Proper Equipment for Deep Cold Water Diving

[alpenadiver]

For me, I won't go beyond 100' with my AL80, I will use my double 95's beyond 100'. your best investment though would be a dry suit, I was skeptical until I dove one.

I believe redundancy / safety is the key when going deeper, like diverbrian said about Mr. Murphy, he can be a real dick, and I like keeping him at bay. The deeper you go, the more your playing in Mr. Murphy's yard.

How about doubling up your 80's, that might be a viable option, or maybe double AL100's?

Good luck with your decsions

Mike

 

[pcarlson1911]

Thanks for all the opinions, and thanks for the vote of confidence Brian.

I tend to think that the backup potential of a slung pony is valuble. No, it can't be an excuse for poor gas management, however, mistakes do happen and when the do, that is wahat the net is for. Seems similar to seatbelts and air bags. Most of us wear seat belts and everyone has an airbag, but that does not give us permission to be stupid and get into an accident, they are simply there for when the accident does happen.

What size pony, and do I put another abyss on it?
pc

 

[grazie42]

I vote for drysuit.

It´s a good backup to your bc, if an inflator freeflows you can just disconnect and keep diving.

I won´t go much below 60ft with a wetsuit in cold water. Doing two consecutive dives in one is just plain uncomfortable.

ymmv

 

[Dean810]

Wouldn't an Abyss be a little too finely tuned for an alternate air source? Wouldn't an octo reg be better? I believe finely tuned regs have a greater chance to free flow, especially since they are not usually in your mouth.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

OK ... I'll bite (sort of!). Some questions about doubles:

For those of you that use doubles for RECREATIONAL diving (<=130'), what size STEEL tanks would you recommend? Obviously the buoyancy characteristics of AL tanks make them less than ideal for doubles.

LP95s? HP119s? HP100s? HP120s? Something else?

To rig a set of doubles, is the following all that is required?

50 lb wing (or there abouts) ... I already have the BP and harness
Manifold with Isolator
Tank Bands and Bolts
2 Steel Tanks (see above question)
A duplicate 1st stage so that you can move your octo to the left post and keep the primary on the existing 1st stage on the right post

Anything else required? If not, the above would cost approximately $1500-$1700 depending upon which steel tanks and the cost of the duplicate 1st stage. Am I in the ballpark?

Oh, and if you want to be able to use existing singles that you might have with your doubles reg setup (two 1st stages with a 2nd stage on each), you'll need to set them up with H-valves, correct? That's another $300 or so for two tanks.

Ouch ... get's pretty darn expensive!

 

[TheRedHead]

For recreational diving to the max (130 feet), I'd get an HP 130, H-valve and another Abyss 1st stage. 130 feet is right on the edge of tech diving and I would suggest taking recreational trimix or advanced nitrox/deco procedures using a big tank with redundant regulators. The smart thing to put in a 30 cu foot bottle would be 50% Nitrox for accelerated deco. Go tech lite instead of limiting yourself.

 

[Oldpirate]

I keep it simple. Poseidon Odin's all around.

 

[bladephotog]

In your case, I'd get an AL40 as a pony. They ride nicely in the water and have enough air to get you to the surface.

Reg choice is such a personal thing though. If you already have a reg you trust try it out. If not then Poseidon, Aqua Lung, Apex, any of those would work fine. And while I know many people that use Scuba Pro, I've also personally seen many of them free flow in the cold water up here. But I have no personal experience with them. And I do know they are used up here a bit. I'll take my Poseidon's though.

I also use Odin's all around, though each is tuned differently. But this makes it easy to swap them with confidence if needed. My GF has an Aqua Lung Titan LX and it's a great reg for the money. She's never had a problem with it in our cold water.

Hope this helps.

 

[do it easy]

Wouldn't an Abyss be a little too finely tuned for an alternate air source? Wouldn't an octo reg be better? I believe finely tuned regs have a greater chance to free flow, especially since they are not usually in your mouth.

I vote to the Abyss. They are great breathers without all the fine adjustments (knobs) that other brands have. It is just my opinion, but I prefer the simpler, more bulletproof design. I don't have a pony per se, but I do use Abyss regs on my deco bottles which I carry like slung ponies.

If price is an issue, I think there are other Mares regs, that have a similar design. These will probably be fine as well.

 

[do it easy]

And while I know many people that use Scuba Pro, I've also personally seen many of them free flow in the cold water up here. But I have no personal experience with them. And I do know they are used up here a bit.

I was with a buddy that had brand new SP regs- we dropped onto the Willie and he had a freeflow at the bottom of the mooring line- about 65'. He deployed his pony reg and as soon as he took his first breath, his pony was freeflowing too.

I'll admit that SP are great breathers, but I think their ease of breathing comes with a price that is too steep to pay in cold water. They can probably be de-tuned to work in cold water, but then you lose some of the ease of breathing advantage.