Primary Long Hose Length: 5' or 7'?

[danvolker]

While having two extra tanks on one side may not unbalance you, it does unbalance a lot of people. If tanks on a leash seem safe to you, then the seas must be rather quiet.

You are the one that dives almost exclusively with students and poor divers.....In most of the diving I comment on regarding South Florida, the divers mentioned are all good divers. Even on a typical saturday this summer in Palm Beach, go to the marinas where the charter boats are, and most divers will be much better divers ( skill wise) than those found around the cruise ships and Hawaii type settings...
In other words, we are a better proving ground for challenging conditions than YOUR EXPERIENCE where you dive.

While your experience may say that you will notice a 7' hose getting it loose and you will handle it well, then you are both just relating your experience, and that experience must, again, have happened in fairly quiet seas and when things were going right. For Us, loose hoses in bad conditions are rarely a good thing, and often a very, very bad thing. And it is never a good idea to count on things going right (like being able to restow a hose) when the only time the hose is used is when things are already not going right. We have mentioned that S-Drills are counterproductive before, and this is part of why. It makes divers not notice how things can go wrong when they are going wrong, because they are practicing things in only ideal situations, and not in real situations.

Again, you are on record so many times now discussing some of the worst divers imaginable as being the norm in your area...people like this would not survive in conditions that we consider challenging in our area. We always have currents, and they are more than likely much bigger currents than anything you have been recounting about so far.

We usually have our boats canceling dives if the seas get to be larger than 6 to 7 feet....of course, this relates more to the period and steepness of the waves....While some boats have taken us out in some 8 to 10 foot conditions, it becomes unsafe for the boat before it is unsafe for us.

If you think a discussion about 5' or 7' hoses is somehow made better by dragging unrelated threads into it, then you do. For Us, that is saying something about you, and not saying much about the topic of 5' or 7' hoses.

Each portion of any of my responses has been directly answering issues you brought up....

Maybe we could take up a collection to cover your costs, so we could get you with some good divers that would show you the WHY's in DIR and GUE that you don't understand.... As of now, you are like a turtle, trying to tell birds how they should fly

---------- Post added June 28th, 2013 at 09:12 AM ----------

I think I am saying Hasta LaVista for this thread.....it looks like a 99.999% chance for going no where!

 

[beanojones]

Not a single mention of hose length in that post. Lots of aspersions, and name calling though.

Good job.

 

[Locus]

take a look at my profile picture (not my Avatar)

Looks comfortable. What angle of swivel is that? And what length of hose?

 

[dbulmer]

Locus,

When I started diving I used the 7 foot hose without a can light.
The excess hose is simply tucked away as others have mentioned and it really is as easy as it sounds.

A can light is a good bit of kit but horribly expensive. If you are contemplating getting a can light at some stage in the future a 7 foot hose would be best as you put the excess hose under the can light.

You can of course use a 5 foot hose but for someone of your height the 6/7 foot will feel more comfortable underwater.

The whole point of a long hose is to make gas donation easier for an OOA diver in a stressful situation it is meant to be easy to deploy

The main thing to look out for with a long hose is that you do not trap in any way. The easiest way to trap it is kitting up too quickly - get your buddy to check it is not trapped under kit while you are kitting up. To guarantee it is not trapped , donate the full long hose to your buddy just before you get in the water and get your buddy to watch you as you restow it.

.

 

[Scared Silly]

FWIW I have both a 5' and 7' hose. I like the 5' on my singles rig and a 7' on my doubles rig. I used a 7' on my singles and while tucking into my belt when diving sans can light was fine (it came out a few times) the length was a bit unruly whilst on a boat. The 5' was more manageable for me. That does help the OP other than to say try both.

 

[tracydr]

Beano, I don't think anybody is really impressed with, or enjoying the pseudoBiblical thing you're doing.

If you think DIR is only enthusiastic newbies who don't understand how hanging in current can affect your choice of bottle distribution, you haven't watched the Atlanta video. Yes, a lot of the folks who proselytize energetically here are relatively new to the system, and sometimes to diving altogether. But there are a lot of much quieter and much more active and MUCH more experienced folks quietly doing fairly challenging dives using the system. (BTW, putting two bottles on your left doesn't affect you at all, even in current; beyond two, the bottles go on a leash which leaves them behind you, which doesn't unbalance you, either. If you are diving more than two bottles, it's recommended to have a scooter to deal with the drag.)

This all started with a question about hose lengths. I took exception to your statement that a long hose which was not caught under something could come loose without the diver noticing, and cause a great deal of trouble. My experience has been that, when it comes loose (and sometimes it will) you DO notice it, and control it before it causes issues. But many, many threads have shown that the diving population you deal with is not the one I do. Perhaps putting people who run out of gas routinely and violently mug strangers for their regulators into long hoses would not be a good strategy. Thank goodness, I have no idea.

