Question about diving at altitude

[toddbr]

Hello,

I am going to go diving at Cultus Lake Oregon with is at about 4500ft. I have the Atmos 2 with compensates for altitude. I do not plan on make repetitive dives nor do I plan on going deeper then 30 to 40ft. I have not had formal altitude diving instruction. I have been diving for some time now though and have good head (most of the time)

What are some things that I should do in preparation? Is this not a good idea?

 

[kenlt]

I am going to go diving at Cultus Lake Oregon with is at about 4500ft.What are some things that I should do in preparation? Is this not a good idea?

Well, I'm far from an expert, but I did check this stuff out before I went to Lake Tahoe last year.

First off, once you get there, wait for 12 or 24 hours (don't remember which, sorry) before you dive so you can acclimate to the altitude.

There are a different set of tables for altitude, but if I remember right, 30-40 feet isn't horribly significant. You can google for altitude diving, or probably search ScubaBoard, for the details. I don't remember them well enough to write it down.

Hydrate, take it easy, and don't do anything stupid. And do more research, please don't just take my word, I've only done it once.

Ken

 

[kenlt]

Here's a chart I found showing your "altitude depth" vs. "actual depth". It's not the one I used last year, but it's the same info.

www.mermaidscuba.com/altitude.shtml

Here's another one:

http://www.blowinbubbles.com/scubalti.htm

But remember, whatever you read on the internet is absolutely true, so check it out with an instructor or someone that knows better before betting your life or wellbeing on it.

Ken

 

[toddbr]

Ok, thanks Ken! I will keep searching but the links should help out.

 

[Diversion]

Hello,

I am going to go diving at Cultus Lake Oregon with is at about 4500ft. I have the Atmos 2 with compensates for altitude. I do not plan on make repetitive dives nor do I plan on going deeper then 30 to 40ft. I have not had formal altitude diving instruction. I have been diving for some time now though and have good head (most of the time)

What are some things that I should do in preparation? Is this not a good idea?

toddbr,
A couple of things... 1: your Atmos 2 will compensate for altitude. The nitrogen loading it will register will be adjusted for altitude. If you DO make a repeat dive, use altitude adjusted tables to find your equivalent depth. Use this depth if you need to calculate your pressure group for a surface interval. The Atmos 2 will show you your no-stop bottom time in 'plan' mode. 2: How long you need to wait before diving is a function of the change in altitude that your body is accustomed to. If you go up 2000 ft to get to the dive site, then you are already a pressure group ‘B’ diver – before you hit the water. You can credit yourself for surface interval (time at altitude before the dive …) much like a repeat dive (after an appropriate interval, you would be an ‘A’ diver, etc). You can add the RNT minutes from your dive tables to your dive plan. After 12 hours, (or in some cases less) no RNT remains. If you already live at 4500 ft (or higher), no adjustments need to be made.

A good reference on this is the Navy Dive Manual - Chapter 9. You can download it from a number of sources on the Web. Scubatoys.com has one linked to their classes page: http://www.scubatoys.com/education/educationmain.asp (Thanks Larry!).

Just be conservative in your dive plan, and use a safety stop.

Diving at altitude requires a bit more planning and care, but is not something you should avoid.

Come back and tell use how it went!

 

[boomx5]

So let me ask everyone something. Let's suppose a diver was to travel to altitude (6,200'), do a dive to around 170' without waiting 12-24 hours or worrying about altitude calculations and then drive home all within 6-7 hours...what do you think would happen to that diver?

 

[Kriterian]

I just wanted to add a few things about the Atmos 2 and altitude diving:

- It automatically senses ambient pressure when it's activated, and every 15-30 minutes after that. You don't have to actually do anything to start altitude diving other than turn it on.

- NOTE: It does NOT sense ambient pressure or do altitude compensation when wet. Make sure you turn it on before you get into the water or get it wet.

- Do not do any dives at a different altitude until you've turned it off and let it reset to your current altitude.

 

[Rick Inman]

So let me ask everyone something. Let's suppose a diver was to travel to altitude (6,200'), do a dive to around 170' without waiting 12-24 hours or worrying about altitude calculations and then drive home all within 6-7 hours...what do you think would happen to that diver?

I like the question, Scott!

Just off the top of my head, the equivalent ocean depth would be much deeper than 170'. So if you ignored the fact that you were at altitude and you planned your dive and decompressed based on a 170' dive, you might get into trouble and not make it back to the car to drive home at all.

What am I missing???

 

[Kriterian]

I like the question, Scott!

Just off the top of my head, the equivalent ocean depth would be much deeper than 170'. So if you ignored the fact that you were at altitude and you planned your dive and decompressed based on a 170' dive, you might get into trouble and not make it back to the car to drive home at all.

What am I missing???

Depending on where the person lived, the drive back would probably kill them when they changed altitude.

 

[Rick Inman]

Depending on where the person lived, the drive back would probably kill them when they changed altitude.

No, wrong direction. As they drive back, pressure increases.