When CCR?

[Cave Diver]

My buddy and I moved to CCR when we found our OC dives becoming longer, deeper and incurring more deco. After much debate, it seemed like the logical next step to add another tool to the box.

As far as the OC experience goes, I think it depends on what unit you're looking at and what your goals are. Someone who is planning to do strictly shallow, recreational diving on CCR for photography and such might be fine starting off, or switching early to CCR.

I feel someone who is doing more advanced dives will benefit from a lot of OC experience, especially carrying stage/deco bottles so that the switch to bailout is more seamless when it's needed.

 

[bletso]

Actually, very few of the dives I do require a rebreather. (When it comes down to it none 'require' a rbr.) I started down the dark side path after diving the Dolphin and still having to carry two cylinders for a two tank dive. So I converted my unit to MCCR and now can do a weekends worth of diving with what I carry on my back and two bottles in the car for trans-fill between days. It is lighter, I never get cotton mouth and I stay warmer. Trimix is a cinch as a set of doubles and a booster gives me months of supply.

More complicated? Definitely but with proper attention and muscle memory no more unsafe than OC. (We haven't learned how to breathe water.) It becomes second nature if it is the only way one dives. 30 cf diluent and 13 cf O2 and 5+ hours BT isn't bad. (OW environment)

http://www.airheadsscuba.com/rbrsprt.html

So, when you weigh the pros and cons of rbr diving versus OC and rbr wins out, then go for it. I would prefer OC experience and proficiency in all the venues you dive, then SCR to gain some basic rbr experience and then and only then CCR. In my opinion unless you plan on 100 msw dives do MCCR.

Oh, least I forget, remember any rebreather is always, and I do mean always trying to kill you! I refer to them as SEM's, Self Euthanasia Machines. There is no place in rebeather annals for a complacent diver.

Safe Diving


Dale

 

[Dsix36]

Thanks for the quick replies. Dsix, do you do or have you done much doubles OC diving after going CCR? If so why?

I have never had doubles on my back.

After selling my SCR and going CCR, I sold all of my OC gear and only dive a rebreather now. I am considering the posibility of diving sidemount to be able to access some caves that can't be done via backmount though.

 

[SFLDiver3445]

Slamfire, I'm not personally a fan of starting off one's diving career on a fully controllable closed circuit rebreather ("ccr"), because I think there are too many multi-tasking responsibilities involved for an entry-level diver to contend with. However, I don't think one has to be a serious tek diver to make the transition either.

With that said, from an experience standpoint, I think the minimum characteristics a diver switching to a ccr should have is a serious degree of comfort underwater. That level of comfort usually is only developed after acquiring a broad degree of experience.

When I took my first deep-diving classes, about 15 years ago, besides other certification requirements, they required us to have a minimum of 100 dives in varying conditions. This of course was subject to the instructors descretion, but it basically meant that, if a diver didn't have enough dives or if his dives were all limiting in experience (i.e., all on the same reef, in the same lake or within the same cave), then he probably didn't meet the definition of experience in varying conditions and probably wasn't ready to strap on a set of double and stage bottles and go down a couple hundred feet underwater.

I've always liked that guideline...so if someone asked me how much experience they should have before making the transition to a ccr, I would probably suggest a similar approach and recommend they be sure they had a broad enough array of experience underwater, to ensure they felt comfortable enough to deal with the multi-tasking they would be exposed to while diving a ccr.

But with that in mind, regardless how much experience a diver has, he better be self-disciplined, because as bletso said, "There is no place in rebeather annals for a complacent diver."

 

[Slamfire]

Thanks again guys. SFL, I was in Pompano the day after Christmas diving the DeWitt Clinton. I wrote a review about it here. It was a very enjoyable dive.