Interested in snuba or mini-b type diving

[TropicalSue]

Hi Everyone, Great site you have here. I've been reading some of your posts on snuba and mini-b type diving. I am interested only in shallow water diving right now. I am using a underwater metal detector to poke around the bottom & see if I find anything. That is my hobby. I'm 47 years old. I used to free dive when I was a kid in calif. I got to 25' with a little over 2 min breath hold. I used to dive for spare change that the tourists used to throw off the pier.

I have been surfing around online doing research on snuba, hookah, & mini-b. I like the snuba where no bc is needed. And I like the mini-b w/a pony size bottle, but it has a bc.

So, how about a mini-b type setup w/no bc? I am thinking that I may not need a bc if I'm going to be in less than 10' of water.

I also noticed that there are online courses for mini-b, and after you complete that, you then finish your training with a certified dive instructor.

I am wondering if any dive instructor would help me & train me with this type of setup?

I also learned that you need to be a certified diver to fill your air tanks? Is that true? If so, then I would need to get some sort of training & certification to fill my tank.

I don't have a tank yet...I only have mask, fins, snorkel!! lol.. But getting the proper equipment is in the future.

Thank you for all your information & feedback.

Tropical Sue and my dog... Kelly.

 

[herman]

Welcome to the board Sue and woof to you Kelly.

Sue, once your head goes under water while breathing from a regulator, it's very important for you to understand what you are doing, otherwise it is very possible to badly injure yourself, even if a few feet of water. Free divng and scuba are very different and mixng the 2 without training can be a very bad mix. This amoung other things are what you learn in a good scuba class. I highly suggest you invest in a good scuba class.

Most places will not fill a scuba tank without a cert card but like pretty much anything else there are ways around it. However, there is no avoiding the physics of diving and without knowing the proper dive procedures, it can be deadly. I don't mean to sound grave but the "it's just 10 ft" attitude will get you hurt.

I don't know of anyone who teaches those pieces of equipment or no BC diving for that matter. A lot of us do it but it's a skill learned after scuba is mastered. My suggestion is to get certified, spend some time diving and then if you still want to drop the extra gear, find someone in your area who dives either vintage gear (the old gear in the old way) or someone who is diving minimalist, they can help you with no BD diving.

 

[herman]

I just took a look at the mini-B. It's nothing but a small tank, reg and BC enclosed in a housing. Kinda hiding the fact it's still a scuba unit. Do yourself a big favor, get real training and then a real scuba unit.

 

[TropicalSue]

Hi Guys, thanks for your feedback. I realize I need proper scuba training, and I wouldn't think of using a tank & regulator without knowing how to use it and without proper training. I would probably get killed without the training.

So I am definitely going to get some training. I realize that the mini-b is scuba on a smaller scale. That's what I like about it.

I would like to get the pony tank, hose, regulator, etc... as needed. But only with the advice & supervision of a professional certified dive instructor.

I see kids on you tube making their own scuba tanks and that is very scary!! Just because you can make your own, doesn't mean you should!!

People die from diving accidents all the time. And it's a shame.

It's best to be trained. Spend the money and be trained. I found the mini-b usa website and the equipment is a bit pricey. I think, after I get certified, that I will be able to get what I need at a lower cost. Perhaps used, but in safe & good condition.

I understand that people can drown in less than 10' of water. It matters that the person must be properly trained & certified. Even at the shallow water. The depth of water really doesn't make a difference. Only that you choose to stay in shallow water for things like metal detecting, lobstering, etc..

Also, I agree with you. I see the snuba & I see that they keep the tank up on a raft, hook a hose to the tank & regulator, and hook that unit to the diver, put a weight belt on them, and off they go!! I didn't see a bc on them either. So....??? It makes me wonder about the possibility of doing that, but with a smaller tank, strapped to my back???

Kind of like combining the two?? I agree with you, a person must be experienced cert diver for anything like that. It's kinda deceptive when you look at it from a newbie pov, it looks so easy!! But....it can be deadly if not done properly.

Also, as I am reading some diving books and I think I may be realizing the need for a bc. It's possibly the weight of the tank that the diver is carrying. Plus the weight belt?? I'm very brand new at all this, so I have much to learn.

Free diving as a kid was great. But scuba with tanks is a whole other animal!! And I can't even hold my breath for more than about 10 seconds right now anyway!! lol.. That's why I need a tank, etc..

If you guys want a good laugh...(I always laugh at myself...lol), check out my videos on youtube of my recent beach picnic trip to Clearwater Beach, FL. Just a short 2 hr drive for me. I did as much "diving" as I could!! lol..

youtube.com/user/soozspenser

Sure to make you laugh!! lol.. I have a lot of enthusiasm but just need a little more equipment & training!! lol...

