Do you wear a snorkel?

[nereas]

hahahaa

good one

my reason is that I honestly am never positive that I will be picked up in a timely manner by the bozos I dive with. And we have big seas here in Hawaii.
Big Bozos + Big Water= snorkel on both boat and shore dives.

But, I am superficial enough to want a black or camo one.

Catherine, such a beautiful name. Popularized by Catherine the Great of Russia, who was named after Saint Catherine of the monastery in Egypt, located where Moses climbed Mount Sinai.

I always did like Catherine the Great, because she gave John Paul Jones a commission as an admiral in the Russian Navy. That was his job, after the American Revolutionary War.

He (Jones) is entombed now at the chapel in the Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland. However he was such a controversial naval commander during his lifetime that his remains rested in repose embalmed in Paris for over a century before the U.S. Navy saw the error of their ways and brought them back.

Catherine the Great at least gave him a break. She of course had a huge war on her hands, and she needed fighting sailors.

 

[Cacia]

yes?

and then there is me

 

[GatorKev]

I have been diving since 1990 and always use one unless I might be somewhere that it could be a hazard and get caught up on something (wreck penetration). It always a good idea to have one with you just in case. No difference than any of those line reels, safety sausages (spelling?) and lights that dangle from ones BC and such. It's something that you will have to make a choice about.

 

[diver 85]

How would you know? How many agencies have you been associated with?

I can tell you that all of the agencies I've worked classes for require a snorkel as part of the basic gear, and require instruction in its use as part of their basic curriculum.


Why would you assume that a diver would end a dive with no more air in their tank? If you do so, you are violating some pretty basic things that you were supposed to have learned in your basic open water class.

Sounds to me more like you're saying you use a snorkel to make up for a lack of fundamental skills.


Actually, I know AN answer ... and I'll share it.

A snorkel ... like every piece of scuba gear ... serves a specific purpose. Depending on the circumstances of your dive it can have advantages and disadvantages. You need to understand why you're wearing it ... just like every other piece of gear you carry. Otherwise, you can't make a rational decision as to whether it's safety equipment or not.

If you're using a long hose, a snorkel can interfere with a shared-air exchange.

If you're diving in a strong current, a snorkel can create enough drag to cause your mask to get pulled off your face.

If you're diving in kelp ... or towing a flag or smb ... it can be a potential source of entanglement.

Under those circumstances, a snorkel isn't a piece of safety equipment ... it's an impediment to your safety.

Daniel gave some good examples of when a snorkel can be a piece of safety equipment. Some other folks did as well.

So my answer is "it depends on the gear I'm wearing and the circumstances of the dive" ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Think of this..You're diving the Flower Gardens, 125 miles from shore- another 60 miles to a 'good' hospital, you're going to make a rig dive with 400 ft. of ocean below you & you're max depth imposed by the boat captain is 100 ft(if you go 101 you must sit out the next dive & if you run out of air for any reason your diving if finished for the trip), there is a 3+knot current & in the briefing the DM(who stays on board- none of them get in the water for a dive) says IF you miss the tag lines on returning to the boat,just ride with the current, stay on the surface with SS deployed & we'll pick you up in about 30+ minutes---all (30-)divers go in together on this particular dive( due to the tieing up of the boat to the rig) therefore all will be returning @ about the same time & it will take some time to reboat them....BTW, this is your 4th deep dive of the day with one more deep dive( a nite dive) to follow......

How do you manage your gas for this one, one way would be to pop you head underwater, take a look @ the rig legs & get the hell back to the boat...But you know what, most did not do this, most kept a dive profile of 90 to 95 feet(remember the 100 ft rule) for about 40 minutes......

Also, you bet I had my snorkle on(even with the 3+ kt current) cuz I kept thinking..."man, I would rather breath air than saltwater for several minutes INCASE I miss those damn ropes"....But, I didn't & have great stills & video to prove it.......

