What's is trim adjustment?

Hello,

I'm new to scuba. I was in a pool class yesterday and noticed I tilt forward when I'm above water with my BC (Seaquest Balance) inflated. If I stop kicking, my legs would swing back towards my butt. Under water, I seem OK. Was this problem related to trim adjustment? The tank I was using was a 80CF (not sure if it was steel or alu.)

I aligned the tank's value base to the top end of my BC's back plate.
When I lean my head back all the way, my head does come into contact with the value - is this correct?

Thanks in advance for any comments.

Dear SCUBA:

Your propensity to fall forward is a natural one. The pristine position in the water column is HORIZONTAL , is does a host of things. . . . diminishes drag, and makes you look dang good!

the following clip is Claire Gledhill, she is a GUE DIR instructor and is demonstrationg deco bottle switches. . . ignore all that is going on and focus on the fact that her groin is the lowest part of her body, she is is in perfect horizontal trim, a la like a skydivers free fall.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjdAS6Id_4A

Please feel free to ping me back if I can help further. Welcome to the wonderful world of diving.

Tevis

scuba_moron:

...noticed I tilt forward when I'm above water with my BC (Seaquest Balance) inflated. If I stop kicking, my legs would swing back towards my butt.

Click to expand...

If you bring your knees up alittle bit and lean back, like in a recliner, does it still happen? When most people talk about trim they are referring to their trim undewater instead of on the surface. Were you able to stay horizontal underwater?

scuba_moron:

When I lean my head back all the way, my head does come into contact with the value - is this correct?

Click to expand...

It is to me, but some people don't like it. Unless it REALLY bothers you I would say that sounds about right.

And no one is going to think you are a scuba moron just cause you are new

EDIT - One more thing, try just inflating your BC enough at the surface so that the water level is about even with the bottom of your chin. Sometimes over-inflating the BC at the surface can make you feel like you are being pushed forward.

Archangel - Pardon my ignorance, am I suppose to be in an arch (as in a free fall), or should I be more flat (horizontal)?

Jasonmh - I had no problem staying horizontal under water.
The only way I got into a recliner position was to throw my arms back over my shoulders.

scuba_moron,
(gee find a less self deprecating user name will ya! We all started at the beginning.)

If you are nice and prone underwater you are in great shape.

As for being forced forward topside it could be a few things....

What did you have for a BC? If it was a back inflate it will tend to do that if you really pump it. It stands to reason when you think about it. Try to get by with a little less than maximum lift.

Where were your weights? For diving it would be ideal to have all of your weight down on your belly since it lowers your center of gravity and makes you less likely to roll as you kick. In reality your belt buckle is there. If your belt or integrated weights were biased forward try moving them back a little. Some integrated pullouts are partitioned and will give you some control. I like to leave about 8 inches bare in the back of my belt, this gives a cylinder a place to be. Start there and load the belt working forward.

Your BC may have trim weights pockets way out back but if your trim is really nice I hesitate to suggest moving weight up to those unless you do still find that your feet get a little heavy while diving.

Lastly some of this is like riding a bicycle. Once you learn to balance it's natural.

Your thinking about this stuff and that's a huge first step.

Pete