Teaching of SMB/Safety Sausage Deployment in Basic Scuba training
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vinegarbiscuit
Contributor
I'm glad so many instructors contributing to this thread are responding that SMB deployment is taught during their AOW classes. I did not learn, which I greatly regret: it's such an important skill to have. (Especially here on Oahu, where currents' Hawaiian names all seem to translate to "The Fastest Way to Tahiti".) I've seen enough You Tube videos and heard enough anecdotes to understand that SMB deployment takes some practice to master, and that the first few attempts can be extremely humbling. I am NOT looking forward to that!
i know it is part of the SDI drift diver course. you watch the instructor deploy one on the first dive to see how it is done, then do it yourself on the second.
i have seen more people try to sell the safety sausage to divers that will not have a use for a lift bag as a SMB. they are told use use it at 15 feet to mark your position for the safety stop to be seen by the boat. i did not get shown how to use one ever, and did it my first time on a solo diver course. the next time was for my deco class and i used a lift bag this time.
i do know if you do a serch and recovery class, depending on what the search and recovery is for, they use a lift bag. but this does not fall into the same catagory if you ask me. attaching a lift bag to an object and inflating it is not like having to deal with the reel or finger spool that is attached to anything being used to mark your position while still underwater.
it is my belief that it should be part of all AOW courses, and all instructors should be proficient in there use. it is to much for a new diver to deal with on the first four dives with all the other skills they have to do.
if you are going to dive in water where you feel you may need one, go with a more experienced diver and have him show you how it is done, then you can go somewhere and practice. once you get good at it , it will become second nature if you ever need to deploy it.
i have seen more people try to sell the safety sausage to divers that will not have a use for a lift bag as a SMB. they are told use use it at 15 feet to mark your position for the safety stop to be seen by the boat. i did not get shown how to use one ever, and did it my first time on a solo diver course. the next time was for my deco class and i used a lift bag this time.
i do know if you do a serch and recovery class, depending on what the search and recovery is for, they use a lift bag. but this does not fall into the same catagory if you ask me. attaching a lift bag to an object and inflating it is not like having to deal with the reel or finger spool that is attached to anything being used to mark your position while still underwater.
it is my belief that it should be part of all AOW courses, and all instructors should be proficient in there use. it is to much for a new diver to deal with on the first four dives with all the other skills they have to do.
if you are going to dive in water where you feel you may need one, go with a more experienced diver and have him show you how it is done, then you can go somewhere and practice. once you get good at it , it will become second nature if you ever need to deploy it.
cwhitpan
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I had a great group of instructors, and had some questions about deploying one from depth. On our 5th dive of checkouts when we had time, we did deploy one from the 25' platform and it was even cool when the fingerspool actually "hung" as it unwound. Very glad I asked the question though.
DevonDiver
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PADI International offer a standardised distinctive speciality in DSMB deployment. The idea was to address the needs of UK divers.
I try and demo SMB deployment during OW courses, depending on how my courses progress. I certainly demo it during the AOW course...and, where possible, get my students to have a few practises on the AOW (and other speciality course) dives.
I teach that DSMB and reel should be part of every diver's kit. I also teach that divers must practice and be proficient in the sub-surface deployment of a DSMB, because of the obvious risks of uncontrolled ascent.
When students or fun divers request a familiarization with DSMB techniques, I am glad to include these on dives.
I try and demo SMB deployment during OW courses, depending on how my courses progress. I certainly demo it during the AOW course...and, where possible, get my students to have a few practises on the AOW (and other speciality course) dives.
I teach that DSMB and reel should be part of every diver's kit. I also teach that divers must practice and be proficient in the sub-surface deployment of a DSMB, because of the obvious risks of uncontrolled ascent.
When students or fun divers request a familiarization with DSMB techniques, I am glad to include these on dives.
SMB deployment as part of OW? Oh, my goodness.
I was shown how to do it in Fundies, when I had 60 dives, and my first few practice sessions were exercises in diving in white spaghetti. Managing the task loading of the bag shoot and controlling my buoyancy and spooling up the line and keeping track of my buddy and monitoring my ascent rate and handling my stops . . . it was absolute chaos, and several times resulted in me losing control, shooting to the surface, and ending up there covered in line and laughing hysterically. (Note: All this practice was done in very shallow water.) I don't even want to THINK about what would happen if you turned people in their OW class loose with something which floats and something which contains a great deal of malignant, autonomous cave line.
You've got to have buoyancy control and some tolerance for task loading before you try to shoot a bag. I remember the fellow on our Virgin Islands trip who insisted he wanted to give it a try, and blew the thing up before attaching any kind of line to it . . .
I was shown how to do it in Fundies, when I had 60 dives, and my first few practice sessions were exercises in diving in white spaghetti. Managing the task loading of the bag shoot and controlling my buoyancy and spooling up the line and keeping track of my buddy and monitoring my ascent rate and handling my stops . . . it was absolute chaos, and several times resulted in me losing control, shooting to the surface, and ending up there covered in line and laughing hysterically. (Note: All this practice was done in very shallow water.) I don't even want to THINK about what would happen if you turned people in their OW class loose with something which floats and something which contains a great deal of malignant, autonomous cave line.
You've got to have buoyancy control and some tolerance for task loading before you try to shoot a bag. I remember the fellow on our Virgin Islands trip who insisted he wanted to give it a try, and blew the thing up before attaching any kind of line to it . . .
BSAC training DSMB deployment is in the core course for Sport Diver (the 2nd level course). For entry level the students get to see and "help" the instructor with deployment by filling the bag or holding the reel for all their normal open water dives in the sea anyway (as all dives end with one). As soon as theyre qualified they're shown how to do it on their own.
You wont get on any dive charter boat here at all unless you own a DSMB and know how to use it regardless of your level.
Although you cant add anything to a PADI course and make it mandatory you can still show them it just not have it as a pass/fail criteria. There's an argument about getting it put into the open water course as part of the "local rules and regulations" clause though as all dives in the sea off a boat WILL end with one.
You wont get on any dive charter boat here at all unless you own a DSMB and know how to use it regardless of your level.
Although you cant add anything to a PADI course and make it mandatory you can still show them it just not have it as a pass/fail criteria. There's an argument about getting it put into the open water course as part of the "local rules and regulations" clause though as all dives in the sea off a boat WILL end with one.
Second level for BSAC (and i think SAA as very similar syllabus). The 2nd tier is sort of "AOW" but is a 35m ticket with CPR/rescue skills and allows mandatory deco. Its the 2nd level course though.
That said every diver getting to that level should already know it if they've ever dived in the sea.
I am not an instructor, but I do shoot a DSMB on most every dive. It comes with the type of diving we do. Drift dives from boats.
One shop here I know of does teach shooting a marker as part of AOW.
Today I shoot a large marker from the bottom at the end of my dive. My first "DSMB" however was a simple "safety sausage" without an OPV. I had 20ft of line wrapped around a bolt and tied to the sausage. At my safety stop I would drop the bolt, unrolling the line, and put one breath in the sausage to send it.
One shop here I know of does teach shooting a marker as part of AOW.
Today I shoot a large marker from the bottom at the end of my dive. My first "DSMB" however was a simple "safety sausage" without an OPV. I had 20ft of line wrapped around a bolt and tied to the sausage. At my safety stop I would drop the bolt, unrolling the line, and put one breath in the sausage to send it.
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