Question How do you have your BOV offboarded?

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PEDiver

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I'm looking to offboard my BOV to my sidemount bailout bottle vs. to the DIL bottle as is configured traditionally. I'm using the GG BOV and have the following hoses/fittings but I believe I'm missing certain adaptors/fittings. See the photo below of everything I have so far.

1x 40" LP hose (BOV side)
1x 15" LP hose (tank side)
1x QC6 male
1x QC6 female

I would need an adaptor to connect the 40" hose to the male QC6?
Do I need an adaptor to fit the 15" hose to the female QC6 (does not seem to mate correctly to a standard LP hose)?

Would appreciate any help/guidance. I believe offboarding the BOV to my bailout bottle is much safer than the conventional method and want to make sure I have this set up right.
 

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These QC6 males mate to a standard LP hose.


These QC6 females mate to a standard LP hose.


You'll probably need a custom hose that's got the LP 9/16ths connector on both sides for the BOV. I think if you ask nicely, Divers Supply in Jax may be able to make one for you.
 
If you can't get the custom hose made, you might also have some luck using this adapter with a standard 15" LP hose.

 
I have the shorter length of hose on the BOV side, with the male QC6 fitting. A bit shorter than the corresponding section of corrugated loop hose. That way removal and cleaning of the BOV/loop package is kept convenient.

Very convenient to just flip over to a full cylinder of ideal bailout gas. When something is going wrong, you may already be at your limits of control and awareness. Have to pre-breathe it though, full checks.

If you happen to leave the BOV line closed or unpressurized, or add a shutoff, it can suck in the BOV reg diaphragm on descent due to negative pressure, causing a wet breathe leak later. Ask me how I know.
 
I have the shorter length of hose on the BOV side, with the male QC6 fitting.
As a general PSA for other readers of the thread, while this is the probably the direction from the manufacturer (or was at one point), this is the opposite of the vast majority of divers.

1) the offboard bottles and stages are more likely to be drug through muck and clay and rock etc than the BOV side. Doing this with females on the offboard means that they are impossible to de crud. The males, on the other hand, can be poked against a hard object and will self clear.
2) female side is heavier (and as you add more and more bottles this adds up

If you’re not diving with anyone else that standardizes male nipples on offboard or you’re never changing the QC6 whilst in water or from one bottle to another, it matters not.
 
These QC6 males mate to a standard LP hose.


These QC6 females mate to a standard LP hose.


You'll probably need a custom hose that's got the LP 9/16ths connector on both sides for the BOV. I think if you ask nicely, Divers Supply in Jax may be able to make one for you.
If you can't get the custom hose made, you might also have some luck using this adapter with a standard 15" LP hose.


Thank you Ken! Will look into these and also reach out to Divers Supply for the custom hose. If no luck there, I will look into the adaptor you linked.
 
As a general PSA for other readers of the thread, while this is the probably the direction from the manufacturer (or was at one point), this is the opposite of the vast majority of divers.

1) the offboard bottles and stages are more likely to be drug through muck and clay and rock etc than the BOV side. Doing this with females on the offboard means that they are impossible to de crud. The males, on the other hand, can be poked against a hard object and will self clear.
2) female side is heavier (and as you add more and more bottles this adds up

If you’re not diving with anyone else that standardizes male nipples on offboard or you’re never changing the QC6 whilst in water or from one bottle to another, it matters not.

Sounds like I may have it backwards with the female QC6 coming off the bailout cylinder? Thinking through it in the cave environment, I can see where that might cause issues to your point about getting muck in it.

If that's true, I assume 40" hose from BOV with female QC6 to 15" hose from bailout cylinder with male QC6?
 
Sounds like I may have it backwards with the female QC6 coming off the bailout cylinder? Thinking through it in the cave environment, I can see where that might cause issues to your point about getting muck in it.

If that's true, I assume 40" hose from BOV with female QC6 to 15" hose from bailout cylinder with male QC6?
Not sure which unit you’re on and what direction you’re feeding it from. I run my BOV through a MAV on my left shoulder. Primary SM cylinders have whatever length hose is shortest to route cleanly and not dangle. Better slightly too long such that you can run it down, under retaining bands, and back up which can hold it tight but accesible.

Which MAV do you have? Are you wanting to run your BOV separate from your dil? Or move towards dilout such that your onboard left side “dil” bottle is exclusively inflation gas?
 
Not sure which unit you’re on and what direction you’re feeding it from. I run my BOV through a MAV on my left shoulder. Primary SM cylinders have whatever length hose is shortest to route cleanly and not dangle. Better slightly too long such that you can run it down, under retaining bands, and back up which can hold it tight but accesible.

Which MAV do you have? Are you wanting to run your BOV separate from your dil? Or move towards dilout such that your onboard left side “dil” bottle is exclusively inflation gas?

Currently running the SG Defender in its standard configuration. So DIL bottle is being used for wing inflation, BOV, ADV, MAV, etc. via a manifold. Suit inflation is being run offboard with a small 6 or 13 cuft. bottle. Standard MAV from SG.

BOV would be routed from the left side down to my left bailout cylinder. My thinking is to run it separate from DIL bottle so I a) have more volume in the case of an emergency bailout situation (have heard stories of people being physically unable to switch to necklaced regulator in a hypercapnic event) and b) diversify what's being run by the manifold as a failure point.

I have not really considered truly switching to a DILOUT setup but open to different configurations.
 

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