At what temp should you get a cold water reg?
- Thread starter Artimas
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I see 42F frequently mentioned. At temperature the adiabatic cooling can get you into trouble if you work a non cold water regulator hard at depth.
Pete
Pete
Bob3
Contributor
Different reg manufacturers will toss out different temps, though most will fall into the 40°f - 45°f range.
(4½°C - 7°C)
(4½°C - 7°C)
The industry standard I see now and then is 50 degrees, but that is a little conservative. In practice I normally see problems with non cold water regs develop when the temp falls into the 40-45 degree range.
The thing is with "cold water regs" is that it usually also means that they are environmentally sealed. Depending on where you dive that may be a plus if the water is always above 70. Helps to keep those little pieces of junk out as well as lessen chance of freeze up. All my regs are rated for cold water and all are environmentally sealed.
CE Certification requires additional testing for <50F
I would say below 50F degrees to be safe. Unlikely to have any problems at all above 50F with most any modern regulator. To be ultra conservative you could say 60F. I'd say 3/4'ths of all divers (maybe more) never dive below 60F. Warm water divers generally dive 74F -86F waters... and any regulator will do fine there.
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