Preventing mask loss vs a spare

[Akimbo]

I was having dinner with several old diving mates and the subject of carrying a spare mask came up. The group has a lot of experience diving in harsh conditions all over the world -- military, commercial, and open-sea Scuba. The "young guy" has only been diving 27 years. After some bantering, it turns out that none of us has ever lost a mask. Knee-jerk conclusion: No reason to carry a spare.

A few glasses of wine later and the sea-stories started surfacing where losing a mask would have been a big problem and what care was exercised to avoid it. The most common method was to pull the hood down, put the mask on, and pull the hood over the strap. Others just tied a piece of line to the mask and hooked it on somewhere. Naturally, duct tape was employed more than once. None of us bothered with these measures on normal dives, but are highly conditioned to protect our mask. More accurate conclusion:
A) Do what is necessary not to lose your mask.
B) Not losing your mask is a better solution than resorting to a spare, which can also be lost and takes time to deal with.

I was reviewing this conversation the other night and this thought progression evolved:

1. Losing a mask is never desirable ranging from embarrassing, expensive, blowing the dive, to possibly contributing to a dangerous situation.
2. Wearing the mask strap under the hood is a reliable means of loss prevention. Unfortunately it is less comfortable, harder to adjust, more trouble to don and doff, and pulls hair out.
3. Using line and a snap-hook adds complexity and an entanglement potential, besides looking like a granny with a string around her glasses.
4. Duct tape... I won't even go there

OK, securing the mask would be a good thing if it were fast, convenient, and didn't compromise how we are accustomed to using it. It has to allow pulling the mask down below the jaw, and yes, putting the mask on the forehead Mike Nelson style. It also has to work with the vast majority, if not all, of the masks on the market.

Before I reinvent the wheel and make the requisite prototype errors, has anyone developed a solution? I am thinking of a strip of thin wetsuit material sewn to the back of the hood about crown-level and secured to the bottom with (ugh) Velcro.

 

[ianr33]

I go with the mask under hood method. It's not that much trouble once you get used to it.

I also carry a spare mask on overhead dives. Although the chance of losing/breaking a mask is tiny the consequences could be ugly with 2000 feet of line to follow or an hours deco to do.

 

[redacted]

If I am diving with a buddy, I don't worry about it. If I am diving solo, I carry a set of swim goggles a backup. They will work to ascend and terminate the dive with enough vision to read gauges and they store quite easily. clearing take a little practice but you only need to get a bubble in one eye piece to see enough.

 

[fisheater]

I lost a mask at Redondo Beach in southern California when the Redondo Surf Monster ripped it right off my face. (It also kept it for three days before giving it up to another diver to shipped it back to me.)

In addition, I "lost" a mask when the strap buckle separated from the frame when I was beginning a shore dive.

In both cases, a quick reach into my pocket gave me access to a new mask.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[formula1mb@aol.com]

There is the DUI or Aquatec mask connection system: Aquatec (UK) Ltd. - Quality Diving Products For Sport and Commerical Divers

Haven't seen anyone else using them but I'm a big fan after having lost a mask in the surf before. Takes 5 minutes to install and has two independant straps connecting to the hood so it would take some very bad luck to lose it! I also like how you can flip it back on the surface and than quickly pull it back on when you need it.

 

[Thalassamania]

I don't know, fifty odd years of doing this stuff and I've yet to lose my mask for the first time. But when I was in college someone showed me how to "catch" a bubble under my eyebrow (some of us could do this, others could not). This gave me enough vision, though slightly distorted, to cope with most any problem. Be more a problem now with my aging presbyopia.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

yeah bubble goggles will work for looking down in calm water. I've never lost a mask, but I had a large fish smash me in the face and knock my mask off. I was in deco, and the fish had wrapped me up in 400 lb monofilament around my arms and body and was winding itself up around me as it swam circles around me faster than i could spin. It finally used up all the scope of the speargun line and then was smashing me in the face with the tail knocking the mask and regulator out of place.

It was kinda funny, the water hitting my face was quite a shock, I was much more concerend about restoring vision than a breathing source for the first few seconds. It turned out to be a non event... closest I ever came to loosing a mask

 

[Doc Harry]

1. I am blind without a mask. Can't even read my depth gauge.
2. Consequences of losing a mask are... consequential.
3. I always carry a spare mask
4. I regularly practice removing and replacing my mask
5. I regularly practice maintaining my buoyancy and position in the water column without a mask
6. I am confident that I can deal with a lost mask quickly, efficiently and easily

 

[Akimbo]

There is the DUI or Aquatec mask connection system: Aquatec (UK) Ltd. - Quality Diving Products For Sport and Commerical Divers

Haven't seen anyone else using them but I'm a big fan after having lost a mask in the surf before. Takes 5 minutes to install and has two independant straps connecting to the hood so it would take some very bad luck to lose it! I also like how you can flip it back on the surface and than quickly pull it back on when you need it.

Interesting concept, thanks. It looks like you can comfortably raise the mask to your forehead, but not pull down below your jaw… True? It isn’t exactly clear to me. Does this come with straps or do you modify the strap on your mask?


I was also thinking of a strap on the mask similar to a snorkel keeper and a plastic clip on the hood. Wouldn’t the advantage of redundant straps be the same for all practical purposes?

 

[Akimbo]

1. I am blind without a mask. Can't even read my depth gauge.
2. Consequences of losing a mask are... consequential.
3. I always carry a spare mask
4. I regularly practice removing and replacing my mask
5. I regularly practice maintaining my buoyancy and position in the water column without a mask
6. I am confident that I can deal with a lost mask quickly, efficiently and easily

1 & 2 are a good case for finding a method to insure not losing your mask in the first place. I’m not condemning carrying a spare mask, only investigating a better solution to the root problem.