Thanks, TSandM. You are always able to say what I'd like to say.
i was taught how to route my 7 foot hose, which I currently use with a single BM tank, by somebody who is a SB member but rarely posts here. I'd say that she is very experienced, doing exploration cave dives and lots of deep wreck dives. I have no problems routing my hose under my weight pouch or knife while wearing my Lycra skin, 3 ml or drysuit.
I'm 5'1" and weigh 145.
I've done shore dives in CA and boat dives with this arrangement and have yet to have difficulties caused by the hose routing or length. Not even in high current, surge or while lobster hunting.
I considered the 5 foot hose but decided to try the 7 foot and figured I could always go shorter if needed.

---------- Post added June 30th, 2013 at 03:19 PM ----------

While having two extra tanks on one side may not unbalance you, it does unbalance a lot of people. If tanks on a leash seem safe to you, then the seas must be rather quiet.

While your experience may say that you will notice a 7' hose getting it loose and you will handle it well, then you are both just relating your experience, and that experience must, again, have happened in fairly quiet seas and when things were going right. For Us, loose hoses in bad conditions are rarely a good thing, and often a very, very bad thing. And it is never a good idea to count on things going right (like being able to restow a hose) when the only time the hose is used is when things are already not going right. We have mentioned that S-Drills are counterproductive before, and this is part of why. It makes divers not notice how things can go wrong when they are going wrong, because they are practicing things in only ideal situations, and not in real situations.

If you think a discussion about 5' or 7' hoses is somehow made better by dragging unrelated threads into it, then you do. For Us, that is saying something about you, and not saying much about the topic of 5' or 7' hoses.

It would be nice if you added your location to your name or avatar. Where do you dive, Antartica? And, why does your Avatar say PADI DIR? What is that anyway?

---------- Post added June 30th, 2013 at 03:21 PM ----------

While having two extra tanks on one side may not unbalance you, it does unbalance a lot of people. If tanks on a leash seem safe to you, then the seas must be rather quiet.

While your experience may say that you will notice a 7' hose getting it loose and you will handle it well, then you are both just relating your experience, and that experience must, again, have happened in fairly quiet seas and when things were going right. For Us, loose hoses in bad conditions are rarely a good thing, and often a very, very bad thing. And it is never a good idea to count on things going right (like being able to restow a hose) when the only time the hose is used is when things are already not going right. We have mentioned that S-Drills are counterproductive before, and this is part of why. It makes divers not notice how things can go wrong when they are going wrong, because they are practicing things in only ideal situations, and not in real situations.

If you think a discussion about 5' or 7' hoses is somehow made better by dragging unrelated threads into it, then you do. For Us, that is saying something about you, and not saying much about the topic of 5' or 7' hoses.

Yes, not practicing safety procedures is always the best approach.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

You'll never get any info as to actual location, web site, dive shop, etc out of beano. good at looking and criticizing others sites and picking them apart though. And sending pm's when something you say hits a nerve.

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk 2

 

[phoenix31tt]

Now its my turn to decide on long hose length, this thread could have been a good one but wow the tangents..


Neways so I went Tobago this weekend for my first dives with the new setups (bp/w and 40" primary), our guide happened to be one of the few tech divers on the island and he recommended getting the 7' straight of instead of the 5', he didn't give any reason except that he personally finds his 7' to be better and we even discussed routing (he's shorter than me)... So for him it was a personal preference without highlighting any major benefits or disadvantages...

 

[buddhasummer]

I usually use a 40" primary after having tried a 5' hose a few years ago and not liking it. Two weeks ago I decided to give the 5' another go. Last Sunday went diving, it turned into a cluster, long story, anyway my buddy went OOA. The 5' worked well, plenty of room to move. I will keep the 5'.

(OW Rec diver)

 

[boulderjohn]

While having two extra tanks on one side may not unbalance you, it does unbalance a lot of people.

So why is someone carrying two extra tanks on the side? Isn't that in the realm of tech diving? In the earliest days of my tech training, I was required to wear a single tank on my side on every dive, regardless of the need, so that I could get used to it. As my training progressed, I was trained to add the second bottle. By the time I was actively diving and using two extra tanks, I was completely used to it and perfectly in balance.

Are you saying that people in your area carry two extra bottles on their left side without being trained to do it? Are uncertified people doing tech dives in your area, or are they just poorly trained?

5' hoses route the same way, but may be felt to be too short by people with broad or deep chests. (No, beano, you may not have encountered this, but I HAVE, with a Fundies buddy.)

...and with me. When I dived with you in Puget Sound wearing my dry suit and heavy underwear, I borrowed a 5-foot hose at first and could barely get the regulator in my mouth. If I had been diving in warm water in a wet suit, the 5 foot hose might have been fine.

beanojones you've found that for your circumstances and considering the rest of your gear configuration a 5 foot hose works better. I don't doubt that you are correct. That doesn't make the 5 foot hose better for everybody. Nor does it make everyone using a seven foot hose a DIR zealot.

Amen.