How many of you are doing Nitrox?

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kauai_diver

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Kauai, Hawaii
How do you like it and do you ever go back to conventional air? Was curious. One of the LDS' by my house offers the TDI Nitrox basic course for 150.00 and I am considering it.

What are your positives about Nitrox over conventional oxygen?

Any negatives?
 
Hi kauai_diver,

I use nitrox for appropriate dive profiles as I like the extra margin of safety when dove to air tables & the reduced fatigue.

To answer your question in any more detail, I'd need to know what you mean by "conventional oxygen."

Best regards.

DocVikingo
 
I've noticed no difference in fatigue levels, but then diving generally invigorates me anyway. I choose my mix depending on my planned depth. If the dive is shallow or deep, that mix is air. Mid range depths are perfect for various mixes of nitrox. The advantages of nitrox over oxygen is you can actually dive with nitrox, you can't with oxygen, although it is possible to make shallow decompression stops using oxygen, if you know what you are doing.

WWW™
 
I did the TDI nitrox course for just $99 here in Dallas.

I use it when I do the deeper blue water dives for the extra safety as mentioned above, plus to avoid the N2 headache after lots of repetitve diving.

But here in the Texas mudholes, I use basic air.
 
Nitrox has depth ranges where you obtain the most benefit, usually in the 60 to 100 foot range. For profiles shallower than 60 feet AIR is more economical (Costs less) and deeper than 80-100 feet (Depending on % of O2) you run into Oxygen Toxicity. The bottom time increase can be significant, if you are running out of bottom time before air you will love Nitrox.

I personally notice that Nitrox makes me feel better after a long dive than with AIR.

If nothing else the course is worth taking for the more advanced understanding of how oxygen affects the body at depth.
 
I am taking the course this month so that I can use nitrox on a liveabord trip. I doubt that I will use it for my routine diving activities.

-kate

 
Take the course , you will "feel Better" for it. I have the advantage of being a blender so my fills are really custom and really cheap. In fact , I use 40% while doing open water check outs. Feel great driving home.

Don't worry about your regs. Don't change them but please take them in for an anual service.

Ron
 
I use it for the occasional deeper dives, usually 80 to 100 ft and on vacations when available, particularly when doing more than two dive per day. I haven't noticed any fatigue reduction but use it mostly for safety and a slight increase in bottom time.

Ralph
 
Kauai_diver, Hi!

I use nitrox on multi day-multi dive trips (where it is available and subject to appropriate depths) with dual goals- lessened nitrogen uptake, and/or increased dive times. I like to seek a balance between those two ideas.
I strongly suggest the use of a nitrox compatable dive computer to help keep things simpler.(of course using the tables as a backup.)
If by "conventional oxygen" you mean regular compressed air, I switch from it to Nitrox as the profile of the indicates. (e.g.On a 2-tank dive you might use air for the first dive- if the depth so indicates, then switch to nitrox for the second dive, if appropriate.)
Hope this has been helpful.
Good luck
Miked


 
Hello kauai_diver,
My wife(Flo) and I took the Nitrox course in Little Cayman under Conch Club Divers. We read all the pros and cons of mixed gas and came to the conclusion that we wanted Nitrox for the reduced nitrogen uptake. We noticed the change in the way we felt right away. Usually after diving multi-days two tank dives with 21% we could feel the need for an evening rest period(nap). In Little Cayman diving three tank dives each day with diving nitrox a nap was not needed. We also switched from air to nitrox computers which helped our bottom time. We also noticed that Flo had a reduction in gas usage. Whether this was from the change in % or just a mind thing, we don't know. Most dive shops pump 32% but, some will mix 32% and 36%. If its the same price we dive 32% for deep dive(80-100 fsw) and 36% for shallow dive(40-60 fsw).
As DiverL mentioned: you also gain alot of knowledge about the effect of oxygen and diving. We did not have to do anything to our regs except their normal yearly service.
Good Luck and Safe Diving
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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