Thanks again,
Susan and Kelly k9. (my dog loves swimming also, she loves the beach. She's a salty dog!! lol.. )

 

[trigfunctions]

The main problem will be that when you are underwater, even at 10', if you breath from a regulator you will become very bouyant and float to the surface. Thus, you will need to wear weights. If you need weights, then wearing a BCD will help you get neutral bouyancy instead of sinking to the bottom.

My friend used the Mini-B as an intro to scuba dive and it worked great. It is very compact and everything is self-contained.

 

[tbone1004]

Oh that's not entirely true. You can easily stay down at 10 feet with no weights. Cue bare tank breathing.

Mini-b is not worth it, haven't seen prices, but the big patch on the back implies $$$

Sucker just looks awkward...

NEW SCUBAPUMPS Electric Hookah, Gold dredge, Scuba - eBay (item 120612374974 end time Oct-21-10 12:16:03 PDT)
Something like that may be a possibility as well. Hookah is great. Learn to weight yourself and control your breathing and depending on the temps you may not need a weight belt. We regularly do drills in the pool where we have to buddy breathe while exchanging equipment and kicking back and forth. One diver is in a bathing suit, the other is in everything else. You learn how to control your breathing awfully quick there.

Like Herman said, some people dive without BC's. He's one of them, he's a knucklehead, but he's a good diver and knows how to control his buoyancy well enough to where it doesn't matter if he has one or not, he's weighted right.
I bare tank breathe a few times a week, so I've got even less going on than what he does. It's good auxiliary training for scuba that makes you that much better with a BC.

I doubt most scuba instructors will train you on something like a hookah, but there is dedicated snuba certification *not really sure why people do snuba when hookah's make much more sense, but whatever*, that mini-b thing wouldn't require any training outside of basic scuba. It's the same principle, just weird.

As far as the no BC. The pressure laws are more noticeable the shallower you are. There is an equal pressure change between 0 and 16 feet as there is between 33 and 66 feet. One of the hardest drills for new scuba divers is learning how to hover in less than 5 feet of water. Any minor miss in your breathing will send you rocketing to the surface or plummeting to the bottom... Just keep that one in mind. BC not really needed if you're weighted properly, but I've seen people have AGE in less than 3 feet of water and die from a blown up lung.

Safe Diving

 

[TropicalSue]

Wow! great info. Thank you. I notice of course that my huge whale butt quickly floats to the surface so I would need weights. I have actually never worn weights, but then again.. when I was a kid free diving, I had Jet Fins and did pretty well with them, and with getting to the bottom, kicking to stay down, digging for the coins, etc.. then kick back to surface. I got pretty good at it.

I appreciate you all sharing info with me. I am enjoying the learning process.

Sue & my dog Kelly

 

[Garth]

Remember that in 10ft of water drowning is not the only killer. In fact, it's easy to swim to the surface from a depth of 10 ft. Overexpansion it would seems as the most likely thing to either kill you or hurt you if not properly trained.

 

[TropicalSue]

Saxplayer, thanks for sending me the link to the scuba pumps on Ebay.

I checked out their website & found one that I really like. A nice small unit that would suit me just fine. All I need is proper training before I try to use it.

Here's the link:

( I can't do links yet, I'm too new!! lol )

It's this one that I like: Scubapumps Portable Electric Hookah

Also, I wonder if I would need a bc with using this setup? I am sure I would need weights. I have never used any hookah or any scuba equipment before. So I will need proper training.

But...I'm slowly going to get there!!

Susan & Kelly

 

[tbone1004]

Jet's are a couple pounds negative underwater. Which is awesome. Sink like bricks.

Sorry for the dismal end of that last post, frustrating morning. Couple pounds of weight aren't a problem, but a BC is generally nice to have. The video with the Mini-B was quite comical with how big a rig the jackets are. Something like the Oxycheq Travel pack is disturbingly tiny for a scuba unit, and you use something like a LP 45 or 50, you'd be surprised that that rig is MUCH smaller than the Mini-B. Even a HP80 would be perfect since it's so short.

What was a full priced out mini-b?

Oxycheq Color Travel Plate & Wing with harness and cambands [OCcolorplatewing] - $357.00 : Cave Adventurers!, We will NOT be undersold!!!
There's an itsy bitsy teeny weeny everything but yellow polka dotted BC
For $357. Expensive new, but it's Oxycheq. The stuff will last till the next century

Dive Rite RG2500/Octo/2 gauge console package deal w/Free Bag [2500pkg] - $439.00 : Cave Adventurers!, We will NOT be undersold!!!
There's a good open water reg set for $440

These are new prices and you can kit up for half that. I'm sure that Mini-b is gonna be more then $500

Granted you'd have to buy a tank, but HP80's are exactly the most expensive things in the world. Dive something like that and you won't need a weight belt. Whole kit will come in under 40 lbs, and will be LESS bulky than that mini-b thing.