have a problem hovering while doing deco stop

[drperi1]

I always dive slightly (very slightly!) negative (not an option in the summer- w/o an exposure suit of some nature I'm negative with steels no matter what . The advice you're getting sounds right. When I started using a drysuit, I found that I was just enough too positive at the end of the dive to hover at a safety stop. Play around with your weights- I throw 1 lb into the back of my wing, others need more, etc.

You may also benefit from having another diver view you during your ascent-safety stop. I asked a good dive partner to watch me at the end of a few dives (for different condiitons/final psi) & we discussed his findings. That really helped fine-tune my bouyancy and weighting.

Have fun, dive safe, live well.

Peri

 

[SeanQ]

If you really do not want to add lead to your rig, switch to steel tanks. The end of the dive is when bouyancy control is the most critical. What happens if you encounter a current and can't reach the line? Do you start finning down to maintain your depth and risk drifting further away from the boat? Exertion during a safety stop is counter-productive.

There are alternatives to weight belts. Steel tanks, steel or brass cam buckles, channel weights, STA weights... the list goes on. You can even make a few of them yourself.

 

[Vie]

Using a steel tank for single tank diving is not a good idea, IMHO.

 

[david.tolan]

Why Not ?

I'm not saying that it is a good idea, I just see why you should not use a steel tank for a single tank dive. I'm pretty sure that I have along the way.

Is it because you have no/less ditchable weight ?

Surely that's as big a problem with doubles ?

Dave.

------------------------------------------
The problem's not what folk don't know.
It's what they know that just ain't so.

Using a steel tank for single tank diving is not a good idea, IMHO.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Using a steel tank for single tank diving is not a good idea, IMHO.

Hmmm ... I'd like to understand your reasoning behind this statement.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MY01SHADOW]

I had this same problem while diving in Ft. Lauderdale two weeks ago. Last year diving there in only a skin I wore 8lbs of weight. This year after a pretty intense winter in the gym, I went with 4lbs. and was weighted perfectly until my psi read 700 or less, at that point I had to fight to hold my safety stops. Did two dives like that the first day (because I had no more weight with me), then bought (2) 1lb. weights for my trim pockets the next AM and was weighted perfectly for the rest of the trip.

The morale (of my story at least) is, it sure was nice to see myself only requiring 4 lbs of weight, but I'd much rather be a little negative on the first half or more of a dive than even 1/2 pound positive near the end when I need to stay at 15'. It's real easy to ditch weights in the event of an emergency, not so easy to avoid a blown safety stop or lung overexpansion injury if you don't have enough. Be prepared!

Mike

 

[DA Aquamaster]

New divers often unintentionally kick when they have no intention of going anywhere but down, lack breath control and have yet to master simple skills like completely dumping the BC or wing and more complex skills like perfect bouyancy control and consequently they often dive with excessive amounts of weight to compensate for their lack of ability. In that regard diving with a lesser and lesser amounts of weight has in most respects become a sign of diver competence.

But there are limits. Let's not let this turn into some sort of weird, masochistic and unsafe cult dedicated to the reduction of weight over all other factors.

If you are deco diving, the fact is that you need to be weighted so that you are neutral at least at your last deco stop with near empty tanks. It can further be argued that to ensure a dead slow ascent for your last 10 ft to the surface, that it is a very good idea to be weighted so that you are neutral at the surface with near empty tanks. If you have anything else at all in mind, or feel the need to prove anything to anybody by reducing your weight so that neither condition mentioned above can be acheived, you have absolutely no business doing deco diving.

In my opinion a diver needs to put his or her ego in check and give up on the idea of diving with less weight purely for bragging rights and instead show the judgment and maturity to use whatever weight they need on a dive to accomplish the dive in a safe and professional manner. That speaks volumes more to me about a diver's ability than his or her statement that "I dive with only ___ lbs of weight".

----

I also really want to hear the rationale for the blanket statement of why diving with a single steel tank is considered unsafe.

It does not matter what you dive for tanks as long as you can achieve neutral bouyancy at the end of the dive and can swim them up to the surface on your own in the event of a BC/wing failure and/or have a source for redundant bouyancy. The only situation where I can forsee a potential problem with a single steel tank is with a tropical diver in a very thin or no exposure suit diving a very negative steel tank. That does not warrant a blanket statement that steel tanks are unsafe for single tank dives.

 

[HarleyDiver]

Using a steel tank for single tank diving is not a good idea, IMHO.

Well I guess I need to sell all my tanks then...
NO, wait, I'll double all of them up...
NO, wait, that will offend the "you can't dive steel doubles wet" crowd...
AH, the H*** with it, I'll do what I do because it works for me.

lol


Seriously though, I can't wait to hear the reasoning behing this one, please clue us in.

 

[CD_in_Chitown]

When I saw Dr. Kay for my DM physical we talked about safety stops. His advice? Be completely relaxed and hover. As little movement as possible, and no struggling to hold depth.

Know what your doing when you exert the energy to hold yourself down? Constricting the blood vessels that are trying to carry the nitrogen back to the lungs...Know what you get when those bubbles can't get past your elbow or shoulder cuz your holding onto something for dear life? .... BENT!

Me? I choose to add a little weight, but YMMV

 

[matt_unique]

... Let's not let this turn into some sort of weird, masochistic and unsafe cult dedicated to the reduction of weight over all other factors.

If you are deco diving, the fact is that you need to be weighted so that you are neutral at least at your last deco stop with near empty tanks. It can further be argued that to ensure a dead slow ascent for your last 10 ft to the surface, that it is a very good idea to be weighted so that you are neutral at the surface with near empty tanks. If you have anything else at all in mind, or feel the need to prove anything to anybody by reducing your weight so that neither condition mentioned above can be acheived, you have absolutely no business doing deco diving.

In my opinion a diver needs to put his or her ego in check and give up on the idea of diving with less weight purely for bragging rights and instead show the judgment and maturity to use whatever weight they need on a dive to accomplish the dive in a safe and professional manner. That speaks volumes more to me about a diver's ability than his or her statement that "I dive with only ___ lbs of weight".

........

Here here......the weight pride concept drives me up the wall. I think someone may explode to read these words but weight does not affect SAC like some try to say it does. You can do your own experiments to test it. Do dive 1 with your regular weight. Add 10lbs for your next dive and see what happens. Guess what - NOTHING! You need a few seconds more of a squirt of air into your wing/bc then voa laaa - you're neutral. You're SAC rate is not going to increase by a measureable amount if at all.

Next comes the dynamic argument. More air in the wing/bc means more drag means higher SAC, less speed through the water, etc., etc. BS......has no relevant impact on your SAC rate. You can do your own experiments by doing dive 1 "clean" then doing dive 2 with two reels connected to D-rings for example.

The physics is not in dispute. Clearly weight, drag, etc. WILL have an impact. My point is this impact is not at all significant or measureable for our purposes as divers. There are so many other factors that would affect SAC much more significantly than someone who is slightly heavy, with reels in tow, with a bit more air in the wing/bc, etc. Your anxiety level or physical activity (doing drills, taking pictures, hunting for lobster) has much more of an impact than these other concerns in my experience.

--Matt