Venting a BCD

[String]

Use the toggle dump. Some BCDs have them by pulling the hose. Or at least on the opposite right shoulder.

You shouldnt really need to ever use the hose to dump on a dive once you learn to use the toggles.

 

[Air On]

Is it your personal BC or a rental?
What brand/Make is it?

Some BCs have an elastic band that helps squeeze the air bladder if the water pressure isn't enough. My backfloat has the bands and it dumps air well. I find the shoulder valve that dumps when you pull the inflator hose to be the fastest way to dump air on the surface.

Be careful if you try adding this yourself. While a power inflator can fill it... You'll find manual inflation a little harder to do.

Some BCs have points that air gets trapped (mostly vest types), somtimes you need to roll around and manualy compress the BC air bladder if its having issues. If your laying back the bottom of the vest style will trap air for sure.

Did you do a bouyancy check to start with to make sure thats correct?
Empty all air in BC, full breath of air in you... water is half way up mask lense when your relaxed and still?

When you exhaile you'll decend... Sometimes you might need to kick up a little and drop to start the decent if you have a wet suit on.

If you can't get it to work for you after a few dives... might want to try a differnt BC and see if it works better for you.

PS: If you only have an inflator hose and no other release valves (as I saw in one post here) it sounds very odd.
BCs should have overpressure valve if nothing else, so you can't burst the bladder when your Ascending.

 

[spectrum]

Originally Posted by spectrum
Whatever you do choose should be how you enter the water, not somethng you do when you need to vent.
Pete

Why do you say that?

I was refering to the original posters staement: Should I remove the venting hose from the Velcro straps . I don't think it's prudent to need to undo the strap mid dive. If you are in a buoyant state and need to vent undoing the strap is wasted time. If you need it free to vent safely then dive with it unrestrained. If the hose is then too had to find then an alternative must be found.

I use the word "safely" intentionally. When BCs were intoroduced for use other than surface flotation the concept of diving with a bag of air subject to Boyle's law was considered hazardous and an advanced dive skill. Being able to vent air consitently and effectively is mandatory.

Personally I'm a butt dump diver. Raise a cheek and pull the cord.

Pete

 

[Ed Palma]

As for me, i usually just tip a bit out of trim to make sure all the air gets out. Additionally, I use a bungee cord to keep my hose in place. Its nice and stretchy, so i get to get the hose way up there.

 

[Likes2Cruise]

Thanks for all the suggestions and advice.

I have a Edge Stealth BCD - it's a back inflate. Has 2 dump valves (right sholder and right hip). I only have about 10 dives on it and I think I'm still getting to know it. Of course I only have 10 dives in general - including the OW dives - so I'm 'getting to know' a lot of different things.

As for diving with the hose lose and not in the strap, I'd be a bit concerned of it not being where I expect it to be and possibly dangling.

Thanks again everyone!

 

[waynel]

Personally, I use the right shoulder dump valve and using my elbows I squeeze the BC against both sides of my chest. Besides dumping as much air as possible, I found that it kept my arms from moving which meant I was better streamlined. Also, cross your fins. It will streamline you even more and prevent you from accidently finning (that's a big problem with new divers).

Remember, you only need to get down to 12-15 ft. to really get your descent going. When I first started diving, I didn't realize this and when I looked up I thought I wasn't descending, which just caused tension, which led to "struggling" to get down. Try the " shoulder dump, squeeze, exhale and relax" method.

 

[Likes2Cruise]

Initial decent is not the issue. With the BCD filled for the surface float, it deflates nicely to get the decent going. I usually have to slow or stop my decent as my wife gets hers going.

My problem is more at the end of the dive trying to vent to stay down or at my safety stop as the tank empties. Either I don't have enough weight (18 lbs with only a dive skin) or I'm not getting out enough of the air that still is remaining in the BCD after minor adjustments while on the bottom.

 

[Stu S.]

Just remember to vent the bag a little at a time while you swim your way up. I pull on the BC hose for that. If you float your way up, you will probably be accelerating at safety stop depth.

A good way to practice this, if conditions allow, is to swim horizontally during your ascent and go up like a big airplane taking off. This gets you doing everything a little more slowly. We do this drift diving.

Have fun with it.

 

[Bob Vincent]

On some models it works better if only the LP hose is under the strap. Whatever you do choose should be how you enter the water, not somethng you do when you need to vent.

Most BCs do have some amount of technique to bring the last burp to the highpoint so it can escape. It may be a tilt, tip or lean. Consider what you are doing.

Pete

WHAT HE SAID ...

 

[Ed Palma]

Aside from the 18 lbs of weight with just the skin, and the Edge Stealth BCD, what other pieces of equipment do you have? Additionally, can you give as a little info on your size? I just think that 18 pounds with just a skin should be enough to get most people down.