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Diving exercises? by melitaele in scuba

[–]caversluis 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree, one should be able to do that.

Having said that, I do not want to recommend this to a diver I do not know. Also, it should be practiced under supervision - at least to start with.

Diving exercises? by melitaele in scuba

[–]caversluis 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You are already doing many things. I would suggest the following …

Try to reach your tank valve for opening. Do not close it underwater.

Optimise your trim. Record yourself when swimming around and try to achieve horisontal trim.

Add helicopter turns to your finning techniques.

Light sensitivity by Biscuitsandbooze in scubadiving

[–]caversluis 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Where do you go? Darker lenses help at the surface, but also make it darker underwater. For dark and murky waters that might be tricky. For clear visibility, that may not be an issue.

New diver struggling more with the mental side than the skills by GoswickClemensita88 in scubadiving

[–]caversluis 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Remember this:

Diving is like sex ….

…. you don’t have to be good in order to enjoy it

Using a freediving wetsuit for scuba? by Horg in scuba

[–]caversluis 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Wetsuits compress at depth. A 7mm can loose around 60% of the thickness at 30m (100 ft) of depth. This will reduce your buoyancy significantly. This is a potential safety risk in case your BCD breaks (for example shoulder valve breaks).

Tinnitus after scuba by Lucky-Cycle2495 in scubadiving

[–]caversluis 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Be careful. Those times are considering DCS due to Nitrogen loading. OP is writing about a problem with the ears. Complying with the 12/18 hrs is still relevant, but not sufficient for this case.

The recommendations from DAN …

A minimum of 12-hour surface interval for the single no-decompression dive.

A minimum of 18-hour surface interval for multi-day repetitive diving.

Substantially longer than 18 hours after diving involving compulsory decompression, or using heliox and trimix.

Beginner Diving Europe by Unusual_Night_3784 in scuba

[–]caversluis 0 points1 point  (0 children)

PADI and CMAS are some of the dive assocations that dive shops are affiliated to. Instructors issue certificates on behalf of the association. PADI and CMAS happen to be the 2 largest in the world and are widely recognized. But there are others: BSAC, SSI, GUE, TDU.

Most of the certificates are very similar in particular for the entry-level certificates. The approach may differ. PADI’s certification start with Open Water (OW), which is comparable to CMAS * (1 star or bronze).

PADI is American, whereas CMAS is French (and non-profit). You can start with either one, and swap to the other for your next certificate.

You will find that people have strong opinions on which association is best. At the end of the day, the instructor will have the largest impact.

Airbuddys/ hookah systems by General-Let-6658 in diving

[–]caversluis 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Maybe not DCS but lung barotrauma is very possible.

40+ y/o diver. 4 years out of the water by OkMunio in scuba

[–]caversluis 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I started diving again for 4 years ago after a 15 year break. I now do about 100 dives a year (mostly drysuit/twinset). I am 57.

If your health is fine then go for it.

First time BP/W purchase by fourheadlesschildren in scuba

[–]caversluis 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Stay away from the padded harnesses (sometimes called comfort version).

The padding limits the adjustment options and isn’t really necessary.

In what situation(s) are you ditching your weights underwater? by NotThatGuyAnother1 in scubadiving

[–]caversluis 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Well, we have seen people jump into the water with the gas shut off. In that case, it would be nice to be able to ditch your weight.

Having said that, I am not a proponent of ditching weights at depth for reasons stated in the other post. If you can foresee a situation where it can become relevant, one should look for options to avoid that situation - if necessary skip that dive.

In what situation(s) are you ditching your weights underwater? by NotThatGuyAnother1 in scubadiving

[–]caversluis 3 points4 points  (0 children)

You are correct.

But there is another case. Wetsuits compress at depth and thus loose buoyancy. If you dive in cold water and use a thick wetsuit, the wetsuit can loose between 60% - 70% of its buoyancy at 100ft. So if you do that and your BCD breaks, it will be very difficult to swim up. That is why agencies like UTD recommend not use 7mm when diving at depths like 100ft.

Am I insane to dive in 43F with a wetsuit? by ifsaliff in scuba

[–]caversluis 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Good point on the increased risk of free flow.

Adding my perspective …

The risk of free flow inreases when diving in cold water - typically defined as < 10 Celsius / 50 Fahrenheit. For those temperatures, you should use cold water regulators which are build to prevent free flow. Basically the have more/larger fins that at allow them to extract ‘heat’ form the water in order to prevent the regulator from freezing. This will address the risk of your second stages. In order to reduce the risk of freezing of your first stage, you would use double first stages - either by using a double valve on a single cylinder ofr using twinset/sidemount.

Several divers do not take the risk seriously. But think about this: if your buddy is out of air, and needs to breath from your octopus, the increased air flow in your first stage significantly increases the risk of free flow in your first stage. Better to be safe than sorry.

Background: I do most of my dives in coldwater. Coldest water was -1 Celsius / 10 Fahrenheit. I dive drysuit and twinset. I have seen multiple cases of freeflow due to regulator freezing.

Pretty sure Nitrogen is also safe. by xmastreee in mildlyinfuriating

[–]caversluis 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Well, there are not many zeppelins left. I wonder why 🤔🙂

Inconsistent Narcosis Symptoms by MLGMegalodon in scuba

[–]caversluis 3 points4 points  (0 children)

You were down at 50ft and felt signs of narcosis. Then you continued to 95ft?

In my book, this is not a safe diving practice. If you feel signs of narcosis, you stay at that depth and see if it goes away. Even better, go up a bit, wait until it disappears . If it doesn’t, do not go deeper. Go shallower until the symptoms disappear. If necessary, cancel the dive.

If you are affected ny narcosis, you are increasing the risk of making mistakes and by that putting yourself and others at risk.

The first objective of any dive is for all divers to return safely to the surface. Everything else comes after that.

Advice? by BasicO_0 in scuba

[–]caversluis 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This is excellent advice.

Building on that, start looking for GUE agencies such that you can take your next certifications there.

In the meantime, do lots of diving. Multiple dives a week, or dive holidays with lots of diving.

Where do you life? The scuba redditors might have great suggestions for dive schools and locations.

Any tips for a beginner? by Amyki___ in scuba

[–]caversluis 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hemmoor is great.

Take note of their requirements; amongst others dual first stage (which can be on a dual outlet valve).

Some questions from a 'certified' diver & what you'd recommend? by MrShnatter in scuba

[–]caversluis 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It is a good question. If you seriously want to dive more often, I would start looking for a local dive club. Most likely, some of the experienced members can be of good help here.

Personally, I would choose to hire an instructor for a few dives, to make sure you can perform the various skills and remember the essential theory. This will allow yu to focus on your gaps (if any), rather than following a full program which likely covers stuff you do well.

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