Question about exceeding the 'loadable weight' of a BCD

[boulderjohn]

You rarely if ever need to ditch all your lead. At depth if the BC fails you try to swim up. If you can't, you drop one pocket and chances are that is more than enough for you to start to get positive. Once you start to get positive you keep getting positive.

This one of the enduring themes in ScubaBoard threads.

We have had threads that ask under what circumstances you would drop your weights, and as the discussion goes along, it becomes pretty clear that there really aren't very many situations in which you would need or want to do that.

Then we have threads in which people point out that in the overwhelming majority of dive fatalities, the deceased diver still had his or her weights, with the implication that if they had only ditched their weights, they would all be alive today.

 

[Gareth J]

My two pennies worth.

1. I don't like integrated weights on principle, having seen too many people on the surface, and their weight on the bottom.
As others have said, splitting the weight between the integrated weight pockets and a weight belt would be the sensible compromise.

2. Do a weight check, and do it regularly, especially as you are new to diving. As you relax, you should be able to remove some lead. As you relax, and normalise the amount of lead you are wearing, your air consumption should drop.

3. I realise that you are new to diving. But consider moving from a 7mm wetsuit to a drysuit. Although drysuits are an expensive investment, they pay dividends. They are easier to dive than thick wetsuits (in my opinion). You will stay warmer during the dive, and warm up quicker between dives. There is nothing worse than putting a wet, cold wetsuit on for a second (or third) dive. You are more likely to continue diving, and dive more regularly if you are warm and comfortable during your dives.