Spare Air

[Hank49]

I don't recommend spare air for divers at all. The only two viable uses spare air has are military applications.

1. Pilots use them to get out of aircraft that have ditched in the water and are submerged or to give them extra time to get out of a parachute that is dragging them under water in an over water ejection situation.
2. ship board sailors started using them a few years back to assist in evacuating an engineering space that was on fire.:

How about for unsticking your anchor?

 

[SteveDiver]

Thats not diving...If this was a forum for Helicopter Pilots I would probably recommend a Spare air.

Your comments were heard and read by many. Instead of trying to make another agree with your view point let the poster make the determination based on the responses received.

 

[Nobby]

Thats not diving...If this was a forum for Helicopter Pilots I would probably recommend a Spare air.

Dohhhhhhhhhh. The point! It saved thier lives!

Scuba Times, May/June 1994
Running on Empty by Bret Gilliam
"Sadly the record of double fatalities for divers engaged in buddy breathing is disproportionately high."


http://www.spareair.com/product/storyby.htm#savedmylife

Some testimonies for you.

PS. I'll dive with you anytime.

 

[SteveDiver]

Dohhhhhhhhhh. The point! It saved thier lives!

Scuba Times, May/June 1994
Running on Empty by Bret Gilliam
"Sadly the record of double fatalities for divers engaged in buddy breathing is disproportionately high."


http://www.spareair.com/product/storyby.htm#savedmylife

Some testimonies for you.

PS. I'll dive with you anytime.

Where did the Pilots end up?????? well......IN THE WATER!

 

[SteveDiver]

Ok, It's like this... in the heat of passion your condom breaks. Won't you wish you had a spare????

 

[Sideband]

For $300 (about what my LDS charges for a Spare Air) I got a 40cft bottle with 1st and 2nd stages and a pressure guage. They also helped me set it up properly as a slung stage or pony bottle and dove with me to show how to properly use it.

Joe

 

[gitterdun]

Ok, It's like this... in the heat of passion your condom breaks. Won't you wish you had a spare????

:lol3:

 

[RIDIVER501]

Ok, It's like this... in the heat of passion your condom breaks. Won't you wish you had a spare????

Sure would. Using your anaolgy. A pony bottle or larger constitutes a condom, or acceptable level of back up. Spare air is like having a sandwich baggie as your back up.

page 4 of the spare air user manual

Model Specifications​

​

Model #300YEL/300-N Model #170YEL​

​

Maximum Capacity 3.0 cu ft / 85 liters 1.7 cu ft / 48 liters​

Length 13.4” / 34 cm 8.75” / 22.23 cm

Diameter 2.25” / 5.71 cm 2.25” / 5.71 cm

Maximum Pressure 3000 psi / 200 bar 3000 psi / 200 bar

Weight (full) 2.17 lb / .985 kg 1.51 lb / .687 kg

Surface Breaths* 57 30

Water Volume 26.62 cu in / .42 liters 13.7 cu in / .28 liters

*Based on 1.6 liter breath size

​

Attached is an excel spread sheet I use for calculating sac rate with the numbers for the larger unit and a resonable sac rate. (see the duration tab). And I am being kind on that rate. if you are using this thing you are probably huffing and puffing with a bit of panic/excitement.
for what you get for the money and the back up any pony bottle will provide a much more adequate level of back up.
with the Spare air you are making it back to the surface ok. But If you were down long enough to use all your air to need it you probably need to make a safety stop.

keeping with the condom analogy. (since goofy opened that door) yeah the baggie got you though the sex, but your partner will still end up pregnant despite your best effort.

 

[JeffG]

Lets put this another way.

Lets split the Problems that a Diver can have into 3 broad groups

1: Out of Gas (either through bad management or equipment malfunction)
2: Entanglement (anything stopping you from getting to the surface)
3: Diver Injury (Heart attack...etc etc)

Now, diving is a dynamic thing, so lets add some variables in

Depth of Dive: Shallow or Deep
Length of Dive: Short or Long

In this simple example, that gives us 12 different scenarios.

Now...Whats solutions does the dive industry provide us....

Comes really in 2 forms...hardware or training. But, hey lets make a list.

1: CESA
2: Spare Air
3: Pony Bottle
4: A true Buddy Team

Now cross index those solutions with the problem scenarios.

For each pair, assign it a value:
1: Alive
2: Alive and Bent
3: Dead


Tell me...Where does your spare air fall? What came out on top?

 

[The Chairman]

Nobby and everyone else...

The topic of this thread was should a "freedier" use a "sparedeath" to extend their range. We have heard NO ONE disagree that this is indeed a truly bad idea. For this I am grateful.

The subsequent topic was the usefulness of a "sparedeath" in a scuba environment. As an instructor I teach that every diver has 3 limits: Time, air and depth. It's their responsibility to know this for themselves as well as their buddy.

Divers who use a "sparedeath" seem to disregard limits since they have their bail-out attached to their waist. I used to dive with a pony for YEARS and all it ever did was to complicate my diving. It had the same air in it when I first filled it as when I finally sold it, because I truly used it as a bail out. However, most pony/spareair divers use this extra air to "push the limits" rather than a true redundant system.

A far better approach is to approach your diving with the three limits firmly in mind. Don't push the envelope! It's a big ocean and there is no way you're gonna see it all in one trip. Don't even try! Know your buddy's limits too. Stick together like glue. Sure, we ALL run the risk of those pesky carnivorous 8' inlets... I guess it's best to know the environment you're diving in BEFORE you take the plunge. Are there any power plants, dams, etc in the area? Why aren't they screened off? 7 minutes at ANY depth makes Sparedeath an exercise in futility (thanks Kim).

Manage your limits with care.
Stick with your buddy.
Don't ever be caught OOA and OOB at the same time.