So tell me why I DON'T want a canister light

[TSandM]

Fairly new diver here, in the Puget Sound area, which means lots of marginal viz and overcast days. I had to buy a light, of course, to do the night dive of my AOW class, and bought a relatively inexpensive LED light. Then I went diving with NWGratefulDiver and discovered canister lights, and real ILLUMINATION. I now have a case of classic toy lust.

But I want to know what the downsides of these lights are -- what don't I know about them that I'm going to regret not knowing after I have spent an obscene amount of money acquiring one? Fragile? High maintenance? Battery cost? Propensity to leak? What do I need to know to make an informed decision, instead of succumbing to my impulses?

BTW, before somebody says, "Do a search," I have read reams of posts about dive lights, and have a shrewd idea about one brand versus another and that sort of thing . . . but the basic info about hand-held versus canister lights just didn't seem to be there.

 

[plankspanker]

Fairly new diver here, in the Puget Sound area, which means lots of marginal viz and overcast days. I had to buy a light, of course, to do the night dive of my AOW class, and bought a relatively inexpensive LED light. Then I went diving with NWGratefulDiver and discovered canister lights, and real ILLUMINATION. I now have a case of classic toy lust.

But I want to know what the downsides of these lights are -- what don't I know about them that I'm going to regret not knowing after I have spent an obscene amount of money acquiring one? Fragile? High maintenance? Battery cost? Propensity to leak? What do I need to know to make an informed decision, instead of succumbing to my impulses?

BTW, before somebody says, "Do a search," I have read reams of posts about dive lights, and have a shrewd idea about one brand versus another and that sort of thing . . . but the basic info about hand-held versus canister lights just didn't seem to be there.

Unless it's a money thing (then save up if it is )then there really isnt a good reason not to. I paid $425 used for a dive rite 10 watt hid and love it. Yes there is some maintainance and you cant bang the light head around on most of them but you wouldnt do that with any of your other gear so thats not an issue. For letting your buddy know where you are without having them look around you can't beat it. The batteries are rechargable and last a long time. From your posts you sound very into this so it will be money well spent (in my opinion, and that aint worth much)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Fairly new diver here, in the Puget Sound area, which means lots of marginal viz and overcast days. I had to buy a light, of course, to do the night dive of my AOW class, and bought a relatively inexpensive LED light. Then I went diving with NWGratefulDiver and discovered canister lights, and real ILLUMINATION. I now have a case of classic toy lust.

But I want to know what the downsides of these lights are -- what don't I know about them that I'm going to regret not knowing after I have spent an obscene amount of money acquiring one? Fragile? High maintenance? Battery cost? Propensity to leak? What do I need to know to make an informed decision, instead of succumbing to my impulses?

BTW, before somebody says, "Do a search," I have read reams of posts about dive lights, and have a shrewd idea about one brand versus another and that sort of thing . . . but the basic info about hand-held versus canister lights just didn't seem to be there.

Well, since I'm partly responsible for your case of light envy, let me put in my 2 psi ...

HID lights, in general, are fragile ... although that's starting to change. Replacement bulbs are very expensive ... sadly, that's not changing. They can be finicky ... sometimes they'll not start, so you'll do your dive on your backup light, get out of the water, flip the switch and it'll fire right up ... aggravating. This is often due to a loose bulb (which you can fix yourself) or ballast issues (which you can't).

Canister lights, in particular, require a modest amount of care. For most of them, that means keeping the O-ring between the lid and canister clean so it doesn't leak. Batteries are not terribly expensive ... a 4.5 amp-hour battery (the type used in most 10W lights) will typically run you on the order of $90 -$100, and a 9 amp-hour battery (used in the 18W and 21W lights) will run you $150 -$250 ... and the good news is that unless you flood your light, those batteries will last you a very long time.

They are moderately bulky, and if you don't wear a harness, you have to figure out how you're going to mount the canister. Most divers who wear recreational BCDs tend to mount them to their tank strap. This introduces potential failure points, as it requires you to mount the light switch-down ... and banging the canister while getting into or out of the BCD can result in holes in the switch boot ... which will cause the light to flood.

Those are the potential downsides that I can think of ... other than the obvious one that is the price.

The upsides are that they generally perform WAY better than a handheld ... even a Light Cannon ... due to the geometry of reflectors typically used in the light heads. They're easy to clip off when not in use, and because of the way the light slips onto the back of your hand, you still have the use of both hands while diving. The NiMH batteries are generally fairly small, and will provide you with adequate power for 3 or 4 dives between charges ... and you don't have to toss batteries and replace them, you just stick it on a charger when you're done diving and it's good to go for the next time.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[BDub]

In my experience, they can be somewhat finicky. They don't fire on occasion (infrequent, but always seem to fail on the dive you need it most). You need to treat the light head with care, they don't like being dropped, banged, etc. They can leak, if not they aren't cared for regularly (check and clean the O-rings often).

But...with all the headaches they can cause, I wouldn't trade mine for anything!

Brian

 

[TSandM]

Bob, you're just encouraging me . . .

 

[Tavi]

ahhhhh But You Do!!!

I love my Dive-Rite 21w HID !!

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Bob, you're just encouraging me . . .

LOL ... I intend to ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[GreenDiverDown]

They make traveling a bit more of a challenge.

 

[JasonH20]

Bob is also partially responsible for giving me my light envy! Like you, Bob was one of my first dive buddies, and I remember how impressive his HID look compared to my LED light. I was fortunate enough to find a good deal on a 10W Terkel (I think that's what Bob was using too with you last weekend), and haven't regretted the decision to purchase since.

I have about 40 dives with it over the past 6 months and have had no problems other than a dead battery from insufficiently charging it. The charger that comes with it is "dumb" and it's up to me to figure out how long to leave it plugged in for a full charge. It took a little trial and error before I got that part figured out. I haven't had any issues with it firing up, or flooding the canister (knock on wood).

I am very carefull with it though, and it's definately not something you wan't banging around in the trunk of your car. I had a beer cozzy that fit over the head to help protect it between dives until about a month ago when either it blew away or someone "borrowed" it and put to better use (keeping a beer cool no doubt).

But if you think you'll be diving alot around here, it's a very nice toy to have! Most of my buddies also have canister lights, and it's much easier to keep track of them by following the light. When I dive with someone using a "normal" light, it's pretty much useless for signalling and keeping track of them during day dives.

Good luck in your decision!
Jason

 

[JasonH20]

They make traveling a bit more of a challenge.

I flew with it in my carry on along with my dive computer and regs across country a few months ago no questions asked. Going over I took the battery out, but coming back I left the battery in (though unplugged) and the screener let it through after about 10 seconds in the x-ray machine. It was a domestic flight, so international flights might be more sensitive.

Though even if I couldn't fly with it, that wouldn't make any difference to me. I need it for my dives here, not for when I go (hopefully soon) to some tropical dive location.