Is a Swimthrough an overhead?

[simbrooks]

Its an overhead, but there are two types of [hysical overheads, those you can see the exit from and those you cant, in this case cavern (light zone) or cave (inside a ship as well). Is it a professional issue should you be leading someone - i am not in a place to determine that as i am not well versed in dive pro issues. Would i dive with someone through a swim through, if it looked big enough, i could see the other side and either of us were unlikely to stir up anything to prevent us from seeing either exit/side during the course of the swim through then sure i would do it. The worst case is that you run a line through there Particularly in the case of coral arches i would say its not as much of an issue as a silty bottomed cave or wreck.

 

[knotical]

And PADI says, in part:

“Q. May I take divers through a short swim through or archway during training dives?
A. Yes, there are circumstances when it is OK to do this during PADI training dives. Although the “General Standards and Procedures Instructor Guide” states, “Do not conduct open water training dives or Discover Scuba Diving experience dives in caves, caverns, under ice or any situation where direct vertical access to the surface is not possble,” it’s within reason to swim with divers under archways or coral/rock formations that are short, very easy to swim through, well lit, open and pose only a very brief overhead obstruction — as might be the case when directing an ascent from a dive with a moored boat over head.”

 

[JasonH20]

This weekend I swam through a sunken drainage pipe about 5' in diamenter and maybe 10' long. I suppose technically if my buddy ahead of me started to roto till my vis would have gone to 0, but it's not like I could get lost. It didn't really even occur to me to think of it as an overhead, but more of a training exercise(buoyancy/frog kick). The pipe was around 30FSW if that makes any difference.

What's the "official" stance on doing something like that?

 

[doole]

This weekend I swam through a sunken drainage pipe about 5' in diamenter and maybe 10' long. I suppose technically if my buddy ahead of me started to roto till my vis would have gone to 0, but it's not like I could get lost. It didn't really even occur to me to think of it as an overhead, but more of a training exercie(buoyancy/frog kick). The pipe was around 30FSW if that makes any difference.

What's the "official" stance on doing something like that?

The 'official' stance is don't do it.

And I think another pretty good stance is - why do it.

 

[pennypue]

snowbear: if your bubbles hit anything other than the surface, you are in an overhead environment.

I just hold my breath.

(Oh, I'm sooooo bad.........how about I inhale really slowly. )

 

[jonnythan]

snowbear: if your bubbles hit anything other than the surface, you are in an overhead environment.

I think my bubbles hit a fish on my OW dives. I need to report the instructor

IMO, if you shut your eyes and hit your BC inflator and you *don't* reach the surface, you're in an overhead environment. Course, that can be fine... my standard is that if I couldn't make the surface with empty lungs and one fin, it's more overhead than I need right now

 

[OneBrightGator]

My feelings are if it's longer then one body length it's an overhead.

 

[Mako Mark]

if you shut your eyes and hit your BC inflator and you *don't* reach the surface, you're in an overhead environment.

I think you need to go and practice this some more Jonnythan.

.

 

[jonnythan]

I think you need to go and practice this some more Jonnythan.

.

It's a THOUGHT experiment mark

 

[Mako Mark]

lol

Actually, I have seen people do it. There is a killer dive down here called Angelita. It is a 200 ft deep cave that is perfect for deco training, and I have seen people get tamgled in the bouy they were shooting and hit the overhang..