No Joke

[EireDiver606]

My safety checks: PLANS SAVE

PLANS (Planning Phase) "Plan your dive and dive your PLANS."

People = Who leads? Who follows? In what order? What are the responsibilities of each team member?
Logistics (ADDD up) = Air/Gas we are diving? Depth of dive (max/avg)? Duration of dive? Deco schedule (planned, bailout, worst case)?
Air Rule = All usable? Half usable? Rock bottom? Thirds? Sixths?
Navigation (ADD the nav) = Azimuth/Compass headings? Directional changes? Distance(s) from shore, boat, entrance?
Signals = Hand signals? Light signals? Touch contact? Written?

SAVE (In-Water or On Deck Safety Checks) "If you do nothing else the SAVE may save your life."

S-Drill/Safety Drill = Long hose deployable & working? Back-up working? Deco/Stage bottles working?
Air Leak/Bubble Check = Scuba? Bottles? Scooters? Cameras?
Valve Drill = Full or Modified? Right post open? Isolator open? Left post open? Check SPG? Deco/Stage bottles charged, off, and stowed (unless using travel gas)?
Equipment = Full head to toe matching? Or, abbreviated (ex. Primary reel? Two safety spools? Back-up mask?)?

I caught the problem before the SAVE checks when I open knobs by habit before slipping into my gear.

Do you use GUE EDGE? I find it nice and easy to remember

 

[seeker242]

Dude it's not a "fluctuation myth" and duh of course the spg needle won't fluctuate if the valve is full open, that's the whole POINT of doing it. If the valve is closed, the spg needle will drop when the diver takes a breath off their regulator during the predive check. That's how you confirm your valve is in fact, OPEN. It's a REALLY simple concept.

It's not that simple really. One of my buddies told me a story about this when he first started diving years ago. Checked the needle, no problem didn't move! Full tank, breathing fine on the boat, no problem! Once he got got deeper it became harder and harder to breathe and eventually stopped delivering air. His buddy kept descending ahead of him and never looked back...Buddy fail...He had to do a CESA from 85' or so.

Turns out the valve was opened just enough to make it seem like it was open on the boat, when it was actually just cracked open. So, because he was relying on just the SPG to confirm it, he had to do a CESA...Buddy fail notwithstanding.

 

[Trace Malinowski]

Do you use GUE EDGE? I find it nice and easy to remember

When I was GUE we used SADDDDD.

• S - Sequence (Who leads? Who follows? In what order? Responsibilities?)
• A - Air (What mix/mixes are we diving?)
• D - Depth (Planned, max, avg?)
• D - Duration (How long?)
• D - Deco (Planned, bailout, overstay?)
• D - Direction (What headings or navigational changes?)
• D - Distance (How far from shore, boat, entrance/exit?)

The GUE EDGE sounded too obnoxious to play well with others. After Tech 2 I was done.

Having been used to SADDDDD, we hated the EDGE. We refused to do it, but not doing it was a standards violation. I created PLANS SAVE for PSAI when I was the training director for the Americas. I wanted something that was thorough, easy to remember (the harder parts of logistics and navigation you just ADD/ADDD from the SADDDDD, and could play well with others as a sensible, agency-neutral mnemonic.

 

[mcohen1021]

Today, a diver on the boat thought it would be funny to turn off my air between dives as a joke.

As a joke, you could have returned the favor and kicked him in the balls.

 

[kelemvor]

When I was GUE we used SADDDDD.

• S - Sequence (Who leads? Who follows? In what order? Responsibilities?)
• A - Air (What mix/mixes are we diving?)
• D - Depth (Planned, max, avg?)
• D - Duration (How long?)
• D - Deco (Planned, bailout, overstay?)
• D - Direction (What headings or navigational changes?)
• D - Distance (How far from shore, boat, entrance/exit?)

The GUE EDGE sounded too obnoxious to play well with others. After Tech 2 I was done.

Having been used to SADDDDD, we hated the EDGE. We refused to do it, but not doing it was a standards violation. I created PLANS SAVE for PSAI when I was the training director for the Americas. I wanted something that was thorough, easy to remember (the harder parts of logistics and navigation you just ADD/ADDD from the SADDDDD, and could play well with others as a sensible, agency-neutral mnemonic.

Quintuple D? That's huge! I love it.

 

[divad]

Quintuple D? That's huge! I love it.

What if you mix up the Ds? Does it still work...Oh wait...that's another D. Dang....DOH!

 

[Dizzi Lizzi]

]

Sometimes I feel a little dorky when I breathe off my reg/check my spg at the gate, hardly anyone does that. Not feeling so dorky now!

Never feel dorky for doing the right thing. There’s a reason for most everything you learn in your courses, much of it written the hard way by those who went before.

Don't! People actually think you are a savvy diver. Even DM's can make mistakes or forget things on 'valet' dive ops. It is worth giving your gear a visual check after they set it up or change tanks as well.

Not changing a thing!! I change things for facts and reasons, not feelings. Although the "spg fluctuation myth " post confused me enough to go check it out. I'm fine as my valve is either on or off-no 1/4 turns for me, so I will continue to do my check at the gate. Thanks!!

 

[boulderjohn]

@Superlyte27

Pete, next time I even think about posting something. Beat the sh*t out of me. I'll thank you.

If Pete is either unwilling or unavailable, I will do it if you pay just half of my airfare.

 

[RockiesFan]

Just like with the whale shark riding thread, you never know which direction a thread will take. It could end with only a few comments and cautionary tale or morph into 20 plus pages.

 

[Wookie]

Just like with the whale shark riding thread, you never know which direction a thread will take. It could end with only a few comments and cautionary tale or morph into 20 plus pages.

No. I knew exactly how a thread about riding a whale shark would turn out. After reading your post, I see it turned out exactly as I would have thought.

This has been a most excellent and valuable discussion.