The Beginner's Mixture

[Teamcasa]

Why? I doubt it. - It would cause too many arguments about O2 clean tanks and regulators.

Nah. Not after you factor in all the "I did my own viz and O2 cleaning, so I don't need to pay you to do it" vs. "I'm a PSI instructor and your tank doesn't have the required nitrox stickers on it." arguments and resulting loss of business from such.

Trust me, there are many shops that have zero clue on what constitutes an O2 clean tank.

 

[Cave Diver]

Trust me, there are many shops that have zero clue on what constitutes an O2 clean tank.

Oh I know. I'm just making reference to the many threads that originate or degrade into these topics.

 

[muddiver]

This doesn't even make sense. The Oxygen is there became you need Oxygen to live...and the helium is there as an inert gas with low narcotic properties.

What does that have to do with Oxygen having similar narcotic properties as nitrogen? The oxygen percent is small at depth and the helium has replaced a large percentage of nitrogen (in trimix) and there is a remaining percentage of nitrogen as well...and the result is a less narcotic mix.

So your saying that if I dive Heiox I am still going to get narced as if I was diving air?

So why bother. And why bother with paying the extra for Nitrox if I'm going to get narced off teh oxygen in it?

Please provide refrences for your statement.

 

[gcbryan]

So your saying that if I dive Heiox I am still going to get narced as if I was diving air?

So why bother. And why bother with paying the extra for Nitrox if I'm going to get narced off teh oxygen in it?

Please provide refrences for your statement.

Why would you draw that conclusion? I said helium is the inert used that has a low narcotic factor so if you use helium and oxygen you aren't going to get as narced due to the large percentage of helium.

You can't dive large percentages of oxygen deep enough for narcosis to be much of a factor anyway.

You're paying extra for Nitrox for the greater bottom time or in the case of deco for the reduced intake of nitrogen.

 

[it_mike]

I don't expect Nitrox to make it into the OW course. I'd expect rebreathers to become the mechanism of choice before we get the cost of nitrox down to a marketable level.

 

[gcbryan]

I don't expect Nitrox to make it into the OW course. I'd expect rebreathers to become the mechanism of choice before we get the cost of nitrox down to a marketable level.

Rebreathers are never going to be for the masses unless the industry reverts back to being mainly hardcore divers.

 

[muddiver]

This doesn't even make sense. The Oxygen is there became you need Oxygen to live...and the helium is there as an inert gas with low narcotic properties.

What does that have to do with Oxygen having similar narcotic properties as nitrogen? The oxygen percent is small at depth and the helium has replaced a large percentage of nitrogen (in trimix) and there is a remaining percentage of nitrogen as well...and the result is a less narcotic mix.

You were infering that oxygen, at concentrations that are used to dive, has the same narcotic properties as nitrogen and switching to a helium and oxygen mix would not reduce the narcosis at depth. Your words, not mine.

Why would you draw that conclusion? I said helium is the inert used that has a low narcotic factor so if you use helium and oxygen you aren't going to get as narced due to the large percentage of helium.

You can't dive large percentages of oxygen deep enough for narcosis to be much of a factor anyway.

You're paying extra for Nitrox for the greater bottom time or in the case of deco for the reduced intake of nitrogen.

Now you are getting closer to what I was trying to communicate. The guy that asked the question was told that oxygen was as narcotic as nitrogen. In the real world at the partial pressures that we use for diving, it is not.

 

[ZenDiver.3D]

..........

 

[DCBC]

The guy that asked the question was told that oxygen was as narcotic as nitrogen.

No, I was told that: "The scientific data available does NOT support the conclusion that oxygen is narcotic" (quoting Dr Sawatzky's book "Oxygen Narcosis: Fact or Fiction").

I also mentioned that: "I have not experienced the same affect with O2 as I have with N2. The fear I have with O2 is that I will go unconscious with no warning once the PO2 goes past tolerance. I have experienced this on more than one occasion over the years while in a chamber. I was not even smiling at the time..."

In other words, although I've experienced toxic PO2 levels that have caused unconsciousness, I have never been affected in a similar way as experiencing N2 narcosis. Although some people have suggested that O2 narcosis exists, no scientific evidence is available to support this claim (although claims have been made).

In any regard, I've suggested that nitrox provides an advantage in eliminating nitrogen narcosis (although a small percentage of Divers may experience this within the maximum range of the gas). When a diver is diving deep with nitrox, the greatest hazard is not narcosis, rather O2 toxicity.

 

[deco_martini]

In 2002, I watched a newish diver swim off to about 124 feet before checking his depth.

Nitrox as a beginner gas would make some newbie mistakes fatal.