Prevent regs from free-flowing when you surface-swim?

[lowwall]

Too bad your reg doesn't have an adjustment knob.....

Too bad your reg needs an adjustment knob.

 

[60plus]

Too bad your reg needs an adjustment knob.

strange comment, please explain

 

[John C. Ratliff]

Hey there~!
I've got noob question. I notice when I surface swim (using my snorkel to conserve air), my reg, which is out of my mouth, sometimes flies around and if the mouth piece faces upward, it'd start to free-flow.
I've tried to to mitigate it by holding it in my hand and swim with just one hand like an idiot .

Is there a better way to prevent this?

Alex,

A while back Dacor made a regulator, the Dacor Olympic, which would not free flow for over 4 seconds. They designed a route in for water that allowed the pressures to equalize, and shut off the free flow automatically. They carried it over into their Dacor Pacer line, but eventually it was phased out, and then of course, when Dacor started some really innovative regulators, they were bought out by Mares and dissolved. But an old, metal Dacor Pacer will not free flow, even if well tuned.

Now, concerning your regulator, simply turn it over and put one finger over the mouthpiece, and it should do the same thing as the Dacor Pacer, allow water in and shut off the free flow. Some regulators allow de-tuning, but this rather defeats the very nice-performing regulators. if it can be done in-water, then do detune it. But if not, then use the above simple technique to shut off the free flow. Once totally flooded, it should not free flow again while you are snorkeling. You don't need to change your regulator, as it is a nice-performing regulator. Just learn to handle the free flow aspect.

SeaRat

 

[CT-Rich]

Properly tuned, if you point the mouth piece down, it shouldn’t free flow. Once it starts while mouth piece up, it will continue until it is reorient mouth piece down. If it has an adjustment knob, you can de tune it.