Runaway Inflator

[comspy]

Hello Fellow scubaboard members!

I have a story to tell. The title sort of gives away the topic of the story though, dontcha think?

So I was on my first boat dive in West Palm Beach, Florida. I hopped on board with my dad, aunt, and a dive guide. I felt pretty confident about the dive, even though it was my first boat dive. We assembled our gear, and jumped into the water. I felt rushed entering the water, we did no predive safety check, however i did somewhat check my gear before entering. I also was rushed when descending, i jumped in, then we went down. About 10 feet down all of my buddies were behind me, messing with my tank. Then they came arouond and said to keep a close eye on my pressure. It turns out the tank valve intself was leaking a small stream of bubbles. We continued the dive. We swam around, saw a nurse shark, a sea cucumber, and a whole bunch of cool fish. I was swimming over some rocks when I noticed I was going up ... So I immedeatly started deflating my BC and started to swim down. I held onto my dad to keep me down. Our dive guide came over and helped me disconnect my lpi hose. I called the dive. We got onto the boat, and went back to shore. We got to the dive shop I got my button to stick again several times. They rebuilt the mechanism, with no luck. The rest of the dives I did in FL I had to use a rental BC. We got back home and went to our LDS. They replaced the whole inflator mechanism with a new one. That one has worked fine when I tested it in the shop, but I haven't dove with it, yet.

This incident showed me the importance of the Predive Safety Check, however I may not have caught it while doing it.

Please share your comments and any suggestions you may have.

Comspy

 

[JahJahwarrior]

This is why I sometimes practice oral inflation while diving But it would still suck supremely to have a run away inflator underneath.....

 

[Web Monkey]

shore. We got to the dive shop I got my button to stick again several times. They rebuilt the mechanism, with no luck.
. . .
Please share your comments and any suggestions you may have.

Comspy

I only have a few:

1. There's no magic in your inflator. If they couldn't fix it 100%, they had no business messing with it. Make sure you take it to someone who services a lot of whatever brand it is, and has a reputation for doing good work.
2. If it was an Air/2 or simiar, you really can't continue the dive with it disconnected, because another diver may come up to you and expect to share air, and with only one regulator, you'll have nothing to donate, and will have turned an annoyance into a possible double fatality.
3. Huge problems generally come from a few minor problems, so if your stuff isn't working properly, it's time to call the dive.

Terry

 

[stevewirl]

pre dive checks are a must for all agencies . if you dont do a buddy check you may as well not do any course and just through the bottle on your back .

training is there for a reason the buddy checks are there for your buddy to be familar with your gear and be in a possition to help you .

i bet youll never leave the surface again without a check .

Equipment failure is the most common reason that a buddy has to come to your aid

 

[comspy]

@JahJahWarrior - I'm a newly certified diver, so I am fresh with oral inflation. I'll definitally practice it before every dive.

@Web Monkey - They did have experience with the brand of BC I had. They could've replaced the inflator, but we wanted to wait until we got home. It lucily wasn't a octo/inflator, luckily. I will never dive again without a predive.

@stevewirl - I agree with you 100%. You're darn right I won't dive without a check!


comspy

 

[stevewirl]

its not that mistakes are bad . youand every1 can learn from yours as well as my mistakes . look to accidents , then look to free flow at 47m . thats me . it happens but the difference with experience is to plan for as much as could be forseen and some .
happy diving

 

[Charlie99]

@JahJahWarrior - I'm a newly certified diver, so I am fresh with oral inflation. I'll definitally practice it before every dive.

You should practice it DURING your dive so that you become comfortable with removing and replacing your reg.

Just like doing mask remove and replace drills, if you are comfortable in a situation, then panic is much less likely.

@Web Monkey - They did have experience with the brand of BC I had. They could've replaced the inflator, but we wanted to wait until we got home. It lucily wasn't a octo/inflator, luckily

The inflators are generic standard parts and it doesn't matter what the brand of the BC is as long as the inflator diameter matches the hose diameter. IMO, slapping on a new inflator would have been both cheaper and less hassle than renting a replacement BCD for the rest of your trip.

 

[comspy]

@stevewirl - Great tip! Thanks

You should practice it DURING your dive so that you become comfortable with removing and replacing your reg.

Just like doing mask remove and replace drills, if you are comfortable in a situation, then panic is much less likely.

The inflators are generic standard parts and it doesn't matter what the brand of the BC is as long as the inflator diameter matches the hose diameter. IMO, slapping on a new inflator would have been both cheaper and less hassle than renting a replacement BCD for the rest of your trip.

Thanks for the tip!

I know what you mean. They actually let us rent it for free. Then when we got home our LDS replaced the inflator for free

 

[1_T_Submariner]

I had one that was the opposite the inflator was slow. The LDS in Fla (we were on a trip) rebuilt it and it worked fine.

You handled your situation fine.

 

[Cacia]

...did somebody say this already?

Get good at recognizing the problem and disconnecting it with aplomb...quickly.

I have a SS Halcyon inflator..so it has taught me a lot.

also, do the ear check and listen for the slow seep of air escaping. You'll usually hear something like this before an inflator totally goes haywire on you....

I had another brand fail once a few years back and another person on the same trip in the same brand X was nailed to the ceiling of Chandelier Cave in Palau...scarey stuff.

I now listen to my inflator with it held to my ear when I set up my gear and can disconnect one like a rattlesnake. 90% of solving the problem is recognizing it quickly and acting.