WoodnDive
Registered
Hi All!. Newbie with a question.
What happened:
My dive buddies (2 of them) and I made a shallow morning shore dive in Ft. Lauderdale by the Sea a couple weeks ago and I had a situation with my Tusa Liberator mask with the corrective lenses as I wear prescription glasses. Towards the end of the dive I noticed I couldn't keep a good seal around my face and things got out of hand quickly with this mask. The mask kept flooding and I kept clearing it and it would not stop flooding. Then for some strange reason my eyes started to burn really bad and my eye lids shut tight on me. Tight to the point it felt like a defensive action by my body to keep what ever was burning out of my eyes and so I took my mask off as a knee jerk reaction. I found my self in a situation telling myself I gotta signal my buddy for help. The first thing that came to mind was reach for my flash light and start waving it back and forth to get their attention. As I put my hand on my light my dive buddy was right there to help me and brought me to the surface. It took some time for my eye lids to relax and open up.
My thoughts:
A. I may have not rinsed the anti fog completely and it may have gotten in my eyes creating the burning sensation and may have affected the silicone in my mask creating the bad seal. I have had 20 dives on this mask and it has never flooded in this manner.
B. There is ALOT to be said on practicing basic skills during your dives as a newbie. I was able to breath without the mask and felt comfortable doing it.
C. Consistent set up of my gear allowed me to reach for my dive light with out even seeing and I found it. I knew where things were located and it felt good knowing my gear.
D. Having a good dive buddy is priceless. He was right there when I needed him. He and his wife were certified with me and I actually work with him.
My question:
A. Was reaching for my dive light to get my buddies attention the best thing to do? During a night dive I would have already have my light in my hand. It would then just be a matter of signaling for help.
B. What could I have done besides using my light? We do not carry tank bangers or noise makers.
What happened:
My dive buddies (2 of them) and I made a shallow morning shore dive in Ft. Lauderdale by the Sea a couple weeks ago and I had a situation with my Tusa Liberator mask with the corrective lenses as I wear prescription glasses. Towards the end of the dive I noticed I couldn't keep a good seal around my face and things got out of hand quickly with this mask. The mask kept flooding and I kept clearing it and it would not stop flooding. Then for some strange reason my eyes started to burn really bad and my eye lids shut tight on me. Tight to the point it felt like a defensive action by my body to keep what ever was burning out of my eyes and so I took my mask off as a knee jerk reaction. I found my self in a situation telling myself I gotta signal my buddy for help. The first thing that came to mind was reach for my flash light and start waving it back and forth to get their attention. As I put my hand on my light my dive buddy was right there to help me and brought me to the surface. It took some time for my eye lids to relax and open up.
My thoughts:
A. I may have not rinsed the anti fog completely and it may have gotten in my eyes creating the burning sensation and may have affected the silicone in my mask creating the bad seal. I have had 20 dives on this mask and it has never flooded in this manner.
B. There is ALOT to be said on practicing basic skills during your dives as a newbie. I was able to breath without the mask and felt comfortable doing it.
C. Consistent set up of my gear allowed me to reach for my dive light with out even seeing and I found it. I knew where things were located and it felt good knowing my gear.
D. Having a good dive buddy is priceless. He was right there when I needed him. He and his wife were certified with me and I actually work with him.
My question:
A. Was reaching for my dive light to get my buddies attention the best thing to do? During a night dive I would have already have my light in my hand. It would then just be a matter of signaling for help.
B. What could I have done besides using my light? We do not carry tank bangers or noise makers.