Opinions needed: New diver in a pool without a buddy at the bottom

[ChrisA]

Next thing, you'll be telling us that you've rejected the "air is for tires" DIR mantra and were using AIR!.

OH My God! No, not air in tires! No if you care about safty. Air has 21% O2. Think this the PP of O2 in a tire at 32PSI. What a fire hazrd that would be! I can't imagine a guy who thinks a plastic buckle would kill him using AIR in his tires. No, No, No, he would certainly pump only 100% pure nitrogen in to his tires. Everyone who cares about safty (airplanes race cars,....) would not think about putting presurized oxigen in a flamable rubber container.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

You don't say how new you are. Are these other swimmers lifeguards or do they even have basic cpr first aid? Can you count on them to do nothing except keep their eyes on you? Can they pull you up and out of the water in all your gear? Do they know how to get it off of you if they have to? Will they be sober? If not then it's a crap shoot and maybe darwin will claim another newbie. Hold your breath and swim to the shallow end after taking a breath of compressed air? Not me! TS&M, isn't your husbasnd a certified diver? Not somebody just sitting at the pool watching you. The OP already stated that none of these people will be divers. I solo in open water so I have no problem alone in the pool. I've also completed rescue, deep, nitrox, uw nav, and drysuit as well as equip specialist. Yet I would not advise a new diver to essentially solo with no knowledge of the risks. The help he is describing in my book is no help. If you are not capable of going alone open water you have no business in any alone if you are new. Unless you want to add to Darwin's count.

 

[TSandM]

Yeah, my husband is a Rescue diver. But as I said, I've gone solo in my pool, and I did it fairly early on, when I was desperately trying to master neutral buoyancy. I'm risk averse and conservative (thus the DIR affiliation) but I just can't see anything really horrible happening to me in a small backyard swimming pool. A one in a million freak event -- but I could be hit by a meteorite while diving in my pool, too. At some point, you just have to be pragmatic.

 

[jheil82]

In all reality you going to do some skills in a friends pool is no more dangerous than me going for a swim in my pool after work ... alone. God forbid. Just be safe, do an easy slide off the edge entry and you are fine. I really believe any one here that dives and has a pool would be in there pool testing new equipment when they get it. For me, I just go to an open pool night my dive shop offers twice a month at the YMCA if I want to try new gear. Goodluck.

 

[Ice9]

Hold your breath and swim to the shallow end after taking a breath of compressed air? Not me! TS&M, isn't your husbasnd a certified diver? Not somebody just sitting at the pool watching you. The OP already stated that none of these people will be divers. I solo in open water so I have no problem alone in the pool. I've also completed rescue, deep, nitrox, uw nav, and drysuit as well as equip specialist. Yet I would not advise a new diver to essentially solo with no knowledge of the risks. The help he is describing in my book is no help. If you are not capable of going alone open water you have no business in any alone if you are new. Unless you want to add to Darwin's count.

Well, I just finished my OW, and I really am desperate to practice buoyancy and work with weights. I consider myself pretty safety-conscious (thus my initial hesitation at doing this), and the idea of an over-expansion injury freaks me out, and remains in my mind throughout all dives, so I seriously doubt I woud ever even consider the idea of holding my breath while swimming to the shallow end of a pool.

The scenario I'm thinking about would be 1-2 people in the pool at the shallow end, snorkeling and watching me. They will be able to pull me out. Also, I planned on instructing them on how my equipment works and how to get me out of it, if need be. That being said, I also have to agree with the other posters in this thread - life is full of risks, we just mitigate them as much as possible.

I am pretty confortable in the water, as well as under it, so I think I'm probaby going to roll the dice and take this small risk. I may just stay in the shallow end though

Thanks all for your comments.

--Ice9

 

[The Chairman]

Go practice in the pool! Buddies are great, but it sounds like you have plenty: just not on compressed air!

The pool is a great place to try new gear or even overhauled gear BEFORE you get into OW. Just don't let the "Scuba Buddy Police" catch you! Bwahahahahaha!

BTW, while you're down there, don't forget that little patch of algae the pool sweeper keeps missing!

 

[Ice9]

BTW, while you're down there, don't forget that little patch of algae the pool sweeper keeps missing!

Thats how I got permission to use the pool

--Ice9

 

[Brandon]

Course, you could always find a local PADI instructor willing to charge you $75 for two hours of "supervision" in the pool....



... or not.

-Brandon.

 

[tparrent]

For crying out loud, go get wet! The fact that you even thought about the risks is a good sign. Now go diving.

Charlie99 hit it on the head. After getting certified but before going on my first trip, I rented time at the LDS pool and went in all by my lonesome for an hour. Wait.....ok, I just pinched myself and felt it so I am still here. Anyway, I was FAR safer on my first dive on the trip in the big bad ocean BECAUSE I had practiced my bouyancy AND thought through the sorta solo experience ahead of time.

When I finally did hit the water, I discovered that buddies tend to be about a pool width away most of the time anyway.

Be careful, have fun, don't let everyday risks keep you in a closet with a hat made of tinfoil

 

[Packhorse]

If you have to ask you are probably not ready. And your probably not ready to do an open water dive without a DM or instructor.