Snorkels

[elbig]

This may be a silly question but I am curious about use of snorkels. I am getting back into Scuba and I noticed that I am the only only one diving with a snorkel. Are they not popular anymore? I was taught to use it on the surface. I guess they are not necessary but they are handy at times. Thanks.

 

[Bob DBF]

They are not popular anymore. I still use mine if that's any help.


Bob

 

[tilikum]

It's a personal choice and many divers no longer use them for a plethora of reasons.

 

[KathyV]

I always wear a snorkel, and it can be very helpful if we have to do a surface swim, like out to a shore dive. A few years ago the mooring line broke and we had to swim to the next mooring to get back on the boat; a snorkel can be useful in such situations. So wear it if you prefer and don't worry about popularity.

 

[Clark Fletcher]

Personally, I think if you're diving in the ocean where there are swells I think it's always a good idea to have a snorkel. You never know when you're going to end up in a situation where you're out of air and may need to make a long surface swim while having to deal with the swells. Granted if the swells are too big, a snorkel probably isn't going to be much help.

I think that diving in waters where you don't have to deal with swells (lakes, springs, quarries, or even protected lagoons), you can do without a snorkel. And, there are even situations where snorkels can be a hindrance. For example, swim through which don't have a lot of clearance (aka, the swim-throughs at Devil's Den Spring).

Just my two cents.

 

[Chavodel8en]

Bottom line, it's really your judgement, whether to carry on mask, in pocket or not at all. I don't think there's any wrong answer for ocean divers

I carry a pocket snorkel. I have yet to ever really need it (I swim on my back on surface), but I like to have it just in case. It would annoy me to have it on my mask at all times.

However, some folks I dive with like to snorkel on the surface, and have it on their mask.

 

[JamesBon92007]

There seems to be two main school of thought:

1. You absolutely don't need one and it's a useless, annoying piece of equipment.

2. You should always carry one.

Personally I always wear my snorkel on my mask unless I'm doing something like the Manta Ray Night Dive where it would be a hazard to the mantas. I would not want one that is corrugated or has a purge valve or is "dry." I also free-dive so my snorkel is very important to me and must meet specific criteria. While at the surface, waiting for the dive boat or whatever I like to be able to look down and if I use my regulator I risk getting a lecture from the DM for having less than 500 psi left in my tank. For shore diving I snorkel out until I'm past the waves and then switch to my scuba. Other good reasons for having one have already been mentioned.

 

[DogDiver]

A snorkel can be a useful tool or a pain in the butt. It all depends on the dive site and the dive. For ocean and the Great Lakes, I usually keep a foldable one in a BCD pocket. For cave diving it's a liability.

 

[outofofficebrb]

I don't wear one because the possible convenience of it (only in large swells/currebt) for a brief amount of time does not outweigh the annoyance of it for the rest of the dive. I carry a rolled up one clipped off to my right butt d-ring in case I need it but I don't normally wear it.

 

[AJ]

I'am with school one. I dive a so called Hogarthian rig. In that setup a snorkel will be an annoyance for certain and maybe even dangerous (long hose deploy). As far as I'am concerned the snorkel must fit in your dive system.