My weighting problem

So I currently dive with a 7mm full suit with 2mm hooded vest, an AL80, and a weight integrated back inflate BC and I am using 22lbs which everybody is telling me is way to much. The problem is that I have tried cutting weight off and I cant't get down when I do. I am thinking that maybe my BC is trapping air or I am doing something wrong with my technique but any help would be appreciated. I talked to an instructor at my LDS who said that I should be using 16-18lbs at most but even with 20lb I am finding it impossible to sink. Thoughts?

diveandclimb:

So I currently dive with a 7mm full suit with 2mm hooded vest, an AL80, and a weight integrated back inflate BC and I am using 22lbs which everybody is telling me is way to much. The problem is that I have tried cutting weight off and I cant't get down when I do. I am thinking that maybe my BC is trapping air or I am doing something wrong with my technique but any help would be appreciated. I talked to an instructor at my LDS who said that I should be using 16-18lbs at most but even with 20lb I am finding it impossible to sink. Thoughts?

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I have thoughts . . . Tell you instructor that unless he's been in the pool with you doing a buoyancy check, he really doesn't know how much weigh you need.

You need to do a proper buoyancy check as described in your OW book, make sure the air is out of your BC and you're not finning, and whatever number you come up with is what you need.

Terry

Don't feel left out in the cold. I dive pretty much the same type of set up and the BEST I've been able to do in salt water is 20lbs. At the end of the dive it was a struggle to stay down. I've stuck between 22 and 24lbs and that seems to work for me.

The only way that you will be able to do the standard "SCUBA Certification" feet firt descent from the surface is to keep the 22 lbs you are diving with.

Later on you will figure out what works for you and you might shed some of the lead. It is just some thing that takes time.

Everyone will be different. I am 6' tall, 195 lbs and when diving my 5 mil two peice with the hooded vest I use 28 lbs of lead, and I am slightly buoyant above 10 feet in depth. At depth below 30 or 40 feet I am neutral and I don't have to put any air in my BC. You'll figure it out.

diveandclimb:

So I currently dive with a 7mm full suit with 2mm hooded vest, an AL80, and a weight integrated back inflate BC and I am using 22lbs which everybody is telling me is way to much. The problem is that I have tried cutting weight off and I cant't get down when I do. I am thinking that maybe my BC is trapping air or I am doing something wrong with my technique but any help would be appreciated. I talked to an instructor at my LDS who said that I should be using 16-18lbs at most but even with 20lb I am finding it impossible to sink. Thoughts?

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Do a bouyancy check.

Take your suit and hood, fold it up and stack weight on it til you see how much it takes for it to sink.

Then put your BC on in a pool, see how much weight it takes for you to float at eye level with a normal breath and a full tank and then add about 5 lbs to it to compensate for empty tank.

Add the weight needed for the suit and the weight for the gear together and that should get you pretty close to how much weight you need in order to dive.

22 Lbs sounds a bit high, but well within the "normal" range. I would suggest that having all that weight in an integrated BC might be a bad idea, but that's another issue.

When I was a new diver, I would swear blind that I needed XXX weight...and mysteriously the amount of weight I needed gradually dwindled over time.

Nowadays, my ali backplate alone proves sufficient with a 3mm full suit.

When instructing, I always attempt to identify a root cause as to why some people need "too much" weight. Normally it is down to one or more of the following factors...

1. New divers are more anxious and breath deeper, increasing their volume and buoyancy.

2. New divers do not maintain the 'empty lungs' long enough for it to effect their buoyancy and will instinctively/subconsiously draw in some air as they begin to descent momentarily into the buoyancy check.

3. New divers do not empty their bcds properly...usually attempting to empty in a horizontal position with the inflate/deflate hose below the level of the bcd...or, in a vertical position, because they do not fully extend the inflate/deflate hose straight upwards (creating a u-bend that does not release the air).

4. New divers instinctively/subconsiously fin when at the surface. Even a slightest propulsion/movement of the fins creates a moderate upwards force.

Hi diveandclimb,

I had the exact same problem this weekend with a borrowed 7mil farmer john. For some reason I could not sink myself . I had to add 12 lbs to my normal weighting of 14 lbs for a total of 26 lbs. I also had on hood and gloves too. I weight 184 lbs and 5'11" tall.

My normal weighting with a 3mil wetsuit and gloves is 12-14lbs.

Also I found that when I did not have by bc on I actually floated on top of the water in the 7mil! That made it kind of fun, trying to get my feet down under the water to swim. I pretty much was kicking the top of the water. I am posting to your thread so I can keep track of other peoples post! Maybe they can help us both out!

Cave Diver:

Do a bouyancy check.

Take your suit and hood, fold it up and stack weight on it til you see how much it takes for it to sink.

Then put your BC on in a pool, see how much weight it takes for you to float at eye level with a normal breath and a full tank and then add about 5 lbs to it to compensate for empty tank.

Add the weight needed for the suit and the weight for the gear together and that should get you pretty close to how much weight you need in order to dive.

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Remembering, of course, to compensate for the movement from freshwater pool to saltwater ocean (if applicable).

I'm a big guy (240lbs, 6ft3) and in fresh water I'm currently using 22lbs. WHEN I had 20lbs I needed to grab a rock to maintain the safety stop.

I've done to buoyancy checks and in that suit with 22lbs I need to exhale to start sinking.