buoyancy when snorkling/weights

[buleetu]

hi guys

im just wondering if it is okay for me to wear a weight belt for snorkling to allow me to stay down to take photos for longer and not have to fight to stay down
its kinda difficult to hold long enough in the one place to take a photo without popping up to the surface right away

ill be diving but mainly snokling in the red sea in april and it annoys me when im at the surface and i see something nice just below me a few feet and i cant stay there for a couple of seconds longer to take a few shots, i wont be going down that far just about 2 metres or so

is it a bad idea to wear weight at all when snorkling while not having a bcd or do i just wear a lot less weight than if i was diving

thanks guys
im sorry if im putting this thread in the wrong place on the site,feel free to move it if i am

 

[SteveC]

If your not wearing a wet suit, it will only take a few pounds to make you neutral, but it my still be hard to swim once you get tired. Wearing a snorkeling vest, which could be inflated, would make it safer.

 

[nereas]

At the Red Sea you will probably be wearing either a 1/2 mm dive skin or else just a swimsuit. Whichever it is, take it in a local swimming pool, and see how much weight you need to be neutral. I am guessing up to 2 lbs, if any. Then add 4 to 6 lbs to this for seawater, and that would be your total, which will probably run about 6 to 8 lbs.

But start with 4 lbs total in the Red Sea, then try 6 if you need more, or next 8 if still more.

The really nice thing about warm waters is that they do not present the issue of wetsuit compression, because you are normally wearing practically no suit at all with the 1/2 mm.

Your lungs however will compress, depending on how deeply you go, so watch your depth. Make sure you can quickly release the weight belt if you need to.

 

[billtodive]

That nasty problem of wetsuit compression is a handy thing when snorkeling. If you use a 3 mm wetsuit, you can weight yourself to be neutral at depth and you will be bouyant at the surface.
This will save on the sunburn, and allow you to rest floating on the surface.
As mentioned, it is good to be able to drop the weights.

 

[buleetu]

i was thinking of buying my wetsuit over there in sharm,they seem to be a lot less expensive, but when i start to dive over here in ireland i will need a thicker suit wont i so do u think i should perhaps rent instead while im there also the weight belt i can buy over there but the actual lead can be bought here i dont wanna have to pay extra at the airport because of the weight there a bit strict in sharm airport on excess weight

i was gonna get a 7mm suit and a 3mm shortie, a friend of mine dives here in ireland in the summer time and he wears a hood, a full 7mm wet suit and the 3mm shortie and he says he is nice and warm with that, of course he doesnt dive in the winter time so i wouldnt imagine he could get away with that in the winter months

i could wear the 3 mm shortie in sharm and then when i finally start to dive here in ireland in the summer time ill wear both

what do u think?

also do i still figure out my weight requirements when snorkling by adding weight until i have the water level in the middle of my mask with a half a lung full of air

 

[Flightlead]

hi guys

im just wondering if it is okay for me to wear a weight belt for snorkling to allow me to stay down to take photos for longer and not have to fight to stay down
its kinda difficult to hold long enough in the one place to take a photo without popping up to the surface right away

absolutely! In fact this is the setup to use when spearfishing in places where you can't spear on scuba, like the Bahamas. Exactly the same method for determining the appropriate weight, you want enough to float at eye level with a normal breath. once you are off the surface your suit (if you are wearing one) will compress a bit and you will be slightly negative and stay down easily. just make sure you can ditch the weight easily. oh and remember don't hyperventilate before submerging, two or three good breaths is enough. remember that stuff about partial pressure of CO2 and shallow water blackout.

 

[buleetu]

thanks mate

ive asked my gf to buddy up with me for this i wouldnt go out and try on my own, too risky, just never know whats gonna happen, ill buy my suit and rent a belt, the last time i was over i used 4 of the weights from the rental but im not sure what weight they were because all there weights were different sizes and shapes with no markings on them at all

thanks very much everyone for ur help

 

[jmelin]

I usually put a single 5 lb weight in the middle of my back when snorkling without a wetsuit. That little bit of weight really helps me break the surface and put all of my energy into swimming rather than trying to stay under water. It hardly noticable swimming at the surface. Remember, I weigh 250, so 5 lb is not much added weight for me. You may need less.

 

[Dakkon]

thanks mate

ive asked my gf to buddy up with me for this i wouldnt go out and try on my own, too risky, just never know whats gonna happen, ill buy my suit and rent a belt, the last time i was over i used 4 of the weights from the rental but im not sure what weight they were because all there weights were different sizes and shapes with no markings on them at all

thanks very much everyone for ur help

If you dial in the weights on a similar belt and you don't know what they weigh and you can't read them... you can always take them out of the belt and put them on a scale, you know

 

[buleetu]

i would have done that had i been in a half decent hotel when i done my course, it was hard enough to get food let alone a weighing scales ye see!!

but the next time round if they dont have uniform weights i will make sure to take ur advice
thanks mate