What Are Your "Pro-Tips" for Safety, Redundancy, and Accident Handling

[scubastutz]

Agree/disagree on nuance.

The safety philosophy I often use is "If you roll the dice and get snake-eyes (all 1's), you're dead." For diving, the more and more reliable ways you have for safely getting to the surface, the better off you are. For example, CESA is a fantastic no-equipment out of air redundancy. Unless you have a deco-obligation, are too deep, or you unluckily have an entanglement at the same time.

Conversely, having a bunch of clutter, devices, tools, etc that you don't need or won't use will get in your way. "I'm entangled, where's my knife? Nope that's a wrench. Nope, that's my 5th backup light. Here it is! No, that's not it, it's my screwdriver!" I wish most dive-equipment could be like those mini line-cutters or knives that are barely bigger than your 2-inch-harness-webbing.

I fully understand your point of view. My thinking is that you plan for the 99.98% of dives that go right, same as we do for nearly every other activity we undertake. Yes, the outcomes could be fatal, but so could an accident out bushwalking, skydiving or even just driving to any of these things. In over 30 years of diving, I have never seen an out of air situation, and think the emphasis on this is misplaced.
And I do carry a safety sausage!

 

[peeweediver]

I fully understand your point of view. My thinking is that you plan for the 99.98% of dives that go right, same as we do for nearly every other activity we undertake. Yes, the outcomes could be fatal, but so could an accident out bushwalking, skydiving or even just driving to any of these things. In over 30 years of diving, I have never seen an out of air situation, and think the emphasis on this is misplaced.
And I do carry a safety sausage!

Not to be contrary, but posited as another set of experiences, I have also been diving for over 30 years. Have first hand witnessed 3 out of air situations at between 70 and 80 feet. In each case, the out of air diver's buddy was not near the diver and, luckily, the DM saw the wild eye panic and shared air with a safe ascent. Amazingly, two of these instances happened on the same trip by different divers. So, just to say it does happen, which I know you agree. Not arguing for or against redundant air source, maybe just saying to check your air often. Or, maybe I should go on trips with different people.

 

[Angelo Farina]

I think that knowing to always have enough gas available is very reassuring, and when the diver is feeling reassured, calm and rational, any other issue can be faced more easily.
So my recommendation is to get a tank much larger than needed, equipped with two independent posts on two easy-to-operate independent valves.
And of course with two complete fully independent, high performance regs.
If possible, with an old style reserve valve.
This ensures that an out of air emergency is a really remote possibility.
If you cannot get such a large tank with proper valves, then use two smaller tanks.
This indeed does not provide exactly the same effect, it has some additional benefits, but also some drawbacks.
A setup aligned with Padi recreational recommendations (single small tank, single valve, no reserve, single good reg plus an additional crap octopus or Air2) is not something I consider safe enough for me or my family members.

 

[SlugLife]

Not to be contrary, but posited as another set of experiences, I have also been diving for over 30 years. Have first hand witnessed 3 out of air situations at between 70 and 80 feet. In each case, the out of air diver's buddy was not near the diver and, luckily, the DM saw the wild eye panic and shared air with a safe ascent. Amazingly, two of these instances happened on the same trip by different divers. So, just to say it does happen, which I know you agree. Not arguing for or against redundant air source, maybe just saying to check your air often. Or, maybe I should go on trips with different people.

Do I ever expect to "surprise!" run out of air? No. But not impossible.

I have experienced a kind of equipment failure though. My hose connected at the 2nd stage was hand-tight as I saw recommended somewhere (bad, don't do that). All I knew at time time was an insane amount of bubbles were in front of my face, and the safest option was 30-feet above my head. I didn't quite fully understand what happened until I was back at the boat and my 2nd stage was missing!

Setting aside that user-error, equipment failures do happen especially when dealing with 3000 psi, rubber/silicone pieces, water, etc.

