Lessons Mask strap broke during a dive

[scubadada]

You first descend 20 feet after putting them on. Your eyeballs will pop out of their sockets displacing any water and provide your eyeballs with a custom vacuum fit in the goggles. Then feel free to ascend and once upon the surface you can pop your eyeblls out of the swim goggles and back into their sockets, maybe, probably not. Make sure to put the eyeballs back into the correct sockets as having the optic nerves switched around might require a lobotomy to prevent severe left and right confusion.

Or just learn to deal with a little saltwater in your eyesies, it will be okay for a few minutes.

Thanks for your valuable contribution. I would never think of doing this. My question, for those who think this is adequate for a mask backup, is how they would put on the goggles at depth and clear them for the ascent.

 

[LI-er]

I use goggles all the time for swimming. How do you clear goggles underwater, bursts from your regulator?

You don't.. I was just replying to a misunderstanding by a member who misinterpreted what another member wrote about yet another member who mentioned that goggles can be used as an emergency backup to a mask if the dive will be terminated when the primary mask is broken or lost, because when ascending the inability to clear them isn't an issue for obvious reasons.

My question, for those who think this is adequate for a mask backup, is how they would put on the goggles at depth and clear them for the ascent.

Good point. I can't think of a way to make that happen. Too bad, it seemed like a good idea when it was first mentioned on this thread.

 

[MikeSpike]

That is not cool

 

[MikeSpike]

I once lost my mask and reg.

 

[gordonscuba]

I do not want a government inspector or scuba police checking my equipment against a government mandated list. This is a buddy team non-tech forum and this is not the specific solo forum therefore this is really a no deco, no solo, no overhead, no penetration discussion forum. Failure or loss of mask is a minor inconvenience in open water buddy team diving and surfacing direct or even delayed and including a safety stop is not a big deal for a truly advanced skill level diver, or should not be. Now, if shore diving, need to traverse a boat lane, kelp bed or some other impediment to a safe conclusion of the dive, please by all means carry what is needed to accomplish that per experience.

I have never lost a mask in 56 years of diving that I can recall but I have had skirts split, frames leak or pop, buckles give up buckling and it has never been a problem to conclude the dive. My buddy can assist the safety stop though my experience is that I can do safety stops and navigation adequate for the open water environment without a mask. No reason that diving without a mask cannot be something a diver practices now and then just like an air share drill. I know of divers to tether their masks for surf and kelp shore dives.

If I am solo, planning a shore dive involving a long swim or there is deco or penetration potential then of course I would equip to handle that situation, which might include a spare mask. Otherwise, no, the less I carry, the more minimal and robust my kit, the better for me. Buy quality gear, inspect and maintain your gear.

The OP is about solo diving.

 

[JuLe]

I don't dive solo, but do carry a spare mask with me when diving "at home".

The waters here are murky, dark and cold. A lot of the bottom is soft silt. Drop a mask and most likely it is gone. Carrying my spare in my drysuit pocket is not a problem and this way if necessary, I can get (what little there is) visibility back pretty easily.

I also practice switching masks during a dive once in a while, just to convince myself I can do it without problems.

On vacation, diving in warmer and clearer waters, I don't always carry the spare. I figure that in better conditions I can manage without if the need should arise. Most likely one of my daughters will have one and we usually dive as a team of 3 or 4, so there is a spare available if necessary. (though it might not fit very welll)

 

[passeparici]

It's a personal choice, yes, in the sense that there are no scuba police underwater and most countries don't make unsafe diving illegal. However, most of us would not call something personal choice if it's just clearly unsafe. The reality is:

1. Every piece of gear can fail (or be lost / inaccessible which is a failure mode).

2. Each piece of gear is either critical or it isn't, where "critical" means that in some cases (perhaps only those cases where something goes wrong, but realistic), it would save your life. For example, a DSMB is critical because if current picks up and you find yourself adrift at sea in rough conditions, it could be the only way rescuers can see you. A cutting tool is critical in case of entanglement. A source of breathing gas is critical, obviously, but I don't think an octo is critical given that you will have a second tank with its own first and second stage. A reliable way of knowing your bottom time, depth and decompression is critical. One can argue whether or not a mask is critical, but I have tested and I do not trust myself to reliably perform deco stops and compass navigation without a mask.

Taking those two points together, I come to the conclusion that of each critical piece of gear, on any solo dive I will carry at least two.

Good points !
But I don't think the "I have never lost a mask in 30 years diving" is one...
Personnely in 50 years driving I have never had an accident : Do I still need safety equipments like a belt, an air bag, etc. ?

 

[BoltSnap]

Good points !
But I don't think the "I have never lost a mask in 30 years diving" is one...
Personnely in 50 years driving I have never had an accident : Do I still need safety equipments like a belt, an air bag, etc. ?

Why not spare fins?

 

[gordonscuba]

Why not spare fins?

Without fins, I can still control buoyancy, vertical position in the water column, and hold deco stops. I might not be able to get back to the original descent line, but I can still pop a DSMB. Are they critical life support equipment?

 

[hedonist222]

Why not spare fins?

Why stop there? Why not spare everything?
Because then it becomes difficult to haul and manage all this gear. A mask is small and can fit anywhere on your person. I have a dive pouch attached to the rear bottom of my BCD - DSMB and cutting tool stored there. My mask goes in my left dive shorts pocket. There's enough space in that pocket for my magnifying glass.