Snorkel for wavy conditions

[Basking Ridge Diver]

Pretty much zero points of failure - same one I was certified with many years ago - you don't need to spend a lot to have equipment last a life time. Of course some would call me cheap - but it works so why fix it?

 

[Divetech99]

I think a snorkel should have three things: a flex hose, a diameter equal to your finger, and a purge valve. These features are present in most snorkels that cost about $25.00. There should be no issue with a purge valve working- it is a simple little one way valve that usually consists of a thin flap or rubber. It sounds to me like the op has a faulty piece of equipment. As far as the performance of the splash guard, I am not big on those or on float valves either, because they can stick. If conditions are so rough that water down the snorkel tube is an issue, then I agree with those above who say go to your regulator.
DivemasterDennis

But if we're talking about long (1000 yards) surface swim, wouldn't a flex hose and standard bore (vs large bore) snorkel be inefficient?

 

[Keith.M]

I stopped using a snorkel when I dive a couple years ago. Even to the point where I was not even bringing one with me. Back around Thanksgiving I was diving at the park on Catalina Island down south. I had just finished a dive and had taken off my gear. I looked out at the park and there was a strange fin sticking out of the water. I watched it for a while before I realized it must be a mola mola. I briefly started looking in my dive bag when I realized I had not even brought the snorkel. That was very disappointing and I will at least take one with me at all times now.

It slowly swam through the length of the dive park. Had I had that snorkel, I would have taken it and went right back in to intercept and observe it. I don't want to miss an opportunity like that again.

 

[Mr Carcharodon]

I stopped using a snorkel 14 year ago and have not missed it since. Maybe you need it for snorkeling but for diving not so much. Leave the fancy dry snorkels at home or preferably in the recycle bin where they belong.

 

[stuartv]

Everytime I have used a flex hose snorkel in rough water, it has been hard to prevent it from flopping into bad positions that will allow it to tip into the water and have me sucking water in.

Are you saying this happens when the snorkel mouthpiece is in your mouth? I'm having trouble imagining how mine would flop around at all, if I'm holding the mouthpiece in my mouth.

 

[danvolker]

Are you saying this happens when the snorkel mouthpiece is in your mouth? I'm having trouble imagining how mine would flop around at all, if I'm holding the mouthpiece in my mouth.

When you are in rough water...there are strong forces from wave action that hits your snorkel. When you have a solid J snorkel, between holding the snorkel securely in your mouth, and the snorkel keeper, this two point securing is enough to maintain the orientation of the snorkel ( pointing up so breathing is easy, versus falling flat on the surface from a wave, and sucking in water)....The flexible hose snorkels, when hit by waves, act more like they have just the single point of connection by the snorkel holder, and it pivots all over the place from here. Not so much of a big deal in flat conditions....but if you really need the snorkel, like if you are out far from shore, with a long way to swim--you really want a secure system if the waves get to 4 to 6...or much bigger. I have used the floppy snorkels many times, in bad conditions, and they always worked poorly...and the solid j snorkels always made the big waves a non-issue.
The dive industry puts out junk all the time....it's up to all of us, to test it, and keep them honest.

 

[scagrotto]

But if we're talking about long (1000 yards) surface swim, wouldn't a flex hose and standard bore (vs large bore) snorkel be inefficient?

A smaller cross section and a corrugated wall will certainly offer more resistance than a large cross section and a smooth wall, but does it matter? The trachea has a cross section of about 0.4 square inches, very nearly equivalent to a round snorkel with a diameter of 5/8". It's also lined with sticky mucous and lots of cilia. Since a volume of air equal to the volume of the trachea and snorkel won't be exchanged when you breathe, I expect that any reduction in resistance with a larger snorkel is offset by the reduced air exchange. Maybe it matters when you're competing in snorkeling races, but I need a very strong motivation to bother swimming that fast.

Two more considerations that probably don't matter: For a given cross sectional area there should be less resistance with a round tube than with any other shape. The round tube will create more drag through the water than an oval cross section.

 

[danvolker]

A smaller cross section and a corrugated wall will certainly offer more resistance than a large cross section and a smooth wall, but does it matter? The trachea has a cross section of about 0.4 square inches, very nearly equivalent to a round snorkel with a diameter of 5/8". It's also lined with sticky mucous and lots of cilia. Since a volume of air equal to the volume of the trachea and snorkel won't be exchanged when you breathe, I expect that any reduction in resistance with a larger snorkel is offset by the reduced air exchange. Maybe it matters when you're competing in snorkeling races, but I need a very strong motivation to bother swimming that fast.

Two more considerations that probably don't matter: For a given cross sectional area there should be less resistance with a round tube than with any other shape. The round tube will create more drag through the water than an oval cross section.

While it is true that for typical snorkeling ( when not swimming with Whalesharks) you do not want to exert.....and in fact, are trying to maintain a low heart rate and breathing rate....one of the goals of snorkeling, is to be able to do a drop --whether to 12 feet, 25 feet, or 60 to 90 or so, depending on how much you have learned about the skills involved and on what you have an interest in seeing. The reality is, there is very little physical fitness required to do a 60 foot drop....but there is a real skill level--there are several tricks you need to know, and without them, you wont find this easy to accomplish....This is another place I would like to put the average Scuba dive instructor through....let them show if they can do a 30 foot drop, or a 60, or a 90 foot drop, and be able to do at least a minute or so of duration. If they can't do 50 or 60 feet, they don't have the basic skills --they don't know proper propulsion, they don't know the techniques, they have not learned enough about proper buoyancy control, etc...If they can't do this, they DONT KNOW ENOUGH TO TEACH A STUDENT HOW TO SNORKEL!!! I would argue, that once you can easily do 60 foot deep drops, you have picked up enough skills and abilities, that should you desire to do a 1500 yard surface snorkel though very rough water, it would be incredibly easy for you, if compared to your evil twin with only the snorkel skills of the typical scuba instructor.

And when you do your drop to 20 feet, or whatever, and spend a minute or so underwater, on reaching the surface, you have a huge amount of ventilation for your lungs to get back to a comfortable breathing rate again....you will be breathing like you just ran a huge sprint, and the wide bore snorkels do not restrict this critical rapid breathing, while the narrow ones do restrict breathing rate--they make you feel like you can't brethe fast enough for the demand.
Arguably, many deep drop freedivers will tell you they spit their snorkels from their mouth on the drops, and that they could just breathe lying on their backs on the re-surfacing. However, there is no ability to track where you are on the reef, and often you do want to keep visual track of what is below you, or where your buddies are if they are doing a drop....at least for me, I am going to prefer using the snorkel to breathe through on the immediate return to the surface, and I will tell you, narrow snorkels are terrible for this. Wide bore snorkels make this easy.

 

[rongoodman]

If they can't do this, they DONT KNOW ENOUGH TO TEACH A STUDENT HOW TO SNORKEL!!!

If they were presenting themselves as freedive instructors, I can see this being a problem. For SCUBA instructors I don't see the issue.

 

[danvolker]

If they were presenting themselves as snorkel instructors, I can see this being a problem. For SCUBA instructors I don't see the issue.

Hi Ron,
It's only an issue, in as much as many student scuba divers are being taught the use of the snorkel by the scuba instructor....which is like being taught how to park a car, by a blind Driving Instructor
( slight exaggeration...I can't help it )