Inflator style Alt Air...do you love yours?

[zak1227]

I'm on the fence about this choice. The idea of streamlining the rig appeals to me greatly. I would like arguments against and for this option.

Thanks for any and all input.

 

[Zung]

Yes I do.
I also love it when someone opens this can of worms: there'll be blood!

 

[aquaregia]

I did ten or so dives and ended up swapping it back.

I found that the inflator ended up being fairly long in order to be able to reach my mouth when my head was turned all the way to the right. This, and the fact that I couldn't tie it down if I wanted an alternate air source, made me feel less streamlined. I switched to a bungeed backup, which feels easier to me, although YMMV, and allows me to bungee down my inflator hose too. I also once had my air2 get confused with my snorkel, which was a non issue for a drill but in an OOG, who knows? Not to start the snorkel debate too .

I know some scientific divers who spend all day doing 20 minute working dives, and having fewer hoses make both storing the rigs on the boat and the constant donning and doffing easier. I suspect it might make packing the regset for travel easier too because the hoses could lie flat with the yoke, but I have no personal experience with that.

 

[japan-diver]

Dumped my years ago - they do get rid of a hose but in an emergency they are not as easy to use as a standard octo or my personal choice of a bungied backup. As someone who works in diving full time and ends up sharing air more than the normal diver as vacationing divers tend to not pay attention to air as much as they should- I find that the bungied back-up is the best in dealing with an out of air emergency which is why we carry a backup in the first place. Proper house length and equipment familiarity will address all the other supposed problems that an integrated octo seems to address.

 

[knowone]

Recreation by myself, Yes Non recreation-ally, No​

 

[BDSC]

I have been using one for the past 20 years and love mine. I've never had a problem with it and I do like the fact that I have one less hose to deal with. I will agree that it's not as comfortable using it vs my normal regulator but in 20 years of diving, I've never had to use it so it's not a big deal at all. Even if I did have to use it, most likely it would only be for a few minutes. So the comfort issuse to me is a non-issue.

One advantage I see is because it's the same as your inflator, if you did need to find it quickly, to me it would be instinctive to grab it without thinking because you are already use to reaching there for you inflator. So in an air share, you just grab it to use and donate your primary.

The bottom line is, some people like them and some don't. But for your typical recreational type of diving, to tell you the truth, I've yet to see a good reason why it would be a disadvantage to have it. Either way you go will be fine.

 

[keyshunter]

BDSC's experience is probably typical for recreational divers. Since they are never or very, very, very seldom used in a true OOA emergency, they work fine. And, although it is often used as a selling point, the "streamlining" achieved is largely mythical.

 

[Diver0001]

I'm on the fence about this choice. The idea of streamlining the rig appeals to me greatly. I would like arguments against and for this option.

Thanks for any and all input.

I used one for years and it served it's purpose, although the one I had didn't breathe as well as a "normal" reg would (maybe that's improved over time). I needed it because my regulator didn't have enough LP ports for an octopus.

Personally, I think anno-2011 if you're interested in streamlining that there are other, cleaner, ways to do it that don't have the limitations that the air-2 has.

R..

 

[RJP]

I'm on the fence about this choice. The idea of streamlining the rig appeals to me greatly. I would like arguments against and for this option.

Thanks for any and all input.

I used to dive with one, and don't any more. Personally, I think a combo octo/inflator is like one of those little donut-sized spare tires:

They both seem like a really great idea from a "streamlining" point of view...

...right up until the point that you need to actually use one for its intended purpose.

:shocked2:

 

[zak1227]

RJP...LMFAO nice analogy.