 

[String]

Never carry one unless forced to for teaching. Then i fit it to teach snorkel skills and remove it immediately and stuff in pocket to comply with standards.

Hate the things- great for snorkelling but of no practical use what-so-ever when diving.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Think of this..You're diving the Flower Gardens, 125 miles from shore- another 60 miles to a 'good' hospital, you're going to make a rig dive with 400 ft. of ocean below you & you're max depth imposed by the boat captain is 100 ft(if you go 101 you must sit out the next dive & if you run out of air for any reason your diving if finished for the trip), there is a 3+knot current & in the briefing the DM(who stays on board- none of them get in the water for a dive) says IF you miss the tag lines on returning to the boat,just ride with the current, stay on the surface with SS deployed & we'll pick you up in about 30+ minutes---all (30-)divers go in together on this particular dive( due to the tieing up of the boat to the rig) therefore all will be returning @ about the same time & it will take some time to reboat them....BTW, this is your 4th deep dive of the day with one more deep dive( a nite dive) to follow......

How do you manage your gas for this one, one way would be to pop you head underwater, take a look @ the rig legs & get the hell back to the boat...But you know what, most did not do this, most kept a dive profile of 90 to 95 feet(remember the 100 ft rule) for about 40 minutes......

Also, you bet I had my snorkle on(even with the 3+ kt current) cuz I kept thinking..."man, I would rather breath air than saltwater for several minutes INCASE I miss those damn ropes"....But, I didn't & have great stills & video to prove it.......

Wow ... you dived an oil rig in 3+ knot current for 40 minutes and ascended back up a tag line to the boat?

I suspect that's a bit overestimating the current ... at 3+ knots you wouldn't even be able to hold onto a tag line, much less get back to it after the dive. If you did manage to somehow hang on ... by using a jon line, perhaps ... the current would rip your mask and snorkel right off your face.

I've done dives in that kind of current ... they're called "drift dives". And unless you're using a scooter, after 40 minutes you're gonna be about a mile and a half from where the boat dropped you off ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[stevetim]

Two things that really are irritating when diving with a snorkel are currents, and surges.

Both tend to move the snorkel around and tug on my mask, and even sometimes break the seal between mask and my face, letting water gush in.

These are the main reasons I don't use snorkels anymore.

 

[diver 85]

Wow ... you dived an oil rig in 3+ knot current for 40 minutes and ascended back up a tag line to the boat?

I suspect that's a bit overestimating the current ... at 3+ knots you wouldn't even be able to hold onto a tag line, much less get back to it after the dive. If you did manage to somehow hang on ... by using a jon line, perhaps ... the current would rip your mask and snorkel right off your face.

I've done dives in that kind of current ... they're called "drift dives". And unless you're using a scooter, after 40 minutes you're gonna be about a mile and a half from where the boat dropped you off ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Guess we're just better swimmers, divers here....hint, you don't need to dive off the La coast, it'll kill people like you......lol.......current was 3 1st 30 ft, 1-2 below that..........Also, less than 2 on the surface for the nite dive & less than 1 on the bottom(but no one knew that till we hit the water, the reason I chickened out on bringing the camera........)

 

[daniel f aleman]

Guess we're just better swimmers, divers here....hint, you don't need to dive off the La coast, it'll kill people like you.)

Better be funnin' here... You might want to read his resume.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Guess we're just better swimmers, divers here....hint, you don't need to dive off the La coast, it'll kill people like you......lol.......current was 3 1st 30 ft, 1-2 below that..........Also, less than 2 on the surface for the nite dive & less than 1 on the bottom(but no one knew that till we hit the water, the reason I chickened out on bringing the camera........)

Sorry ... ain't buyin' it.

Try a little experiment sometime. Get in the water in full scuba gear. Have the boat toss you a line. Hang on. Have them tow you at 3 knots while you hang on.

Come back and tell us how well you managed ... :shakehead

Lots of people don't realize how fast a 3-knot current really feels to a scuba diver. I guarantee you're not swimming against it ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)