Do you wear a snorkel while boat diving?

[DaFireMedic]

Well of course this is going to be a rehash of the previous snorkel thread but...

1. Under the water snorkels are worse than useless since they get in the way, cause mask flooding, are an entangelment hazard, and negatively impact streamlining.

2. On the surface they are pretty useless too since you can just swim on your back.

That said if you want to go snorkeling more power to you, but snorkels are not really a diving accessory. If you are going diving why not just take what you need to dive?

Andy

Please do me a favor and go speak before the Laguna Beach City Council......

 

[Mr Carcharodon]

Maybe this is true, but my instructor emphasized several times NOT to forget our snorkels because they could cite us...she didn't specify anything else....but being we're students, I guess that keeping it on our masks would be key at this point of our dive careers.

Well yes of course you should do whatever the people on the local city councils require no matter how clueless they are. Afterall why would you think for yourself? Clearly the local authorities consider that to me much too dangerous.

 

[Daryl Morse]

I just switched to a bp/w and a long hose. The snorkel stays in my gear bag now. Maybe when I get an X-pocket or something similar I'll get a folding snorkel, but it's pretty low on the list.

 

[SDAnderson]

Add me to the "No Snorkel" brigade. They're more bother (and hazard) than they're worth. Think of them as training wheels for divers that haven't yet become comfortable in the water: a nice confidence booster but, ultimately, a PITA.

 

[paolov]

not all the time

 

[david.tolan]

I guess I'm one of the odd ones out....

In really choppy water, while just waiting around on the surface, a snorkle can reduce the chance of swallowing a face full of water. And it means that you can swap around from swimming on your back to your front.

I don't dive caves or inside wrecks so I won't comment on that. In open water, I have never found the snorkel to be an inconvenience, nor have I had any problem with it breaking my mask seal.

Given for me that there is 0 downside, and a couple of upsides, I'm going to keep on wearing it.

Also, when I'm in the water first, I can look around under water without using up my tank. Gets me used to the cold. Kind important to remember to swap in the reg when going under. :sick:

Dave

 

[CBulla]

I took the thing off after the required use for the OW class. It broke the seal on my mask more than I cared for and since I wear contacts it was a pain in the keister. My son uses it like didgeridoo now..

 

[Lil' Irish Temper]

Hmmmm, I wonder how long before this debate turns ugly like the last one

Oh well, I'll just sit right here, and watch it from the grassy knoll

 

[Mike Veitch]

Once again.....what's a snorkel?

 

[KaBoOm]

After my first boat dive which was my first dive after finishing my checkout dives I noticed that very few people were wearing them. On the next dive I tried without my snorkle and I won't go back again unless there is a long surface swim. I immediately found that I got a better mask seal and that I had more mobility in turning to see things. It also didn't get caught up on my BC inflator hose which I found to be very annoying. My wife was diving with me and tried without one the next day and found the same thing.