Octo/inflator in cold water?

[101recon]

I see very little difference in pushing a button and blowing into the mouth piece of an Octo-Z as opposed to pushing a button and blowing into a standard inflator.On the surface Both will be a pain.What is the difference except the mouth piece?

You are right Dragon Eye,so.......45F.

 

[hypertech]

They work fine except for the coldest of the cold. When I bought the SS1's, I called Atomic and they said it was for sure fine anytime it isn't iced over and it is probably fine even with ice but they wouldn't say that definitively. On a safe second or an octo, your talking about a 40" hose to share, and that just isn't enough space to comfortably air share (IMHO). If you don't believe me, do an ascent with a safety stop sometime on a octo. Then find a buddy with a long hose and do it again. If you think the octo is better, come visit me and I'll buy you a beer.

One thing the safe second really has going for it is gear compactness, light weight, and ease of gear up. I used to keep 2 people's regs in one reg bag. Each had a first, a single hose to a second, and an inflator hose (wireless computers).

Now, I've got two reg bags one for each person. My reg bag has a pair of XTX50's, and XTX200 first stage, the long hose, inflator hose, drysuit hose, computers, compass, plus an extra DS4 w/ XTX50 w/ pressure gauge for the pony. I swear it weighs 38 pounds now and practically needs wheels. In the water though, it isn't any less streamlined and I'm more comfortable wearing it.

Its all about getting the right gear for the diving. There is a place for a safe second in some people's gear bag even if I decided there wasn't one in mine. FWIW, I'd rather see people diving safe seconds than octo's hanging down below them wacking into everything they pass or so far down in teh muck there is so much sand in it it probably doesn't even work.

 

[cmburch]

Consider the scenario where it's you that's OOA, and you need to establish substantial positive buoyancy at the surface. Also consider if you're OOA or had to disconnect the LP host due to a free-flowing octo, insufficiently buoyant, and near panic. Someone's going to need to orally inflate that BC, and you better hope he knows how to do it with an octo/inflator. If he's your buddy, you presumably briefed him - but if he's not...

Yes, I realize that if you're OOA and properly weighted, you'll be neutral to slightly positive. Personally, I don't want to have to struggle to keep my airway above the surface chop while myself or someone else is doing an oral inflation.

This isn't a hypothetical situation. I've had to do an oral inflate at the surface using one, and it's not something that I care to repeat.

Maybe drop weight for someone on surface and problem with flotation; if the person was in distress and unable to remedy such as this scenario.

No sense in drowning at the surface for less than $100 of lead. The person helping may have enough buoyancy to hang onto it.