The great Mask Defog Thread

The best mask Defogger is

  • spit

    Votes: 20 38.5%
  • 500 PSI

    Votes: 6 11.5%
  • toothpaste

    Votes: 2 3.8%
  • baby shampoo

    Votes: 8 15.4%
  • other

    Votes: 16 30.8%

  • Total voters
    52
  • Poll closed .

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chepar

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As I move closer to going on my first dive after receiving my OW cert, I was wondering:

What is the one (or several) piece(s) of advice or information that you wish was taught/given to you during your initial instruction (but wasn't)?

Are there any basic tips that fall into the "I wish they had told me that" category that you learned by experience?
 
Chepar, without knowing more about your level of knowledge & understanding, I don't think anyone can really answer this question. There are just so many variables! But here goes:

For me the best tip during my O/W dives was to put on pantyhose BEFORE getting into my 1/4" wetsuit. It made the whole process so much easier!

Of course the Instructor didn't tell me about this until after the first dive where I had spent 1/2 hr wriggling into a full farmer john & jacket (with beavertail) like some demented worm on a hook. It also cost me skin off EVERY knuckle on BOTH hands! :(

Needless to say, I dive dry these days.

~SubMariner~
 
I wasn't told about the pantyhose either........and this whole time I've been struggling with these stockings and garter belt!
 
Diluted hair conditioner makes a great wet suit lubricant too.

Roak
 
Your tips are exactly the kind of thing I was looking for.

We covered the "dos" and "do nots" during our classes, including the "whys" and "why nots" that addressed safety and such.

I guess I'm looking for the "tips of the trade" type of advice - things to make any aspect of diving easier, I suppose.

Things along the line of (as my instructor advised) making sure the area of our upper lip was clear after surfacing from a dive - nothing as uncool as bobbing around on the surface with snot hanging down from your nose. I have heard that is one of the great tenets of diving - always look cool! =-)

I would have never thought of putting panty hose on under my wetsuit - yuk - putting it on every day for work is bad enough! However, it may be something for me to try, rather than feeling like I'm trying to squeeze into a 6 year old's pair of pants! :D

Thanks for the tip!
 
How about these:

1. with a farmer john type wetsuit, fold it inside out down to the crotch first, put it on your legs up to the fold and then kind of roll it on the rest of the way up. A lot easier than trying to pull it on. Take it off the same way.

2.If the top of the wetsuit has a zipper that goes all the way down the frount and splits one leg, start the zipper a few inches BEFORE putting in both legs and pulling it up, then zip it up. It is a lot easier to get the zipper going than to start it after it is on.

3 A nylon skin put on before the wetsuit make it go on and come off a lot easier.......guess panty hose work as well but I defer to SM and Buff for that!

4. Do a good buoyancy check if at all possible at the end of each dive (might as well make the wait to get on the boat usefull) and adjust accordingly. Then LOG IT, including every thing you had on, how much weigh you had and how you felt about your weighting. After a while you build a pretty good reference guide to use when that same situation arrises or you add/remove equipment.

5. You are NOT taught how to dive in class, rather you are taught enough to give you the tools you need to learn how to be a good diver. The real learning begins after you get your cert card and start diving on your own. Find a good buddy and practice in a easy, familiar enviroment before heading off on the dive trip of a lifetime.


That what you are looking for??
 
1) You can't laugh underwater - well you can but you'll get water in your mouth

2) After diving, inflate your BC from your tank before rinsing - rather than using the manual inflation

3) Split your weight (Cold water diver alert) between your weight integrated BC and a belt

4) Put your knife on the inside of your leg - not the outside

5) Drink lots of water and then drink some more

6) Carry some high calory Chocky bars in your SAD kit for inbetween dive snacks - and throw in a $20 bill as well for other stuff


and my favourite

7) only dive with people who have a better SAD kit than you - or two cameras - or a dive van
 
I hope this isn't too basic;

Wet the straps of your BC before putting the tank on.

If you are going to wear a dive knife, strap it to the inside of your leg - not the outside.

Always assemble your gear the same way in the same order.

Make a check list of all of your gear and keep it in your dive bag. I can't tell you how many times I've seen people forget vital equipment.

Never load your spear gun out of the water.

Don' spend much on a snorkel.

Set your compass standing about waist deep in the water just before submerging.

Take a navigation class.

Don't rely on your dive buddy to navigate for you with total blind faith unless you like a looooong surface swim or swimming in your own fin wash.



Scott
 
these tips are great and exactly the kind of things I'm looking for. thanks! :)

Ontario Diver - I've already laughed underwater - yup, got water in my mouth. :D

One quick question, though - why wear the knife inside the leg rather than on the outside?
 
On the outside of your leg, the knife is an entanglement risk (eg in old fishing line, kelp, rope).

Also ditch the stupid rubber straps that it comes with, and get some velcro ones (preferably with depth compensating elastic in there somewhere).
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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