What is in your BCD

[DTm]

In the pockets that is.. and the question is more what do you take for basic diving. Also do you take different things down with you if you are DM’ing or instructing

This weekend we had a problem with a stuck inflator value on a student’s BCD – I happened to have brought an old BCD that I had. The student needed the larger one so I swap out to the smaller of the two; in the process all the stuff in my BCD came out and put in the smaller.
Anyway one of the student joking made a comment that I was like a scuba flee market it was all in good humor but I have often wondered if I have too much Stuff.

So here is what I take:
Slate and pencil.
Knife
Backup light – I leave it in there whether I am doing a night dive or not.. You never know when you are going to want to see the colors at a different spectrum.
Since taking recue diver I do also have a pocket mask.
I also did have my camera, and surface marker. I did not really need the surface marker where I was – but I just did not detach it.
Normally I would also have my reel and line.
Signal whisle

Now here’s something that probably could go.
I take my dive tables – I do not really use them anymore (I’m using a computer) but my first instructor had encouraged this and I got in the habit of having them. His reasoning was that if you really screwed up and either exceeded the planned depth and the backup or exceed the time and end up in deco you could take out the tables and either adjust your bottom time or you could plan the deco that you needed at what depth and what time. In some senses, I think if you have really missed up that bad you need to get out of the water because your head is not in the right place to be diving that day of course that is true if you go into an unplanned deco anyway. I have never had to use them. Now, I have the computer and if it fails then diving is over for 24 hours and all I need is a watch to do a safety stop. (till I get a backup) so the tables don’t really do me any good.

For the instructors and DMs, I think everyone is on computers at this level but if you are teaching tables to a student is there any reason for you to have them just to be prepared for that student who goes down to deep... I think most beginning student suck down the air so going over time limits most the time is not an issue.

 

[stakanak]

I carry tin snips, smb, backup light, whistle and mirror. Am I missing anything important?

 

[Airleron]

Fold up snorkel, light, mask defog, gloves.

 

[Dirty-Dog]

SMB and reel, knife, shears, camera, whistle, DVD (signal mirror) and that's about it.

(Edit) None of this is actually in my pocket except the DVD. The rest is clipped to various D rings.

 

[vjanelle]

Normally I put backgas in my BCD.

In my pockets or on my person I carry a spare mask, wet notes, SMB + spool, knife, whistle.

 

[tkdgodess]

in the pockets: pocket mask, shears, finger spool, dsmb, wetnotes.

add for teaching only: teaching slates & back up computer

I only take stuff I need for that dive. I also keep a pocket empty for stuff I find

 

[vjanelle]

Now here’s something that probably could go.
I take my dive tables – I do not really use them anymore (I’m using a computer) but my first instructor had encouraged this and I got in the habit of having them. His reasoning was that if you really screwed up and either exceeded the planned depth and the backup or exceed the time and end up in deco you could take out the tables and either adjust your bottom time or you could plan the deco that you needed at what depth and what time.

Do you also use a backup bottom timer? And a backup something to tell you your maximum depth, current depth? You can't depend on your buddy's computer for the max, other than to abort the dive and head to 15' and hang out as long as your gas'll allow.

(Strictly speaking of course.)

 

[TSandM]

I carry wet notes, sometimes a spare mask (I use bifocals), and for diving off a boat or in areas of boat traffic, an SMB and spool, pre-rigged. For teaching, I carry a DiveAlert, and a rolled up snorkel. I always have one backup light on my harness -- two for night diving -- but they're not in my pockets. Same with a reel -- it goes on my left hip D-ring.

 

[diver_doug]

spare mask and shears...everything else is on d-rings

 

[Leejnd]

Fold up snorkel, light, mask defog, gloves.

Just curious why you would take mask defog with you underwater. How could you possibly use it? Or is there some kind of mask defog product that can be used underwater? If you are talking about regular ol' mask defogger, why take it with you in your BC? It's not like you can use it while you're on the dive...