Newbie question

[decompression]

The dive master that led our group in Cozumel last March quacked with his Dive Alert incessantly. Every video I took has his quacks in the background.

I use the old fashioned technique: make an almost fist with your left hand (like you're going to milk a cow) and whack the opening with your right hand. That smack sound travels pretty far and will get the attention of anyone near you.

I assume that noting the currency as pounds would suggest diving in and around the UK.....gloves are not optional and makes the whacking (lol) technique somewhat less adequate.

 

[Pedro Burrito]

I assume that noting the currency as pounds would suggest diving in and around the UK.....gloves are not optional and makes the whacking (lol) technique somewhat less adequate.

What? The water temperature around the UK isn't 80° F/ 26° C year round?

 

[decompression]

What? The water temperature around the UK isn't 80° F/ 26° C year round?

Sad huh? And I was all booked to the Orkney Islands this summer......oh well....off to Cabo!

 

[buddhasummer]

I did see a DM in Thailand once use a carabiner that he would "wrap" around his fingers and would just tap it on his tank. It worked.

---------- Post Merged at 12:51 AM ---------- Previous Post was at 12:36 AM ----------

I disagree completely with the negative perspective by several posters. Over-use is a real issue, sure, but these signalling devices are often very useful. To say they shouldn't be used is nuts. My wife and I each have an H2YO noisemaker from ReefNet. We are excellent buddies, but do not swim shoulder to shoulder, both of us always looking at the same items at the same time. Many times we are looking in opposite directions when one of us spots something of major interest and wants the other person's attention. The rattle is a good choice for that purpose. If you are annoyed by one of the underwater rattles when used by someone who is not your buddy, I would ask why you are swimming so close to that person? The rattle noise does not carry very far. I will say that there is one noise maker that I personally find exceedingly annoying, especially when over-used. That is the Dive Alert signalling device which generates an obnoxious sound that carries much further than the rattle noises.

I don't believe anyone said they shouldn't be used. I don't think they shouldn't be used, my personal preference is that they aren't.

Agree over use is often the problem greatly exacerbated by the number of people using them at any given site. Doesn't travel far? that I would completely disagree with. Dive some busy dive sites in the tropics and it may be easier to understand some peoples dislike. In more than 15 years of diving I've never been on a dive where the use of a tank banger/noise maker has improved or increased the enjoyment of said dive. But hey if it works for you, great.

 

[Damselfish]

I do the carabiner around the fingers thing, I actually keep it on my front pocket like a giant zipper pull (yes it's tucked in and take it off if I want to use it (not often.)

 

[RJP]

Bolt snap rapped on tank is more than sufficient.

 

[ams511]

Bolt snap rapped on tank is more than sufficient.

or a knife handle.

 

[-hh]

The dive master that led our group in Cozumel last March quacked with his Dive Alert incessantly. Every video I took has his quacks in the background.

When I encounter groups that have someone who makes too much noise, asking the right question during the surface interval usually gets them to quiet down. A good example of the 'right question' is an open question to the group for who it was that had such an obviously fantastic dive.

I use the old fashioned technique: make an almost fist with your left hand (like you're going to milk a cow) and whack the opening with your right hand. That smack sound travels pretty far and will get the attention of anyone near you.

Haven't tried this, although I can see that it requires having both hands free (no UW camera, etc).

Bolt snap rapped on tank is more than sufficient.

Pretty much any hard object rapped on one's tank will do just fine, and not only are things like a bolt snap cheap, but as divers, we usually have one in our kit bag for attaching a flashlight or some other accessory to a D-ring, etc. For a buddy who's nearby and generally attentive, one can sometimes get away with less: instead of unclipping it to rap on something, just open the clip/carabiner and let go ... as it closes, based on its spring loaded action, some examples of this hardware will make a fairly quiet, but it still distinctive enough clicking sound: one can 'thumb' the release several times to click-click-click.


-hh