Ayisha
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You know, the octopus or backup doesn't need to be crappy. It can be a good, properly tuned reg.
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You know, the octopus or backup doesn't need to be crappy. It can be a good, properly tuned reg.
I was going to say the same thing. I am not sure why it is so often stated that an "octopus" regulator will be crappy, non functional and full of dirt and never tested before or during a dive? But just to say, my wife has a Legend with a Legend octopus and the only difference is one has a yellow face and we do drills and she will breath it during safety stops to assure it works if needed. But, I guess it is just a crap regulator even though I seriously doubt there exists a regulator that breaths in any practical way much better than the AL Legend "octopus" second stage.
There are many ways to achieve (some or total) redundancy. In much of the world, at least in North America, most of the ABC agencies going back to NASDS and YMCA and LA County stress the Buddy System. Your buddy is your redundant air supply. Once a diver moves into solo or technical pursuits there are other considerations but for most open water divers trained in North America the Buddy System is the methodology taught and the Buddy System works. Other parts of the world may stress other means of achieving air sharing or redundancy or may not stress the Buddy System as the primary means of doing so, here in the USA, we do.
blueskies_up_ahead
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Even without doubles you can use a tank with two valves. Quite common here in Germany because the water is always cold below the thermocline. In many of the deeper lakes it's actually mandatory. So you have two independent first stages each with their own regulator. Those regs can be the exact same. No need for a lower quality octopus. If one of the first stages freezes, you can turn off the vale and still breathe from the other first stage. It's not a redundant air source, but a redundancy of first (and second) stages. Of course you could use the same regs with two bottles as well (connected or independent).
As you can see, I use older double hose regulators a lot, and have two ways of dealing with the octopus. The first is to use a regulator which has LP hose outlets, such as my Trieste II and Sportsways Hydro Twin regulators. On my Hydro Twin, I have a Scubapro AIR I regulator, which has a switch that detunes it (In the Pre-dive position, it can still be breathed, but won’t free flow).
AIR I Performance001 by John Ratliff, on Flickr
The other way is by using a twin manifold with two posts. This is not as redundant as independent doubles, but it works quite well. I like small double tanks because of how they ride on my back, and their ease of swimming.
fullsizeoutput_29b4 by John Ratliff, on Flickr
Of course, I came through my diving instruction in the U.S. Navy School for Underwater Swimmers in Key West, Florida in 1967, so I have a different perspective than some.
USS Divers waiting by John Ratliff, on Flickr
SeaRat
AIR I Performance001 by John Ratliff, on FlickrThe other way is by using a twin manifold with two posts. This is not as redundant as independent doubles, but it works quite well. I like small double tanks because of how they ride on my back, and their ease of swimming.
fullsizeoutput_29b4 by John Ratliff, on FlickrOf course, I came through my diving instruction in the U.S. Navy School for Underwater Swimmers in Key West, Florida in 1967, so I have a different perspective than some.
USS Divers waiting by John Ratliff, on FlickrSeaRat
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