Need Advice/Intervention

[vladimir]

I don't think it would be beyond this guy to discover the useful and fun fact that he can surface super fast just by pressing the 'up' button on his inflator hose. Why swim when you can use the elevator?

"Berkeley Police, what is the nature of your emergency?

"I need a MedEvac chopper in here, right away!"

"Where are you located, sir?"

"At my Dad's house, where I live rent-free. I have my own entrance though. It's 555 Suburban Court. Please! Hurry!"

"What is the emergency sir? What happened?"

"My Dad's just floating on the surface of the pool! He just did an uncontrolled ascent from 8'--just inflated his BC. He really started to accelerate in the last foot or two!"

Is he conscious?"

"Yeah, uh, he's sipping a beer, but it won't be long now."

<dial tone>

 

[Krenath]

So you're implying that bad habits he discovers for himself in a pool would never carry over into open-water diving. That once he discovers the up button in 8ft of water, there's no chance whatsoever of him trying it from 50ft just because it worked in the pool.

And he's not going to do this why? Would that be because we've already established that Dad is just the kind of guy who listens closely to his instructor and does everything the way he's taught?

 

[ScubaSteve]

It takes all kinds to make the world go around.

 

[vladimir]

So you're implying that bad habits he discovers for himself in a pool would never carry over into open-water diving. That once he discovers the up button in 8ft of water, there's no chance whatsoever of him trying it from 50ft just because it worked in the pool.

And he's not going to do this why? Would that be because we've already established that Dad is just the kind of guy who listens closely to his instructor and does everything the way he's taught?

You guys must lead dull lives if you look for hypotheticals to worry about. I am not implying that this is the optimal training strategy, and I'm not implying that there is zero possibility that something could go wrong, I'm just saying there's very little to worry about here. Check the backyard for killer bees, batten down the hurricane cellar, watch for tsunamis, but don't worry about dad in the pool.

 

[ScubaSteve]

Just because some guy on the internet says pops is a goner does not make it so. Perhaps those that are so certain that he will die from his rapid ascent or his bad habits picked up after 20 minutes in the pool with his son (if his son was not so selfish) should actually focus on what could realistically happen and leave the wild "The sky is falling" theories behind. Risk management.

 

[gfyrasng]

My instructor hammered into my head the idea that an untrained diver should basically do nothing without an instructor nearby. Once he's certified, it's all on him. I fully agree with the OP that the dad is asking for trouble he wouldn't fully understand how to deal with yet.

Sure, the guy's dad will *probably* be fine, but that's not close enough to *definitely* for comfort. Best to convince the dad to put off the pool cleaning session until after the cert card arrives.

I don't get all the people saying "Why don't you clean the pool?" You know the dad is just looking for an excuse to use the pretty scuba gear. A clean pool isn't going to slow him down. The OP could clean the whole pool and the dad'll probably say something with "I'll just go make sure you did it right".

A mere 8ft pool is right about 1.24 atmospheres of pressure at the bottom. SO if Dad takes a deep breath at 8ft, holds it, and surfaces despite having been told NOT to hold his breath, the air in his lungs will expand 24%-ish on the way up. Unless my math is way off, this is about the same percentage increase in lung air volume as holding your breath from 48ft(2.48ata) up to 33ft(2ata) or from 90ft(3.72ata) up to 66ft(3ata).

While dad may not necessarily drown, there is some risk of an air embolism if he screws up.

If the dad is that dead set on...
1. using equipment he's not certified on
2. without instructor supervision
3. and very likely doing it alone,
...then what are the odds that he'll follow any other training to the letter?

I understand what you're saying, but let's be realistic. Dad would have to lay completely flat on the bottom of the pool, breathe in as deep as he could, and then rise all the way to the surface. It just really doesn't seem all that likely.

 

[vladimir]

Perhaps those that are so certain that he will die from his rapid ascent or his bad habits picked up after 20 minutes in the pool with his son (if his son was not so selfish) should actually focus on what could realistically happen and leave the wild "The sky is falling" theories behind. Risk management.

Yes. Focus on the real risks in life--that cigarette in your mouth, that gut hanging over your belt, that seatbelt you're sitting on, etc.

 

[vladimir]

I understand what you're saying, but let's be realistic. Dad would have to lay completely flat on the bottom of the pool, breathe in as deep as he could, and then rise all the way to the surface. It just really doesn't seem all that likely.

We dismissed the embolism risk early in this discussion when we agreed that dad knows not to close his airway. If he doesn't know that after two pool sessions and some classwork, then he truly is at risk, sooner or later.

 

[Krenath]

I understand what you're saying, but let's be realistic. Dad would have to lay completely flat on the bottom of the pool, breathe in as deep as he could, and then rise all the way to the surface. It just really doesn't seem all that likely.

Not likely a trained diver would do it, no.

Dad's not a trained diver yet. Dad's not been paying full attention in classes. Dad's intent on doing it his way.

Who knows what he would or would not do in the pool?

"Don't worry. He's had half a scuba class he wasn't paying attention to. He'll be fine."

I simply can not see where it wouldn't be better just to convince Dad to leave the pool alone until the classes are done.

 

[gfyrasng]

Ooops, obviously didn't take the time too review everything.