Practicing in a pool

[Belmont]

I am practicing my trim, buoyancy, S-drills, an finning techniques in a 15 foot deep pool this winter.

I don't have access to open water here since most of it is frozen or too cold to dive without a dry suit.

I'm able to hold position one foot off the bottom and do valve shut down, reg deployment and mask removal and clearing. I repeat the procedure at a depth of 10 feet. I try to hover there in preparation for future deco stops. It's pretty neat because there are windows that act as mirrors below water and I can see myself. I do this when instructors are giving scuba classes so I'm not alone. I also practice my frog kicks in front of the filter outlet, it is a kind of artificial current, pretty demanding because it's a 2 inch pipe. I also have tried lift bag and SMB deployment, lots of work still to be done on that.

My questions are: will I have to start over some of the things I do in the pool when I get back to diving in open water. Am I at risk of having to undo what I learned. Is there some other type of exercise I could practice.

Thank you for your input

Michael

 

[MBH]

Shallow water is an excellent place to practice. Changes in buoyancy take place at a much faster pace in shallow water. IMHO mastering shallow water buoyancy makes controlling buoyancy at depth an snap. You'll just have to learn to compensate for slower rates of buoyancy change. Holding neutral at depth is WAY easier than holding neutral while shallow.
As for your finning technique...Perfection takes perfect practice.

 

[ReefHound]

Sounds like good practice but holding position may be harder in open water. I always find it easier to hold position when there is a good frame of reference, like a bottom or wall. Take that away and the difficulty increases.

 

[riguerin]

Are you practicing using the same equipment that you plan to eventually use in OW ... in particular tanks and exposure suit ? Are you currently diving a dry suit ?

 

[CompuDude]

Sounds like excellent practice. Be sure to wear exactly the same setup, as riguerin mentions, for the best effect.

Be aware, however, that in addition to losing your frame of reference as reefhound mentions, the open ocean moves around a LOT more than a pool does, even with the jets on. It's a lot harder to hold position as a result.

One thing that may help is to try to do some of these skills with your eyes closed. Open your eyes at the end and see how much your buoyancy has changed. That will take away the artificially-easy frame of reference.

 

[JeffG]

Beats Cyber diving

 

[riguerin]

Actually, we normally don't use the same config for pool work versus OW work ... which is why I asked.

For us, it's usually AL80's and 3mm wet suit in the pool versus HP100's or HP130's and dry suit for OW. Obviously, a set of AL80's trim out out differently than a set of HP100's ... buoyancy control is bit more involved in a dry suit versus a 3mm wet suit.

So to answer the OP's original question ... possibly you could have more work ahead of you when you get back to OW diving.

Beats Cyber diving

So, how's your pool work coming along, dude ?

 

[SparticleBrane]

According to his profile the OP is a new diver.

Generally I feel that new divers shouldn't wear all their gear in the pool until they can master trim and buoyancy in a bp/w and perhaps a rashguard (keeps the webbing from destroying your shoulders). The important things that new divers should get from pool work are concepts. Master the concepts of trim and buoyancy in a basic bp/w and Al80, and you can apply that to whatever gear you want.

After you've done that, then hop in the pool fully loaded.

 

[Belmont]

Very interesting comments, they confirm what I was thinking.
What practice I have done in the pool was with an HP 130, wearing a rash guard.
Next time I'll put on my 3mm wet suit and canister light. I hope this won't freak the group of Padi students...:11:

The water in the pool is pretty warm but no more than what I will be experiencing in Tulum (cavern) and Jamaica this winter.

Next spring I'll be taking a dry suit intro an trying my 2 HP130's together.