Charlie99
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If you are properly weighted, then you won't have much air in your BC and it is easy to maintain neutral buoyancy / zero ascent rate by varying your lung volume. Once you have found that neutral spot, then you get used to how much you have to expand your lungs to get the right amount of lift to get the desired ascent rate. After a while, ascent rate control becomes automatic.
YMMV, but I found that following just the ascent rate indicator on the computer was almost impossible. The indication lags a bit and isn't all that precise.
The smallest bubbles work pretty good, but as others have noted, you have to keep going back to new bubbles.
I found that simply watching various bits of little particulates / junk in the water works best and easiest for me. Kind of the same as watching bubbles, but the junk is stationary (provided there aren't vertical currents) and are good references for very slow ascents.
The depth reading on the computer works as a good backup on ascent control, and it's a good practice to note the time you start an ascent and mentally pick out a couple depth/time waypoints that you want to hit. For example, coming up from a square profile at 80', I'll note the times I intend to finish 40', 25', and 15' stops (roughly 2,3, and 6 minutes from what is currently showing on computer as elapsed dive time).
Instantaneous ascent rate is not as important as the overall total time of ascent. In other words, you could bolt between 10' levels at high speed, as long as you wait at each 10' increment the appropriate time. Dan Europe has a good article on this.
YMMV, but I found that following just the ascent rate indicator on the computer was almost impossible. The indication lags a bit and isn't all that precise.
The smallest bubbles work pretty good, but as others have noted, you have to keep going back to new bubbles.
I found that simply watching various bits of little particulates / junk in the water works best and easiest for me. Kind of the same as watching bubbles, but the junk is stationary (provided there aren't vertical currents) and are good references for very slow ascents.
The depth reading on the computer works as a good backup on ascent control, and it's a good practice to note the time you start an ascent and mentally pick out a couple depth/time waypoints that you want to hit. For example, coming up from a square profile at 80', I'll note the times I intend to finish 40', 25', and 15' stops (roughly 2,3, and 6 minutes from what is currently showing on computer as elapsed dive time).
Instantaneous ascent rate is not as important as the overall total time of ascent. In other words, you could bolt between 10' levels at high speed, as long as you wait at each 10' increment the appropriate time. Dan Europe has a good article on this.