Non-penetration reel use

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sillygrendel

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Location
Mountain View, CA
# of dives
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This weekend I did my first wreck dive off NC (The Proteus). I saw something rather curious so I thought I'd ask opinions...

It seems from talking to a few people who regularly dive off MD that attaching a reel near the anchor line in poor vis is common practice. This makes sense to me.

The vis on this dive was great. (60' or better?) and there was a little bit of a current. Now I'm not an expert in diving in current but it wasn't anything I couldn't make headway against with a bit of effort, of course much easier near the bottom.

One of the guys diving attached a reel to the wreck so he wouldn't get "blown away". My diving experience is pretty limited, but this didn't seem like such a good idea to me:

1. It could cause an entanglement hazard flapping in the breeze

2. If you were actually blown off I doubt the line would hold. It almost certainly wouldn't hold enough for you to pull yourself back to the anchor.

3. Its something else to worry about, and doesn't appear to solve any problems.


It make most sense to me if you're blown off a wreck to shoot a surface marker and ascend up the line.

Thoughts?

I guess there are three main uses I saw for a reel: Penetration, very poor vis, shooting up SMBs (I prefer a spool).

Anyone use one for other purposes?
 
Blown off??? That would take a pretty serious current. Would the line hold? Probably so as cave (#24) and/or wreck (#36)line is pretty tough stuff. Could you pull yourself on it against that much current on so thin a line? Highly unlikely.

Current like that is undivable.

Reels are used to enable relocation of the mooring line in poor viz, that's a legitimate use.

Your 3 uses are the same as mine. I also prefer a spool for shooting a bag.

Tom
 
I agree with all your points except one. Current that will blow divers off a wreck is not necessarily undivable. Experience, training and continuing to think often allows some to dive in strong currents that will blow others off a wreck.
 
I'd rather be on a reel attached to the wreck than have to blow a bag and do deco stops in open sea and have the dive boat chase me down. When diving on wrecks and using reels all divers should no what is going on and make way for safety lines. We do not penetrate wrecks with out reels and we use them as a aided tool to help with the dive. I see nothing wrong with any one using a reel to prevent himself from being blown off a wreck, but perhaps a little pre dive discussion would of made it clear and prepared you and other divers for the outlaying of the line. In currented water getting fouled up is a great possibilty, but when you took your cave and wreck diving course you were taught how to handle such problems if they do occur didn't you?.

Master Chief
 
Master Chief once bubbled...
but when you took your cave and wreck diving course you were taught how to handle such problems if they do occur didn't you?.

Master Chief

Do you condider a wreck diving class necessary if you do not penetrate the wrecK?

Phil
 
Phil

Yes! I do, and if there is any course to take its a cavern course were you are taught the basics of running a reel and how to wrap it over and under objects as you go along inside or out side of a wreck or cave. There is just as much brocken up junk on the outside of a wreck to get fouled on as there is on the inside. Remember in dark water were the vis is poor we use reels to travel off the wreck and do a debre field search and with out that line you'l never make it back if you loose site of the wreck and end up having to do a bag inflation to surface and deco on.

Master chief
 
Hello all

Over here in the UK most wreck dives are tidal with only a small window for slack water between 30 - 60 mins so it is not uncommon to start a dive with it running a little , you can usually shelter in the lee side until it slack enough to move around more. All divers give the skipper a runtime so he would know when to expect the bags to appear and can follow them. Again all divers deploy a bag and ascend on this as it wouldn't be possible or comfortable to hold onto the line for any length of time ,currents can run at 6 knots at some sites.

Another use for a reel is as a buddy line or to conduct a circular search pattern.

A friend of mine was conducting a drift dive with a small zodiac as cover the plan was when he got to the bottom send up a bag and the boat was to follow. He shot the bag then felt the line go slack , the line had snapped so he wound the line in and began his ascent , on surfacing the zodiac was about 100 mts away, he shouted but the guy didn't hear him.,they picked him up four hours later after he dumped all his kit !

His line had snapped on the knot to his clip, he had never checked the knot since he had the reel. Now I cut mine off every year and tie a new one , I also put an extra length on about 6 inches long attached to the main line and to the clip.

My friend's bought new kit now and a whistle.

Yours Alban
 
Master Chief once bubbled...
Phil

Yes! I do, and if there is any course to take its a cavern course were you are taught the basics of running a reel and how to wrap it over and under objects as you go along inside or out side of a wreck or cave. There is just as much brocken up junk on the outside of a wreck to get fouled on as there is on the inside. Remember in dark water were the vis is poor we use reels to travel off the wreck and do a debre field search and with out that line you'l never make it back if you loose site of the wreck and end up having to do a bag inflation to surface and deco on.

Master chief

MC,

Had not considered some of those points before. I'll look into the cavern, but being in the PNW where there aren't any, at least that I know of, class may be hard to find.

Phil
 
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