Question Recreational Divers: What are the biggest problems you face in this sport?

[Jai Bar]

Diving solo, having trouble getting out of the drysuit afterward, and needing to wedge the wrist ring in the door jam to be able to pull my arm free.

My first solo was in winter, water was 13 Celsius. I had hard time closing the back zipper, whatever I tried it wouldn't go up more than halfway. Frustrated, I extended the zipper line and tied it to a high fence and tried to pull myself away to close the zipper. Some people walking on the beach thought I was suicidal and began to talk me out of it. Was so embarrassed didn't ask them to help me with zipper.

The dive was short and cold, also placed cylinder on mask and broke it.

 

[Dormant]

Location, and funds. My landlocked location doesn't lend itself to much. I have to be judicious with my travel.

 

[Scuba_Jenny]

Unfortunately after doing hundreds of dives there I am so spoiled that it doesn't excitement me much anymore. Mostly go there for the social aspects these days.

I have a favorite dive site, I hope I never get bored going there. Just did a 3+ hr solo dive there today, and loved every minute of it.

This. I had many trips that I called due to sea conditions. During the week, when I had to work, it was pristine and calm. On the weekend, or if I took time off, weather was not cooperating.

Yep. I am a kayak guide, and while I love that flat water for kayaking, I know the ocean is just a stones throw away and flat flat flat...

Biggest problem I face?
Buddies. Went solo today when two bailed at the last minute.
Money. IF I had more, I would spend it on dive vacations. Fortunately I live where there is ample beach diving, so at least a dive only costs me an air fill and the parking meter.
Age. There are some days I choose not to dive. I look out over the water and remember when those conditions were doable. I'm early 60s so hopefully I have a good decade and a half left to dive.

 

[Boarderguy]

staying recreational...

I find myself doing longer and longer deco hangs using just back gas and diving air to 150ft+. I have an AL80 with 100% (truck E-tank) and a 40 with 40%(banked at my lds) for use when I feel like doing longer hangs with semi-accelerated deco. My area has terrible vis in the summer unless you get below 60-70ft and at that point it's stay for 20-30 minutes or go into deco. A lot of the sites don't have much for summer diving until you get to 90ish. I like to be away from other divers to avoid silted out terrible vis and end up scootering far away from them so end up deeper anyways.

 

[rx7diver]

staying recreational...

I find myself doing longer and longer deco hangs using just back gas and diving air to 150ft+. I have an AL80 with 100% (truck E-tank) and a 40 with 40%(banked at my lds) for use when I feel like doing longer hangs with semi-accelerated deco. My area has terrible vis in the summer unless you get below 60-70ft and at that point it's stay for 20-30 minutes or go into deco. A lot of the sites don't have much for summer diving until you get to 90ish. I like to be away from other divers to avoid silted out terrible vis and end up scootering far away from them so end up deeper anyways.

@Boarderguy,

Air (or nitrox) for back gas with an Al 40 of 100% makes for a nice, simple, smallish configuration. Plan your 150 fsw dive so that you could deco on back gas if you had to, but deco on 100%, instead, at your 20 fsw stop, to significantly shorten the 20 fsw and 10 fsw stops you would have made on back gas (air or nitrox). Have you considered this?

How deep are your deeper stops? They aren't very long, are they? Only a couple of minutes each?

Yes, you're making a gas switch. So, your dive has become a technical dive (rather than a recreational dive). But I don't see a problem with this--especially since you're doing only a single gas switch, and you're doing it at a very shallow depth (20 fsw), where you'll deco out.

ETA: My first technical dives ("extended range" dives), when I was learning (in the mid 1990's), involved air as a back gas (in isolation-manifolded double HP100's) with a rich nitrox in a OMS/Faber LP 46 (pumped to 3,000 psig). And then I switched to using 100% in the 46 (pumped to 3,000 psig, also). Worked fine. A single Al 40 dives a bit "better" than a single OMS 46 (but the 40 holds less gas).

rx7diver

 

[Boarderguy]

@Boarderguy,

Air (or nitrox) for back gas with an Al 40 of 100% makes for a nice, simple, smallish configuration. Plan your 150 fsw dive so that you could deco on back gas if you had to, but deco on 100%, instead, at your 20 fsw stop, to significantly shorten the 20 fsw and 10 fsw stops you would have made on back gas (air or nitrox). Have you considered this?

How deep are your deeper stops? They aren't very long, are they? Only a couple of minutes each?

Yes, you're making a gas switch. So, your dive has become a technical dive (rather than a recreational dive). But I don't see a problem with this--especially since you're doing only a single gas switch, and you're doing it at a very shallow depth (20 fsw), where you'll deco out.

rx7diver

I run 40% because it's a 2 week turn to get my tanks filled with 100 and 40 is banked at my lds. It isn't much difference from air, but it helps. My "deep" stops are at 30, then 20 & 10 depending on how long I F around. My longest hang so far has been ~20 minutes with a 3(?) minute stop at 30, 5 @ 20, 12 @ 10. I'm only running into deco because what I want to see involves more than just a bounce.

Doubles are in my future, just being cheap right now and not wanting to buy valves to dedicate one set of 100s to it. I have bands and a DR manifold already. I'll need a wing as well, but that all won't happen until my OT starts back up.

 

[rx7diver]

I run 40% because it's a 2 week turn to get my tanks filled with 100 and 40 is banked at my lds. It isn't much difference from air, but it helps. My "deep" stops are at 30, then 20 & 10 depending on how long I F around. My longest hang so far has been ~20 minutes with a 3(?) minute stop at 30, 5 @ 20, 12 @ 10. I'm only running into deco because what I want to see involves more than just a bounce.

Doubles are in my future, just being cheap right now and not wanting to buy valves to dedicate one set of 100s to it. I have bands and a DR manifold already. I'll need a wing as well, but that all won't happen until my OT starts back up.

Ah. Okay. I was thinking that you are scootering in BM doubles right now.

rx7diver

 

[Searcaigh]

Some people walking on the beach thought I was suicidal and began to talk me out of it. Was so embarrassed didn't ask them to help me with zipper.

When I dive solo locally and need to wear a wetsuit, I have no problem asking any passing stranger to zip me up

 

[wlecyt40]

Wow!

Interesting, we grew up pronouncing this as broadies, describing I suppose, throwing the rear of your car sideways
and then continuing through in control with your outside wheel spinning and heading off in the opposite direction
but not so far as to turn it into a doughnut, or continue through to circle work and dirty smelly expensive burnouts

Dictionary.com | Meanings & Definitions of English Words

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www.dictionary.com

So I look at this and see that with Scottish pronunciation brodie becomes broadie

Steve Brodie (bridge jumper) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I used "brodie" because I did just that. In Bonaire, I did a 180 because the rocks/coral/slick sh*t made me. I guess I could spell like my nephew does: Brody.

 

[Fat old english bloke]

Getting CCR hours in following a fairly recent return to diving is very frustrating. OC NP as I can dive solo fairly locally, but need to drive 2.5hrs to mines or the sea to dive CCR that way, or find a buddy.