is it ok to wear ear plugs while diving?

[jameys18]

Hi all, I've noticed that on some dives that if the bubbles from my reg start going over my ears on my decent I have a very hard time (and most times) cant clear my ears at depth. Or, if im at my diving level and bubbles are going over my ears and i surface I cant reclear for second dive...

Just wondering if there would be any thing wrong with throwing in a set of ear plugs before diving to keep the water out of my ears... also thought about wearing a hood but not sure how effective it would be besides keeping the bubbles away.

 

[Dr Wu]

How do you plan on equalizing with earplugs in your ears?

 

[Black Water Diver]

Be careful withthe ear plugs, they sel Dr. E's especailly made for Diving. The bubbles are problby not the issue for clearing as much as it is just practice. Some divers take a cold pill for congestion or an allergy pill acouple of hours early to help with equaliztion issuses, nix on the ear plugs!!

 

[idocsteve]

I can't imagine why bubbles flowing over your ears would have any effect whatsoever on your ability to equalize.

That's almost like saying when it's drizzling on your windshield you can't stay in your lane.

No to the ear plugs, in general they will cause more problems than they solve.

 

[AbyssalPlains]

Sorry to sound harsh, but if you even have to ask this question you should do your certification course again, because - and PLEASE don't take this personally in any way - obviously whoever certified you didn't succeed in teaching you even the most basic concepts of diving physics.

The short answer (and that SHOULD be obvious to anyone with a cert card) is: Ear plugs will rupture your eardrums - UNLESS you are talking about the kind specifically made for diving. I think they're called Pro-Plugs or something like that. If that is what you had in mind, I take back everything I said above, but would like to point out that your post should have made that clear.

Quoting the MIB's: "Believe me, it's for your own protection."



One final note: Bubbles rolling over your ears have absolutely nothing to do with your ability/inability to equalize. If you are experiencing problems, find out what it is, but trust me, it's not your reg and not the bubbles that come out of it.

 

[Divor]

That's almost like saying when it's drizzling on your windshield you can't stay in your lane.

Not really, because those two could possibly still be related.

 

[Walter]

Most ear plugs are dangerous to wear when diving. Vented ear plugs are fine. I wear Doc's vented Pro Plugs. I don't think ear plugs will solve your problem. It sounds like you are waiting too long to equalize.

 

[jameys18]

The reason I'm thinking it was the bubbles is because when I was diving in England I wore a dry suit and hood etc and this wasn't a problem. When I moved back to the states and went with no hood I started having this problem. At depth I would find myself keeping my head tilted in odd ways so the bubbles wouldn't toll over my ears because it hurt when they did...

Not sure about the whole car lane anology but I don't see why asking about ear plugs would portray that I should get requal'd... No, I don't remember any one covering ear plugs in my course. That's. Why I asked for advice instead of just throwing a pair in.

Thanks for the fast responces everyone. I think I'll grab some claratin and give that a try, maybe try to equalize a but sooner and maybe just buy another hood if it keeps bothering me.

Written from iPhone so please excuse spelling mistakes

 

[AfterDark]

The reason I'm thinking it was the bubbles is because when I was diving in England I wore a dry suit and hood etc and this wasn't a problem. When I moved back to the states and went with no hood I started having this problem. At depth I would find myself keeping my head tilted in odd ways so the bubbles wouldn't toll over my ears because it hurt when they did...

Not sure about the whole car lane anology but I don't see why asking about ear plugs would portray that I should get requal'd... No, I don't remember any one covering ear plugs in my course. That's. Why I asked for advice instead of just throwing a pair in.

Thanks for the fast responces everyone. I think I'll grab some claratin and give that a try, maybe try to equalize a but sooner and maybe just buy another hood if it keeps bothering me.

Written from iPhone so please excuse spelling mistakes

It's not your fault your probably just another victim of the abbreviated training that passes for qual'd these days. This was covered during the 12 weeks I received my training. Even if it hadn't, the understanding of the gas / pressure laws if taught correctly have the answer contained within them. You need to educate yourself on the physiological and medical aspects related to diving. There are other things you can hurt yourself with, nose clips are a bad idea also. Basically you don't want any openings blocked when your diving. Cranial rectal inversion would disqualify one for diving. The blockage would be too great.

 

[UCFKnightDiver]

The reason I'm thinking it was the bubbles is because when I was diving in England I wore a dry suit and hood etc and this wasn't a problem. When I moved back to the states and went with no hood I started having this problem. At depth I would find myself keeping my head tilted in odd ways so the bubbles wouldn't toll over my ears because it hurt when they did...

Not sure about the whole car lane anology but I don't see why asking about ear plugs would portray that I should get requal'd... No, I don't remember any one covering ear plugs in my course. That's. Why I asked for advice instead of just throwing a pair in.

Thanks for the fast responces everyone. I think I'll grab some claratin and give that a try maybe try to equalize a but sooner and maybe just buy another hood if it keeps bothering me.

Written from iPhone so please excuse spelling mistakes

I notice this sometimes with a hood, I think*** It's because you can build up an air space in your hood and keep your ears dry this simply makes it easier to equalize, but bubbles from the regulator shouldn't make much of a difference if any I wouldn't think.

As to the question about ear plugs, I agree this should have been covered in your open water class. It would be beneficial to go back and learn these things as they are important!