First time long distance dive trip and night dive, any advice?

[ppatrick]

victor, thanks for the idea of not messing with the camera during night dive. That's a good idea.

vondo, I was thinking about carry on my mask but wasn't sure how other divers do. My mask box was quite big and my carry on already had a lot of junks: notebook, reg, camera, housing, etc. If I have some space left, I'll carry on my mask.

Charlie99, sorry for not being descriptive. My first night dive will be the third dive when I am in Florida. The first two dives willbe in the morning and afternoon. And thanks for the location of Divers Direct.

Drewski, thanks for suggesting the Princeton Tec. I've recently seen scuba flashlights that use LED as light source. Is LED suppose to be better than halogen? Waterproof strobe!!! that's a great idea! I'll absolutely get it, so eveybody knows where I am. :-D

nolatom, thanks for light signal; circle means ok, back and forth means problem.

del_mo, thanks again for the answer.

I have another question. Some of you recommended not to point the light to other divers. How do I check on my dive buddy without pointing light to him and vice versa? Shouldn't I suppose to point light to my buddy say... every five minutes to make sure he's doing ok? What's the procedure on this???

Thank you everyone for very useful information!

 

[Drewski]

Drewski, thanks for suggesting the Princeton Tec. I've recently seen scuba flashlights that use LED as light source. Is LED suppose to be better than halogen? Waterproof strobe!!! that's a great idea! I'll absolutely get it, so everybody knows where I am.

Hey Patrick:

First, you’re welcome. I sure hope you post a follow-up about these dives after you get back from the trip! Yes, LED can be better than halogen, xenon or other "gas" based filament bulbs, in certain applications. Currently, LED technology is changing VERY quickly. The biggest issue is NOT brightness, but how far the beam can penetrate combined with brightness. For example, look at the specs for the Tec 400 vs. the Impact XL. Both lights are comparatively priced. Notice how the halogen light provides a wider and much longer pattern than the LED. Now, some new LED lights will provide much more light and a similar pattern, but you were looking for a "back-up." I recommended the light I did because you can use it BOTH for a back-up and a primary when diving during the day, if you want to peak in holes or other dark places.

The biggest advantage to LED vs. halogen is that LED will burn at constant brightness throughout the life of the battery, meaning as long as it's in the operating voltage range, you get the same amount of light. This is NOT true about halogen and other gas filament bulbs; as voltage decreases the ability to "excite" the gas in the bulb also decreases meaning light output drops. Gas filament bulbs are also more prone to damage from drops and on/offs, where as LEDs are VERY stable at all times.

IMO, LED will eventually replace most gas filament lighting, probably excluding HID for almost all diving applications. Development of products is still changing rapidly, however, so don't expect any "standards" like we have now for halogen lights in the next 2 years.

Again, have FUN on the trip and don't forget to tell us about it!

BTW, remember that you should only turn the strobe on in case of emergency. Don’t have it running all the time or it will really annoy people!

 

[Tigerman]

...
I have another question. Some of you recommended not to point the light to other divers. How do I check on my dive buddy without pointing light to him and vice versa? Shouldn't I suppose to point light to my buddy say... every five minutes to make sure he's doing ok? What's the procedure on this???

Thank you everyone for very useful information!

You dont need to shine the light directly at your buddy in order to check him/her. Youll notice that if you shine the light close to him youll get some light on the buddy as well, withouth putting the cone in his/her face.
Also, unless youve lost track of your buddy, light signals is all youre going to need, except when checking his/her gauges (which you should always do every once in a while, but more often during night dives than daytime dives)..

 

[del_mo]

I have another question. Some of you recommended not to point the light to other divers. How do I check on my dive buddy without pointing light to him and vice versa? Shouldn't I suppose to point light to my buddy say... every five minutes to make sure he's doing ok? What's the procedure on this???

Not to worry. The captain, or DM, will go over all the proper details on dealing with the night dive. How to signal your buddy... how to signal the boat....how to avoid blinding the fishies. Pay attention to the dive briefing and you'll do just fine.