides (for skin wound treatment), I was equalizing continually for what felt like ages, and I was told that it was because diving has made me so aware of even small pressure changes in my ears. Maybe that's why I feel like I've got to equalize "early and often" as the saying goes.

 

[Progen]

Now I'm really wondering whether I should be worried. Anyway, if all goes well, I might be going back to the same pool with scuba equipment this weekend. Let's see whether this weird phenomenon recurs.

 

[Quero]

There's probably no need to worry. You said you have no resulting problems, right? When you suffer barotrauma, even without pain, you can expect to get some symptom--a feeling of 'fullness' or 'water in the ear' or 'muffled hearing' such as when you've got the sniffles..... for most people, equalizing gets easier if they dive frequently, so if you found equalization fairly easy to begin with, it could just be that it's happening without your conscious intervention. There are a few rare people who never have to consciously equalize at all--maybe they just have huge tunnels for eustachian tubes!

 

[Progen]

There's probably no need to worry. You said you have no resulting problems, right? When you suffer barotrauma, even without pain, you can expect to get some symptom--a feeling of 'fullness' or 'water in the ear' or 'muffled hearing' such as when you've got the sniffles..... for most people, equalizing gets easier if they dive frequently, so if you found equalization fairly easy to begin with, it could just be that it's happening without your conscious intervention. There are a few rare people who never have to consciously equalize at all--maybe they just have huge tunnels for eustachian tubes!

Yeah, no problems at all. I did remember to equalize before feeling any discomfort but there wasn't any difference at all whatsoever. No popping sensation. No clearing sensation. Totally zilch. When I came back to the surface, I pinched the nostrils and blew but there wasn't any difference too. Could hear fine. I definitely need my ears because of my other job as a DJ.

 

[TSandM]

I can feel the pressure change in my ears with only a two or three foot depth change, especially in the shallows, and I equalize the MOMENT I come aware of a change. If you are asymptomatic, I wouldn't worry about it, but I would only assume that you likely either did very brief excursions to depth, or you were equalizing without having to do anything to accomplish it. I remember diving off the high board in the high school pool when I was a kid -- we always hit the bottom at 12 feet, and never equalized, but we were only there very briefly.

 

[Badge353]

Usually around 5 ft I can start feeling it and will start equilizing before that point.

 

[DivemasterDennis]

I am enjoying the responses, and hope there are a lot more posts. I am a "passive" equalizer. By that I mean that as I descend, head movement, swallowing, a jaw wiggle, or an occasional through the nose exhale is all I need in about 99 out of 100 dives. I really don't think about it. On those occasions ( and there have been less than ten in my 15 years of diving) when I have had a clearing issue, it manifests itself between 15 feet and 30 feet. It's been a few years since the last one. In a forum here on SB a while back there was discussion of a surface "pre-clearing" valsalva maneuver, and my wife has found that to be very helpful. When she has clearing issues ( more often than I do but not too often, they usually manifest at 15 to 20 feet.
I am very interested to learn about others' experiences, and how they deal with clearing issues.
DivemasterDennis

 

[KD8NPB]

Stick a shop-air nozzle in your ear.

How high would you like to set the pressure?

Equalize early, equalize often.

 

[timegan]

Stick a shop-air nozzle in your ear.

How high would you like to set the pressure?

Equalize early, equalize often.

Well said. My instuctor burned that into us. Don't mess with ur ears. U could have a short dive hobby/career. Just don't even play the "how long" thang. WHY??