DiVe_DaWg:Hello all.
I hope this isn't too noobie of a question, but was hoping to get some of your insights on purge valves.
As soon as I put on a mask I find my breathing laboured or restricted because I can't breath through my nose. Couple that with a drysuit and hood and sometimes my experience is less than enjoying, not that it's so bad to abort the dive.
While hanging out doing my safty stop I thought that a purge valve might do the trick allowing me to partly breath thru my nose while exhaling. Any thoughts on this?
You have not fully adapted to sustained oral breathing. Try to augment your scuba diving with some skin-diving. This will let you get some extra mask time when you may not have the time or buddy for a scuba dive. Developing a long deep breathing style to overcome the dead space of the snorkel will do wonders for your scuba breathing as well.
Pete