PLBs and DSMBs

[Dan]

I've got the same plb - what's that canister you've got it in? What's the depth rating on it?

Specially made for my PLB1. I drew it and sent the drawing to local plastic machine shop. Costed $125 to make it. I took it down to 144 fsw (44m) for 3 minutes in Palau to see this guy , no leak.

 

[DandyDon]

Newbie question but wouldn’t you always want to have 1 diver or DM carrying a surface marker buoy in your drift dive instead of just following bubbles?

EVERY diver should carry a SMB on every dive. Dragging one is not so common.

PS - for sure have a PLB on my wish list.

I don't know about you, I guess that most Texans live in cities these days, but I carry mine in my console driving, backpack hiking, dive canister diving. The PLB1 like Dan illustrated above is the smallest, but even the View model is easy to carry anywhere.

 

[lionfish-eater]

I don't think that I'll ever need mine, but I never leave home without it, in my car console, my backpack, dive canister, whatever.

That's important as you get older and wander off more.

 

[Scraps]

If you're diving in the ocean, a real PLB is a wise decision. Unfortunately, they're expensive at just over $300. The other stuff is very cheap.

Regrettably, lots of divers readily overspend by more than that for features they don't need on BCD's or regulators or computers, but can never spare the funds for something that could become their most useful possession in all the world.

(I carry an InReach Mini with the 100 m case, so it's always with me in the water.)

 

[Joneill]

If you're diving in the ocean, a real PLB is a wise decision. Unfortunately, they're expensive at just over $300. The other stuff is very cheap.

But a worthwhile investment if it saves your life… and not that expensive if you consider the other things folks waste money on!

 

[DandyDon]

So a PLB costs $300 to $400, but you can carry it anywhere. Over a six-year standby life, that's about $1 to $1.30/week for insurance. Then have the battery professionally replaced and the unit tested by an acclaimed service center for around $150 for another six years at 50¢/week. Divers add $100 for a canister, spare O-rings, and silicone grease.

Just don't be that klutz who fires his accidentally raising a false alarm. I keep mine in a cheap camera bag that prevents the antenna from accidentally unfolding or the buttons being pressed.

 

[Scraps]

So a PLB costs $300 to $400, but you can carry it anywhere. Over a six-year standby life, that's about $1 to $1.30/week for insurance. Then have the battery professionally replaced and the unit tested by an acclaimed service center for around $150 for another six years at 50¢/week. Divers add $100 for a canister, spare O-rings, and silicone grease.

Just don't be that klutz who fires his accidentally raising a false alarm. I keep mine in a cheap camera bag that prevents the antenna from accidentally unfolding or the buttons being pressed.

Subscription fees exceed cost of the gear, but your point stands.

"I may die on this dive, but at least my wife will be consoled by the $5 per week I didn't spend to buy and register a PLB."

There are a lot of financial decisions whose importance outweighs the financial calculation. As a military retiree, I pay about 6% of my retired pay for a survivors benefit plan that will pay my wife 55% of my retired pay for the rest of her life after I day. I often encounter other retirees (well, not so much this year) who are sure the SBP is a ripoff and they can invest that premium a lot more effectively. I doubt the truth of that assertion, but it doesn't matter. For 6% of my retired pay, I sleep well knowing my wife will never be poor. That makes the expense worthwhile to me.

(The survivors benefit plan has a restriction that says she'll lose the benefit if I die and she remarries before she turns 62. Before we turned 62, I used to tell her, "Look, I want you to have this benefit. We paid for it. It's yours. If I keel over and you find another guy, you're just going to have to live in sin for a while. Don't remarry until your 62nd birthday." She didn't think it was as funny as I did.)

 

[DandyDon]

Subscription fees exceed cost of the gear, but your point stands.

PLBs do not have subscription fees. Other gadgets may, but which one chooses is a personal call.

 

[Scraps]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I'm well aware of all the arguments for why PLB's are better than iR Minis and like devices (more wattage, more potential recipients of alerts, device can be registered with government, etc.).

I know enough about how these uncorrelated maydays get handled in command centers to prefer the inReach Mini for a) the ability it gives friends and loved ones to track my position in real time and call the Coast Guard with an actionable overdue report, and b) the ability to put me in touch with the Garmin command center, which will stay on the case until the appropriate first responder agency arrives.

I don't care that it's not a "real PLB." I know which device will put a helicopter overhead faster. I don't know about wilderness environments other than marine. And I don't know about first responders other than the US Coast Guard. But for diving in US coastal waters, the choice for me was clear.

 

[DandyDon]

I'm well aware of all the arguments for why PLB's are better than iR Minis and like devices (more wattage, more potential recipients of alerts, device can be registered with government, etc.).

No argument from me. I was just addressing your incorrect implication of PLBs and fees.

"I may die on this dive, but at least my wife will be consoled by the $5 per week I didn't spend to buy and register a PLB."

I know enough about how these uncorrelated maydays get handled in command centers to prefer the inReach Mini

There are various gadgets and choices for everyone, and it's great that you made your choice and got yours. I know that 90% of PLB alerts are butt-dial type false alarms and the helicopters may well not launch right away if there is no other source, so I hope that my captain alerts the local authorities quickly, or on another trip - my daughter answers the phone can confirm that I am traveling in the wilds of that location. Otherwise, I know that i may not see first responders for a while so I'll do what I can to wait, keep the transmitter and strobe aimed correctly, etc. After I am saved, I'll send my PLB to ACR with my story so they can hang it on their trophy wall and send me a new one.