I think that knowing to always have enough gas available is very reassuring, and when the diver is feeling reassured, calm and rational, any other issue can be faced more easily.
So my recommendation is to get a tank much larger than needed, equipped with two independent posts on two easy-to-operate independent valves.
And of course with two complete fully independent, high performance regs.
If possible, with an old style reserve valve.
This ensures that an out of air emergency is a really remote possibility.
If you cannot get such a large tank with proper valves, then use two smaller tanks.
This indeed does not provide exactly the same effect, it has some additional benefits, but also some drawbacks.
A setup aligned with Padi recreational recommendations (single small tank, single valve, no reserve, single good reg plus an additional crap octopus or Air2) is not something I consider safe enough for me or my family members.

I like bringing my teddy-bear, I mean redundant air with me on every dive after the above story. Basically, in 99% of likely problem scenarios, I have an extra margin of safety. OOA, entanglements, primary reg knocked of mouth and can't find it, lost both fins, lost mask. Many scenarios can be managed by having that extra gas and time to figure it out.

Plus the comfort of knowing you always have that backup plan, means one less reason to panic, which shouldn't be under-estimated.

 

[SlugLife]

Label Your Equipment

Ok, not exactly the same kind of "accident" but what happens if you lose (dropped, stolen, accidentally grabbed by another diver, etc) a piece of equipment? This recently happened to me, and I lost a fin, and this fin was one of the ONLY pieces of my equipment I hadn't labeled yet. I managed to get it back 2 months later through almost pure luck, but would have gotten it back much sooner if it was labeled.

Anyway, label the equipment with ideally with 2 of name, email, or phone number. You can get lots of stickers relatively inexpensive from places like divelabels.com .

 

[SlugLife]

Retainer Types

Long Hose - A long, often 7ft hose is routed around the neck and shoulder area in a specific way. No additional retainers are needed, as it becomes difficult to lose. Typically, this configuration is done by technical divers, and you'll get training in those courses. Or you can find videos showing how to do it on YouTube. I personally find this setup a little complicated, and probably wouldn't start here.

Silicone Necklace - Search "silicone scuba necklace" on ebay or elsewhere. The smaller circular part goes over your mouthpiece, and the main loop goes around your neck. Personally, I find the regulator can slip out, and the necklace itself is a little annoying when donning gear. You could potentially zip-tie it to the mouth-piece area of your regulator to prevent it from slipping off. (big yellow loop in top photo)

These can be a choking/entanglement hazard, however it also looks like there are newer version than the one I posted above, that can "breakaway."

Bungie Necklace - Ensure your mouthpiece is very secure on your regulator (usually with a ziptie), and not easily pulled off. I'd recommend replacing your zip-tie with a nice sturdy/thick one and getting it nice and tight to be sure.

Take a length of bungie-cord (shock cord) about 3/8in to 10mm, tie a knot on each end. Place each end of your length of bungie on the left and right side of the mouthpiece, wrap another zip-tie around the mouthpiece and 2 ends of bungie. The tightness of this zip-tie should allow the bungie to be pulled in either direction to shorten or lengthen the necklace, while also providing enough resistance it doesn't slip easily. Do not use a single zip-tie to secure both the necklace and mouthpiece, as you risk pulling off the mouthpiece!

This is one of my personal favorites, and one I use, because it's very secure, and when tightened, you can make it "impossible" for your regulator to fall out, such as in a temporary loss of consciousness scenario, or just simply your jaw getting tired. The downside is whatever regulator is on a necklace isn't easily donated. This can either be used for your primary 2nd stage (the one you mostly breathe from), or your octo/pony if you intend to primary-donate.

(right side below. Not the greatest photo, it's what I have available at the moment. Notice a white and a black zip-tie.)

Ring and Clip

This style is decent for clipping an octo regulator to your BCD. The mouthpiece is inserted into the loop. When deploying a simple tug will free the regulator from the loop.

The downside is inserting the regulator back in this ring underwater is a pain, and that clip isn't really designed to be operated underwater.

(small yellow and blue retainers in top photo)

Mouthpiece Covers & Inserts

I hate all of these. Inserting a mouthpiece can be a pain, and then can slip out easily. These have all the problems of the "Ring and Clip" version, but are much worse. At minimum try the "Ring and Clip" version first.

