What regulators for hookah diving?

[quatin]

I'm just getting my PADI open water certification. I did the pool dive yesterday and I'm overwhelmed with the amount of gear I had to carry around. What's more attractive is the Brownie Kayak Hose Kit, which is basically a tank strapped to a kayak and a 60 foot hose. The kit is just a 60foot hose, so I need everything else. Is there any difference on what type of regulator, 1st stage and etc. that I need to consider for this type of diving? Any recommendations?

I'm in S. Florida and I'm mostly interested in spear fishing/lobster diving on the reefs.

 

[Rich Keller]

Any regulator will work, you do not need to buy a special one made for this purpose. You will also need something to attach the diver end of the hose to like the harness pictured. This harness can also have a small bail out bottle attached to it. With 60' of hose your average working depth will be about 30-40' so the bail out can be 19 cu/ft or less. Attach the diver end of the hose to the snap shackle for quick release. The shackle should be on the left side of the harness with the hose running behind your back and over your right shoulder.

 

[DennisS]

How will you know how much air you have left

 

[iztok]

How will you know how much air you have left

Safe to say that when you can't breath anymore you are out of air

Then there is an "obvious" 60ft SPG option

Or instead of dragging all this gear and bother with hookah setup you can rent someone to schlep your stuff around. Hinkle or Rekers might have some info on where to rent some boys to help.

 

[Bob3]

We use a reg with an adjustable 2nd stage, your choice of manufacturer.
A hookah rig is easy enough to put together yourself if you can turn a wrench & don't mind doing some shopping, it'll save you a bunch of $$.

 

[quatin]

We use a reg with an adjustable 2nd stage, your choice of manufacturer.
A hookah rig is easy enough to put together yourself if you can turn a wrench & don't mind doing some shopping, it'll save you a bunch of $$.

I'm intrigued. Do tell more. I was looking at the setup at a local dive shop for $300 that has a 50 ft hose, 1st & 2nd stage regulators, but it looks like the cheap yellow octopus regulator.

 

[XxMerlinxX]

I don't understand, you're only removing the tank from your back, but you're also greatly limiting your mobility. Did you have issues with buoyancy in the pool or something?

 

[knowone]

An Explanation of Pressure and the Laws of Boyle, Charles, Dalton, and Henry


Amongst many other things


I love my upstream tilt with
venturi adjust, hookah regs


Very good.

 

[quatin]

I don't understand, you're only removing the tank from your back, but you're also greatly limiting your mobility. Did you have issues with buoyancy in the pool or something?

I was told that I don't need a BCD, tank and half the weights. Also, you drag the kayak with you on the tow belt, which also serves to hold the dive flag. My primary interest in scuba right now is to hunt lobster. I felt like all the gear I had was a major hindrance on maneuverability and comfort underwater as opposed to skin diving.

 

[rx7diver]

Quatin,

Sometimes new divers are not aware of the myriad of cylinder sizes available. A 63 cu ft Aluminum cylinder (rather than the more standard Aluminum 80) is quite manageable even for many smaller divers. Check out one of my eight-year-old twins recently playing: Inaugural Dive | Facebook. Probably an Aluminum 50 would have been better for her, but none was available from the local dive shop, and she did just fine with a 63.

Also, the more you wear your scuba gear, the more comfortable you will feel in it.

Safe Diving,

Ronald