BC doesn't float

[TSandM]

I just took a course last weekend where the instructor just shook his head when he found out I'm diving with 28 pounds of weight. The following day, we bled tanks down to 500 psi (or in my case it was actually less) and checked buoyancy -- he couldn't take ANY of that weight off. If you wear enough undergarment, and you're inherently buoyant, it's quite possible to require that much weight.

 

[rigdiver]

With an empty BC, fully inflated lungs and a nearly empty tank, do you float at eye level when wearing 26 lbs?

Walter;
Perfect question and suggestion. My only addition would be: do you sink at some point during exhalation.
Bill

 

[ScottZeagle]

A true Ranger BC should be able to support you wearing 26 lbs of weight with no problem.

Does the bladder look the same as your husbands?
Does it have the double bag bladder with the 44lb tag on it?
Have you checked with the shop where you bought it to get their input??

Scott

 

[ItsBruce]

I'm sorry, but I, too, think you are carrying too much weight and/or too much undergarments. I weigh 160 and with a 7mm suit, aluminum 80, Dacor Falcon and minimal accessories only carry 18 pounds of lead.

 

[Walter]

I just took a course last weekend where the instructor just shook his head when he found out I'm diving with 28 pounds of weight. The following day, we bled tanks down to 500 psi (or in my case it was actually less) and checked buoyancy -- he couldn't take ANY of that weight off. If you wear enough undergarment, and you're inherently buoyant, it's quite possible to require that much weight.

No arguments there, but it is highly unusual to be more positively buoyant than a fully inflated BC. The point to start with any weighting problem is to ensure the diver is actually diving with the correct amount of lead. If the lead is correct, it's time to look elsewhere.

My only addition would be: do you sink at some point during exhalation.

Since we are all subject to the laws of physics, its not an option. It will happen.

 

[mhold56]

I had a Zeagle Ranger BC and with a dry suite and al 80's I had to wear 40 lbs of weight. The Zeagle could barely handle the weight and would only bring my shoulders to the surface. I ended up replacing it with a Genesis Recon and that was the end of my problems. (75lbs of lift) I like it! Just my 2 cents worth...

 

[TheRedHead]

I found that my Zeagle Brigade bladder can hold a lot of water if you dump with the rear valve. You may not be getting enough air into the bladder if you have a large amount of water.

As far as men telling women they are diving with too much weight, I think you should let the matter drop. We keep logs and we know how much weight we need. How can someone have too many undergarmets? Obviously, you dive with enough undergarments to keep warm.

My buddy outweighs me by 40 pounds and I need twice as much weight as he does using the same tanks and no wetsuits. There is a very real male/female difference in buoyancy and weight requirements.

 

[Shadow]

As far as men telling women they are diving with too much weight, I think you should let the matter drop. We keep logs and we know how much weight we need. How can someone have too many undergarmets? Obviously, you dive with enough undergarments to keep warm.

There is a very real male/female difference in buoyancy and weight requirements.

Thank you. Very good point. I won't get into the buoyancy characteristics of muscle, bone, and fat, and body composition, etc.... For the skeptics posting above, I'm diving in water as cold as 45 degrees, in a trilaminate suit, for 60 minutes, on days when the air temperature is even lower. Believe me, I am using the absolute minimum of weight and fleece - trust me on this!

Thanks everybody else for the input. Interesting to hear others have same issue. Both my husband's large Zeagle Ranger and my small vest have the 44 lb tag, so I assume that both vests have the same bladder. I think the difference lies in the nylon vest itself. My vest is so much smaller that the bladder can't inflate to its full size; it's not physically possible because the nylon doesn't stretch and the inflated vest is much smaller than the large one. I can tell the plastic bladder inside is skrunched up (a technical term). So I don't think I'm getting the 44 lbs claimed.

At depths greater than 60 feet, I sometimes use both my suit and my vest to control buoyancy. The vest will definitely take me up, even with just a little "puff" or two on the inflator. In fact, I didn't even know my gear wouldn't float by itself until recently when we started diving off our own boat. (Charters around here make you climb out of the water with your gear on, so it's never in the water by itself - on our dinghy, we are more civilized - and we don't have a ladder!) I am extremely careful to ensure that my gear is securely clipped on before taking it off!

My tanks are the Scubapro 72, made by Faber. If I recall correctly, my gear floats with AL80, but not with my steel. I was wondering about relying on the vest in the event of my suit flooding.....

 

[DA Aquamaster]

That sounds right, if the bladder can't expand in the shell, you won't have the advertised lift.

Just to clarify, the Faber 72 is great for drysuit diving where you would otherwise be wearing a fair amount of lead as it is 10 pounds more negatively bouyant than an aluminum 80 - but you have to remember to adjust your weight accordingly. So if you are weighted properly with an AL 80 (neutrally bouyant at 10 ft with no air in the BC, no excess air/very slight squeeze in the drysuit and full lungs at the end of a dive with about 500 psi, or alternatively float at eyeball level on the surface under the same conditions) with 26 lbs of weight, you'd only need 16 pounds of weight with a Faber 72.

 

[Chad Carney]

Thanks everybody else for the input. Interesting to hear others have same issue. Both my husband's large Zeagle Ranger and my small vest have the 44 lb tag, so I assume that both vests have the same bladder. I think the difference lies in the nylon vest itself. My vest is so much smaller that the bladder can't inflate to its full size; it's not physically possible because the nylon doesn't stretch and the inflated vest is much smaller than the large one. I can tell the plastic bladder inside is skrunched up (a technical term). So I don't think I'm getting the 44 lbs claimed.

At depths greater than 60 feet, I sometimes use both my suit and my vest to control buoyancy. The vest will definitely take me up, even with just a little "puff" or two on the inflator. In fact, I didn't even know my gear wouldn't float by itself until recently when we started diving off our own boat. My tanks are the Scubapro 72, made by Faber. If I recall correctly, my gear floats with AL80, but not with my steel. I was wondering about relying on the vest in the event of my suit flooding.....

Hello Shadow,

I think your latest statement is getting closer to the root of the problem. First we need to get the terminology straight. I think you are referring to the bladder cover as the "vest". If you can see that your bladder cover is smaller than his, then it probably is. (It may have the wrong size tag sewn on. It would not be the first time.) If it's not made of the same ballistic material which has a side gusset for expansion, it may not be the Ranger air cell, (air cell = bladder in the bladder cover.) Which raises the question of it's origin?

The only thing that's supposed to be different on a small Ranger vs. a large one, is the harness, which has no floatation. (Sometimes also called vests, because it wraps around you.)

When you dive with your BC you are an integral part of the whole buoyancy picture, which is why you have no problems with lift until you remove it. (I once used a BC that had only 16 lbs of lift, which worked fine even in winter with my full suit, etc. But it would not begin to float my gear alone. I also pegged it's buoyancy at 180 ffw once, so it was not a good cold water BC.)

Because of your dry suit and your desire to float your BC, it sounds like you need a higher lift air cell.

Below is the Ranger with the standard 44 lb lift air cell. Got a picture of yours?

Chad
FL Zeagle Rep.