Octo on bungeed necklace?

[JohnQPS122]

PADI training does, in fact, go over which air source to give your buddy - sortof. I just got my wife's manual out and checked it.

In the case of her class last year, they were using BCDs with the alternate air source integrated into the inflator. That's why they were taught to give an OOA diver their primary regulator, and I see now that the PADI manual says as much.

But it also says there are "three basic configurations" of alternate air sources, and "depending on the configuration, the donor may give the receiver the alternate, or [give them] the primary and then switch to the alternate. The important point is to agree on the procedure before the dive."

They say the alternate air source's hose is typically longer than the one "you put in your mouth" (meaning the primary) for "ease of use." They show a photo of an OOA diver using the longer-hosed octo.

So when I said PADI is now teaching that you give your primary to an OOA diver, I was half wrong - they do teach that, but ONLY if you are using an alternate integrated into your BCD inflator hose.

My bad!

 

[halocline]

I am also of the school of never put a complete loop around your neck (including ties) it is a choking hazard. I never wore jewlery that I couldn't easily break. The tubular neckless holder is such a hazard! If you get to close to something in a low vis condition it could get caught. Also during a OOA with a panicked diver while reaching for your primary the secondary second stage can still be ripped out of the neckless making it harder to find.

Do you have any evidence whatsoever that there is even a shred of truth in these statements? How about a single example of any diver ever being choked by his bungie necklace, (or even any example of it getting entangled on something) or a panicked diver "ripping the secondary out of the necklace while reaching for the primary"?

You're right, everyone is entitled to an opinion, but these statements have no basis in reality.

 

[ianr33]

I am also of the school of never put a complete loop around your neck (including ties) it is a choking hazard.

Opinions are like gas;
You're entitled to have some, but people appreciate if you keep it to yourself when it stinks!

Yes! look at the piles of dead Hogarthian divers who have expired due to the suicidal nooses they so foolishly wear.

 

[Hatul]

Just don't use cave line to make a necklace with or any other non-stretching material. It also has the added benefit that if you have an issue, your buddy knows where your nearest regulator is to put it in your mouth(ie, around your neck), and knows it hasn't been dragging through the silt.

Choking hazard? ... yeah. If you're in an overhead environment your main issue will be that you just turned your tanks off. If you're in open water... I'm not sure how you'd manage to choke yourself unless you had a yard of shock cord flapping around or used non-stretching cave line. If your buddy has an OOA situation and grabs your octo out of the necklace, then takes your offered primary, you do remember how to recover a missing regulator right?

I think the choking concern is more of a phobia than anything real.

I don't use the octo-on-necklace system, but if you do, how about having two necklaces of different color, a short one for the primary and a longer one for the octo? That way you're unlikely to be in missing regulator situation.

Adam

 

[vjanelle]

Primary isn't on a necklace, if it needs to be removed for any purpose other than sharing air its clipped off to the chest d-ring(deco gasses, etc), or you lean and sweep to recover it. Having it on a necklace defeats the purpose of your buddy being able to grab it from your mouth in an OOA situation.

 

[RAWalker]

Do you have any evidence whatsoever that there is even a shred of truth in these statements? How about a single example of any diver ever being choked by his bungie necklace, (or even any example of it getting entangled on something) or a panicked diver "ripping the secondary out of the necklace while reaching for the primary"?

You're right, everyone is entitled to an opinion, but these statements have no basis in reality.

Please lets not get silly, I can easily turn it around and say do you have any proof that these events have not or can not happen.
Look at the math probability of an even happening when you leave a possibilty of it happening.
In mitigating risk factors do you select slim possibilty or none when you have a choice?
People have accidentally hung themselve on dry land. Do you honestly think there is no possibilty of someone accidently snagging something on a low vis dive.
Divers get caught up with frequency (not necessarily by the neckless) but it is how they and their buddy handle it that make a difference.
There is much more than a shred of truth when considered in such light.
Do you really feel you need any more evidence than that?
You are in an environment that requires thought, training and equipment to survive.
Eliminating a possible risk is all the basis in reality you should need.

 

[mkutyna]

Eliminating a possible risk is all the basis in reality you should need.

Then why do you go diving if you try to eliminate possible risks?

In order for me to consider avoiding a risk, the risk needs to have a reasonable chance of actually occurring. For instance, in low vis, I'll be more concerned with not hitting my head on a hard object than some ninja tree branch catching on my neckLACE and tugging on my neck a little.

 

[RAWalker]

Then why do you go diving if you try to eliminate possible risks?

In order for me to consider avoiding a risk, the risk needs to have a reasonable chance of actually occurring. For instance, in low vis, I'll be more concerned with not hitting my head on a hard object than some ninja tree branch catching on my neckLACE and tugging on my neck a little.

Diving is about mitigating the risks while enjoying our aquatic world.
Not all the risk can be eliminated while participating in the sport.
Every risk you eliminate is one less thing you need to be concerned of during your dives. It simple makes sense to eliminate those risks you can so your task load is lowered. Laughing a hazard of as improbable when it is still a possibilty is asking for Murphy to strike. You may consider it a little tug but if you are suggesting the use by others can you be sure they will react the same way? What if it isn't a tree branch but something more hazardous that you miss because of poor vis.
This really is a sport where you should follow the boyscout motto. "Be Prepared"

 

[mkutyna]

Correct, you can't eliminate all of the risks. That's why we're more concerned with risks that may actually occur instead of far fetched risks that have a almost zero chance of occurring. I can't speculate why but you seem to have a irrational fear of things being around your neck. That's fine. Obviously a reg necklace definitely isn't for you then.

However, for many people, a reg necklace makes for a good practice where they have easy and quick access to their secondary second stage. There is simply no other method for securing the secondary where you could get faster access to it.

 

[ianr33]

My Deco instructor used a bungeed backup.
My Trimix instructor used a bungeed backup.
My Intro cave instructor used a bungeed backup
My Full cave Instructor used a bungeed backup.
Everyone I dive with uses a bungeed backup.

I often dive a low viz lake with submerged trees.Snagged pretty much everything else at one time or another but never the bungeed backup.

The system just works. It does not cause problems.