Was this a terrible idea, or merely a bad idea?

[BRT]

For kicks and grins I ran 10 minutes at 110ft on air through planning apps (ZHL16-C 20/85). 4minutes of deco (1 min each at 40,30,20,and 10ft.) Following the slope of the reef probably gave you what you needed, and it's likely the DM made sure you took your time on the ascent and did a safety stop. I realize that 110' for 10-20 minutes is considered within NDL depending on whose tables you use, but I wanted to see what Dr. Buhlmann says.

If you're curious, the linked jpeg shows the predicted tissue loading IF you had gone directly to the surface after 10min of bottom time (i.e. not the gentle ascent with safety stop at 15ft.) The two fastest compartments are over the red line - the limit of what's considered safe to reach the surface with. As I understand it, bubbles in the fast tissues are what lead to Type II DCS (neurological damage, paralysis, etc. - nothing to worry about

Dropbox - Dive110.jpg

My computer reads differently.

 

[Steve_C]

Not clear actual dive was 10 min at 110. Other than digging for fossils I never spend most of the deep part of the dive actually at the max depth.

 

[Nation of Heat]

Not clear actual dive was 10 min at 110. Other than digging for fossils I never spend most of the deep part of the dive actually at the max depth.

Working from memory here...so grain of salt and all that, but I believe most of those 10 min was closer to the 100 range with a few dips down to max depth. I think part of what I've learned in the interim is that what feel like small differences in depth in real-time are actually important variables to keep a very close eye on.

 

[Kevrumbo]

Working from memory here...so grain of salt and all that, but I believe most of those 10 min was closer to the 100 range with a few dips down to max depth. I think part of what I've learned in the interim is that what feel like small differences in depth in real-time are actually important variables to keep a very close eye on.

What size tank and how much Air did you consume? Can you at least recall your starting and ending readings on your SPG?

 

[TONY CHANEY]

Working from memory here...so grain of salt and all that, but I believe most of those 10 min was closer to the 100 range with a few dips down to max depth. I think part of what I've learned in the interim is that what feel like small differences in depth in real-time are actually important variables to keep a very close eye on.

And there in is the rub and please don't beat yourself up, but...being a few dips below 100 fsw has got to be calculated based on the deepest "dip" obtained. Please do not see fuzzy numbers. 100 fsw is 100 fsw and 110 fsw is 110 fsw and not a dip below 100 fsw. Since you are a new diver you really have to treat it as a square profile based on the deepest depth obtained. In diving there is not a "little pregnant." Call it what it is and go from there and you will go far in diving. If you are using a computer then that is cool but modern diving often is looked at as flying the computer. Outside a few other problems with this is, unless the computer is air integrated it has no idea of your SAC rate or PSI available. My Divesoft, VR3, Hollis NHeO etc. all will let me go to over 500 fsw but cannot give the gas available to do the dive. Gas needed is based on me to figure out. An old joke in the diving community is when the question is asked, "how far can you go down?" We say, "all the way to the bottom....the trick is getting back to the surface!"
So, figure out your SAC rate and take a class if the deep dives are calling you.

 

[KeithG]

I will not debate the pros and cons of this dive. It apparently was an instructional dive, which means your instructors have to be held to standards. Your profile says you were certified SSI, and I don't know the SSI rules for training dive beyond the basic OW training. If it were PADI, that dive would have violated two instructional standards for adventure dives..

your first deep dive often appears to be a confusing catch 22 situation. you are not supposed to go deep until your are officially "certified". in order to be certified, you must go deep?

this sounds like the shop followed the scuba police rules by charging the OP an additional fee in order to turn the dive into a training dive so that it would be "ok". in my understanding a deep dive is part of the training to become an AOW.

What is different about this situation?
What are the rules (limitations) for a PADI deep training dive?

 

[yle]

What's done is done, and the two of you are just fine.

The upside is that you're asking about it, which means you realize that what you don't know could have been dangerous. Excellent instinct... now follow it and take a course that explains everything you need to know about deeper diving that your OW course didn't touch on.

After taking such a course, you'll not only have a better perspective on the dive in question, but you'll be a much safer diver (planning your own dives, not relying on a guide, etc) in the future.

(I think it's interesting that they told you the deep dive would count as a "specialty dive", but you apparently did no work with an instructor prior to the dive. A "specialty dive" usually is done in the context of a course, which would involve all the answers to your questions... BEFORE you did the dive.)

 

[yle]

in my understanding a deep dive is part of the training to become an AOW.

What is different about this situation?
What are the rules (limitations) for a PADI deep training dive?

What's different is that in an AOW course there would be classroom and/or book work prior to the dive in which an instructor would explain the subtleties (watching NDL, gas consumption, narcosis, etc) of deeper diving that were absent in the OW course. In other words, the answers to the OP's questions here would have been addressed prior to the dive.

Very different than just asking them to follow a DM who checks their air a few times.

 

[The Chairman]

Since you are a new diver you really have to treat it as a square profile

Why? Why not just rely on his PDC??? Use the tools available to you.

I'm all about limits, but I'm not about silly limits or needless hysteria. I'm going to guess that the comments about how heinous this dive was are by people who have never been on this wreck. Does it matter? Are the laws of physics somehow muted in Roatan? No, but the accompanying narcosis and stress are certainly affected. I'm somewhat at a loss to explain it, but it's more like a 60ft dive than a 110. Watch your air closely, but have some fun. This is as easy as it gets. It's sheltered by the surrounding reef structure so there's no current to speak of and no down lines needed. The water quality is exceptional and it's just a beautiful dive.

 

[Iralub]

If you had an understanding of narcosis, ndls, knew how to read your dive computer and had an appreciation of how fast your air disappears at that depth, it doesn't sound like that dive, in perfect conditions and with 2 attentive DMs, is the worst thing to do.
You'd be doing a deep dive as part of AOW or "adventure dives" anyway at some stage, no reason why you can't do it right after ow. Imo anyway