Hose-Magnet

Search for "scuba regulator magnet"

These work, and can be ok, especially if you intend to deploy and use your octo. They go around your hose on one side, and the other clips to a d-ring. The magnets are often not as strong as I prefer. I wish I could recommend a specific brand. I sometimes have these in addition to the "bolt snap breakaway" so I can re-stow the hose, if the o-ring breaks.

Hose Clip



This clips around your hose, and it's "breakaway" meaning you can free your regulator from your BCD and clip with a tug. By default they come with a clip I hate (see top photo). A slight disadvantage of this style is the hose may slip out when you don't want it to occasionally.

Boltsnap Breakaway



Take a small o-ring, zip-tie, and boltsnap. Insert o-ring through bolt-snap's loop, and wrap that around those hose. Secure the 2 sides of the o-ring to eachother using a zip-tie.

I suggest doing a test "breakaway" by attaching this to a d-ring, and giving it a sharp pull to make sure the o-ring breaks with moderate but not too significant force. (and of course replacing the o-ring and zip-tie) You want it to breakaway in an emergency, and not be forced to fumble with a clip when you (or your buddy) need air now. In non-emergencies, you'll simply un-clip it to use, and re-clip it when done.

This design is great for sidemount, or any configuration where you'll frequently swap regulators. Typically, this is clipped to a d-ring on your chest, slightly below your collar-bone, but you can clip it wherever works for you. This is also one of my favorites, and one I use regularly. Carrying a couple zip-ties in a pocket while diving can also be useful for a variety of things (that I won't cover here), including re-securing the regulator if the breakaway is broken.

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

Don't panic.

It also works for intergalactic space travel.

 

[jadairiii]

Don't panic.

It also works for intergalactic space travel.

And always have a towel.

 

[Kharon]

You are always diving solo no matter how many divers are in the water, or how many buddies you have, or what certifications they have, or how much experience they have, or what you discussed during the dive plan, or how well they are equipped.

Have a 6 cf pony so you can find and get to the human who is supposed to be your buddy. A 6 cf is tiny and easy to carry and a small expense to give you time to think and act without panic. Personally I use a 19 cf because, with it, I can be (almost) totally self sufficient.

If you make a non-trivial mistake gearing up or on a dive - abort. If you aren’t focused enough to gear up perfectly. or aren’t focused enough to avoid non-trivial mistakes during the dive, you aren’t focused enough to dive solo. Two mistakes in one day means you are way off and need a time out – no more dives that day.

Never enter the water if you can’t comfortably do a long surface swim in full gear on snorkel. This is an easy way to decide if the conditions are too harsh not an intention to do that.

Always take a compass bearing from the entry point (boat or shore) to the reef* and know the distance to the reef. Failing to do so is a non-trivial mistake.

Always check for current as soon as you hit depth. Make a current check at each third of your air. Failing to do so is a non-trivial mistake.

If the conditions are different or worse than what you expected (surge, current, topography etc.) or if there is any uncertainty immediately abort.

On a boat:

If the dive briefing does not cover emergency diver recall and diver in distress protocols, ASK. Should they not describe acceptable procedures don’t dive. NOTE: Prior to booking this should be asked of the dive op. On the boat, this is a check to make sure the crew is competent in emergency situations and aware of procedures.

If the dive briefing does not cover distance to reef, direction to reef, size and shape of reef, depth of reef, special features of reef and all conditions including visibility, surge, and current, ASK. If they are unable to answer you should consider not diving, depending on observable conditions. If you dive be ready to abort.

* Reef = a specific objective or area in salt or fresh water, not just a coral reef.

These may sound draconian - but they came about from a near death experience where, had I followed these rules I would not have very nearly drowned. Hind sight is wonderful - if you survive to evaluate and decide on rules for the future. I was lucky.

 

[mmatthias]

Not to be contrary, but posited as another set of experiences, I have also been diving for over 30 years. Have first hand witnessed 3 out of air situations at between 70 and 80 feet. In each case, the out of air diver's buddy was not near the diver and, luckily, the DM saw the wild eye panic and shared air with a safe ascent. Amazingly, two of these instances happened on the same trip by different divers. So, just to say it does happen, which I know you agree. Not arguing for or against redundant air source, maybe just saying to check your air often. Or, maybe I should go on trips with different people.