krash
Guest
What is the technical difference between the standard every day all around main Regulator and an Octopus regulator ?
Besides Price !
Besides Price !
Regulator vs Octo. ?
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mike_s
Contributor
They both perform the same function, which is a demand regulator that provides air when the diaphram depressed a lever valve.
The difference is typically the octopus is a slightly chaper 2nd stage without as many features and it's also typically on a longer hose than the primary so you can have a little more room to hand it off to another diver. Often the plastic housing and hose are yellow in color.
Price is a poor comparison. typically an octo is just priced as the hose and 2nd stage. a normal regulator is priced as the 1st stage, the hose, and the 2nd stage. so it's not an "apple to apple" comparison.
But there is nothing keeping you from putting two octo 2nd stages or two primary 2nd stages on a 1st stage and using that.
In fact, some manufactures "Octos" they sell are the SAME EXACT 2nd stage sold with normal regulators, but they are just colored in yellow and marketed as an octo. Often they might not include some of the adjustment knobs that the normal 2nd stage higher end might have though.
Now some octos are a little different. For exmample the Aqualung ABS octo is lower profile and can be breathed right side up or upside down. Also some BC integrated octos replace the power inflator with an octo that runs on that hose. This reduces the number of hoses you have hanging down, but may cause other problems if you are not familiar with it.
Some divers also believe that your octo should be a copy of your normal first stage.
There is a lot of personal preference in what type of octo configuration you want. So no one solution works for everyone.
The difference is typically the octopus is a slightly chaper 2nd stage without as many features and it's also typically on a longer hose than the primary so you can have a little more room to hand it off to another diver. Often the plastic housing and hose are yellow in color.
Price is a poor comparison. typically an octo is just priced as the hose and 2nd stage. a normal regulator is priced as the 1st stage, the hose, and the 2nd stage. so it's not an "apple to apple" comparison.
But there is nothing keeping you from putting two octo 2nd stages or two primary 2nd stages on a 1st stage and using that.
In fact, some manufactures "Octos" they sell are the SAME EXACT 2nd stage sold with normal regulators, but they are just colored in yellow and marketed as an octo. Often they might not include some of the adjustment knobs that the normal 2nd stage higher end might have though.
Now some octos are a little different. For exmample the Aqualung ABS octo is lower profile and can be breathed right side up or upside down. Also some BC integrated octos replace the power inflator with an octo that runs on that hose. This reduces the number of hoses you have hanging down, but may cause other problems if you are not familiar with it.
Some divers also believe that your octo should be a copy of your normal first stage.
There is a lot of personal preference in what type of octo configuration you want. So no one solution works for everyone.
I always thought an "octo" was really another word for "backup regulator," as in the one you don't normally use. There's no reason why your octo couldn't be higher performance, higher reliability or higher-priced than your primary.
Since in a long-hose configuration the "alternate" is the one I'll be using if the s--t hits the fan you can bet your sweet bippy that my "alternate" is the same high quality reg as the primary regulator I'll donate to you!
PS - saying that you "don't normally use" your alternate ignores the fact that in a tech/long-hose configuration there are many "normal" times you'll use your back-up regulator.
Where you say it's "normal" to use the backup during a pre-dive mod-s or during s/v-drills for example, I'm just saying that during the course of the typical dive, the backup is not the one you're "normally" breathing off of (i.e., its function is to be the backup). Or, are you talking about other instances when you normally use the backup (I can't say I'm aware of any off the top of my head)...
I guess I could have said that "the backup is the one that is not your primary" but that sounds almost tautological!
Guess where I was going is that "normal use" doesn't have anything to do with the proportional amount of TIME that you spend breathing off one or the other. It is completely "normal" to utilize your alternate regulator, even if it's not for very long. As you point out, it should be at a minimum breathed off of during pre-dive S-drills, etc.
But beyond drills, it's not at all "un-normal" to switch to your alternate reg in non-drill/non-emergent situations, such as when switching between back-gas/stage/deco bottles to simplify switch over and cleaning up/stowing hoses, etc. Personally, I like to switch from primary reg to alternate before I deploy a reg/hose on a stage or deco bottle. This way, once I have the stage/deco reg out and ready to go I can wrap the hose behind my head and then simply spit my alternate out and pop the stage/deco reg in. No need to worry about stowing the primary - or worse leaving it dangling - during or after a gas switch.
Also, don't forget air-breaks during deco stops with high-O2 percentages (80-100%) where it's easier to switch from deco-reg to alternate-reg to deco-reg, than it is to switch back and forth between a deco reg and a clipped off primary reg.
Lastly, when exiting the water after a gas-switch/deco dive it's easier to switch from whatever reg you were using on your last stop to your alternate reg - instead of your primary - before stowing deco reg, etc for exit. Especially when climbing up onto a boat.
Aardvark
Contributor
Jimmer
Contributor
DaleC
Contributor
Here is a clip of a diver using his Octo
YouTube - Diver breathing off of Octo
YouTube - Diver breathing off of Octo
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