Long-hose in the time of COVID-19

[Eric Sedletzky]

Instead of arguing endlessly about which method is best, maybe we should be discussing the best ways to prevent OOA emergencies in the first place??
I don’t see the big deal with switching from primary donate to a secondary in the triangle. All I would have to do is use my necklaces reg as my primary and the 40” would be stuffed under a piece of inner tube on my right shoulder strap in plain view. It could be deployed in an instant just like if it was a primary in my mouth. During a primary donate the donating diver should be the one in charge and the one administering the reg to the OOA diver, not the other way around. I was taught to grab the hose right next to the second stage forming a fist and hand it straight to the diver rotating it 180 degrees with exhaust down and arm extended out. You get it in their mouth until you see them clear it and breathe then you can let it go after they have a hand on it. You don’t want to fumble it so that’s why it’s important to grasp it firmly.
To me it doesn’t matter so much if the donated reg came from your mouth or from being stowed, the time frame and delivery/control is the more critical factor. I think another very important thing is for each diver to carefully pay attention to each other and know where your buddy is avoid a from-behind-reg-mugging. I say this because I know we’re mostly talking about basic OW divers who don’t have a lot of experience, but if you’re the primary lead diver leading around a new instabuddy then these rules need to be discussed before the dive and followed. If I saw an instabuddy making a beeline for my primary the first thing that would happen is I would reach out and grab them by something around their chest with a strong arm and hold them firmly to get control of them by the BC chest strap, shoulder strap, etc. I would establish control first and foremost then they would get my reg. I would make sure it operates properly before the dive. I don’t believe in using some cheap detuned secondary. All my regs are high quality and operate perfectly.
For this reason, I see rental regs to possibly be inferior or at least have the potential to be flawed. I think anyone who regularly dives deeper that just shallow reef dives once a year on vacation should really consider buying their own QUALITY equipment, keep it tuned and it good shape, and please get in the habit of checking your gas supply regularly please,
(an old solo diver trick).
Thank You

 

[Storker]

please get in the habit of checking your gas supply regularly please,
(an old solo scuba diver trick).

FTFY

 

[Ayisha]

Following the release of GUE COVID-19 protocols...
Do you think clipping the regulator significantly increases the time it takes to donate in a OOG situation? Would you keep it unclipped instead (just hanging on your neck) in a recreational dive?

I would not keep it unclipped in case it becomes an entanglement hazard or in case it may be elsewhere when you look for it.

I don't think it would significantly increase donation time. If you consider that this protocol was released for GUE trained divers, and how much time each of us has spent clipping and unclipping bolt snaps until we're proficient without even looking at where they are, it should be very insignificant for a GUE trained diver.

 

[Macan]

Student diver learning how to share gas with a long hose while reducing risk of Covid.

 

[Angelo Farina]

I did always use method 2. However, my "long hose" is not sooo long...
Furthermore, my long hose is yellow.

 

[Edward3c]

Student diver learning how to share gas with a long hose while reducing risk of Covid.

In effect your using secondary donate - welcome to the real world.

 

[Macan]

In effect your using secondary donate - welcome to the real world.

Primary donate is still the time tested gold standard, and slightly faster from a reg handoff standpoint. Mitigating an OOG situation is still central but $#%^ happens. As mentioned in the video, whatever method you choose should be part of the pre-dive briefing.

 

[boulderjohn]

For Covid safety, what I have been doing during drills is to have the donor do exactly what he or she would do normally. The receiver then takes the regulator in the hand but switches to his or her own alternate. The rest of the drill continues as normal, with the receiver holding the regulator hose near the mouth.

 

[Graeme Fraser]

For Covid safety, what I have been doing during drills is to have the donor do exactly what he or she would do normally. The receiver then takes the regulator in the hand but switches to his or her own alternate. The rest of the drill continues as normal, with the receiver holding the regulator hose near the mouth.

Yes, this is the procedure I'm teaching. Not ideal, but the only technical difference is the receiver doesn't have the donors actual reg in his / her mouth, which shouldn't really be an issue, particularly for students at tech level.

 

[Edward3c]

For Covid safety, what I have been doing during drills is to have the donor do exactly what he or she would do normally. The receiver then takes the regulator in the hand but switches to his or her own alternate. The rest of the drill continues as normal, with the receiver holding the regulator hose near the mouth.

The problem with this approach is it has the potential to teach that as muscle memory.

When AIDS raised its head, the teaching of rescue breaths (RB) was adapted to practice on the forehead or opposite cheek. What happened was in real rescue situations the rescuer blew onto the forehead or opposite cheek and the casualty died. The RB training reverted back to making a mouth to mouth seal.