Ayisha
Contributor
Yes, definitely. Something that I don't think I have seen mentioned in this thread that can prevent freeflows in extremely cold water is to not overwork/overbreathe the reg. We try to breathe normally, not extremely deeply or quickly. When we inflate the BCD, we use short bursts rather than holding the inflator button down. We try not to inflate and inhale at the same time, which increases the demand on the reg and the risk of freeflow. If we need to use an air horn/Scubalert, we try not to inhale at the same time for the same reasons. We keep the work of breathing at a minimum, having our rig balanced and streamlined and the diving relaxed and slow.
Having two people share air at extremely cold temperatures at depth increases the work load of that reg and increases the chances of that last remaining first stage freeflowing resulting in two people running out of air very quickly. Many people around here carry an extra air source, usually doubles or at least a mid-large pony bottle - and of course use excellent gas management skills to avoid that scenario.
Devon Diver has already mentioned not breathing from the reg in advance when diving in extremely cold/icy conditions because moisture from your breathing increases the chance of the reg freezing. Ice divers usually don't put the reg in the mouth until they're descending to avoid that warm moist air freezing up.
Some divers, especially ice divers, use a device like Tobin's hat to help disconnect an inflator hose quickly (with thick gloves) if it freezes open. Some keep the auto-inflator disconnected while ice diving.
Hope those tips on avoiding freeflows help...
