What is a good SAC rate ?

[Nwcid]

It is also going to depend on your size. I am never going to breath as little as my GF. I generally use about 25% more gas then her under the same conditions.

 

[ajduplessis]

There is no such thing as a "good" SAC rate. a Good SAC is achieved when the diver is comfortable, relaxed, controlled breathing pattern, physically fit, streamlined, correctly weighted and have great control over his/her buoyancy. These aspects will result in a "good" SAC for that specific diver.

Each and every person is unique wrt gas consumption, your body will use what it requires.

 

[Rhone Man]

It depends a lot on the kind of diving you're doing. For warm water reef touring, I'd say around .4 CFM is very respectable; average for a new diver is in the .6 to .7 range. You can run it up easily to over 1.5 CFM with some work and cold water.
(With a standard AL 80, 1 CFM=38.75 psi/min = 2.67 Bar/min)
Rick

Very respectable indeed. I am usually about 0.42 in warm water in benign conditions (maybe 0.38 on my best day), and I don't meet many people who go lower than that. Anyone sub .4 is pretty near the edge of the bell curve, even in ideal circumstances.

The best diver I ever met coincidentally had the lowest SAC I have ever heard of. She was usually around .28 (she showed me on her Suunto), and she used do the San Francisco Maru (at 180') on single 72. Which I am sure some people will have an opinion on.

 

[Insta-Gator]

I like the comment that it is not a competition. But it is good to compare yourself to other and to yourself so you can learn how conditions and activities affect your dive. I'm also a fan of AI computers that allow you to review data in charts. Makes it readily apparent if your trend is improving or how certain dive activities changed from the norm.

 

[TomZ]

Holy Resurrection! Prior to today the most recent post was March 24, 2002!!!

 

[rhwestfall]

Holy Resurrection! Prior to today the most recent post was March 24,2002!!!

The Vortex has folks housebound. Boredom tends to cause one to "explore" the depths of SB.....

 

[Insta-Gator]

Plus, Megaohmer is a newbie. That was his first post. There has obviously been some serious digging and reading on his part. That's a good thing, IMO.

 

[Rhone Man]

Holy Resurrection! Prior to today the most recent post was March 24, 2002!!!

 

[megaohmer]

Plus, Megaohmer is a newbie. That was his first post. There has obviously been some serious digging and reading on his part. That's a good thing, IMO.

Yea but timeline put it at the top. Someone probably just searched and there it was. Today I'm home sick so here I am again because of the way tapalk works. So I Gus's ill browse the timeline some more.

Don't fight the current. Resistance is futile.

 

[tracydr]

I can count on 15 psi/min on an Al80, about 0.4 CFM. On good days, 11-12 psi/min. These numbers assume warm, clear water and not having to work against a significant current for a significant time.

At what depth?