Cold water regulators

Hello fellow scuba divers,

I live in Ohio and would like to get a reg that won't freeze up.
I have gone through these threads about this subject. Now I'm more confused about which one to buy. I find one praising a reg then another dogging it? This seems to be the norm on all regs UHG! I need to get a reg for cold water. Please help.

Any Apeks except the T20 or AT20 will do you good. Dry, sealed first stages and second stages with heat exchangers and stuff. They basically don't freeze.

I've also heard the Sherwood Maximus or Blizzard are good for cold water, but I try to avoid Sherwood these days.

I agree - I have the Apeks ATX50 as my primary rig, as well as my octo (if you get the octo, get the European version - it glows in the dark). I've been in 31 degree water with this setup with absolutely no issues (other than the incredible amount of snot you get from diving in water that cold).

~W

...I don't dive one, have the next cheaper model Aqua Lung, but wanted to get the Glacia for diving in the cold water up here.

For what it's worth, was 34 degrees on the deck of the Niagara II out from Tobermory a few weeks ago, and my Aqua Lung Titan LX worked just great. Thanks partly to a dry fill from the guys at G&S dive shop in Tobermory, to go along with a good design from the boys at Aqua Lung and maintaining a proper maintenance schedule on the gear.

The most popular regulator used today for cold water conditions both in terms of over all sales, and independent testing is the Sherwood Maximus.

A great site for info on this is http://scilib.ucsd.edu/sio/nsf/
It's a site on an Antartic Expedition that tested all sorts of gear in some of the most extreme cold diving conditions on the planet.

This site also offers links to US Navy testing standards, and doesn't give a 'who is best' type opinion, but just says who is approved for US Navy Cold Water conditions and who is not.

The results may surprise you.

Good Luck!

the beuchat vx10 iceberg also will not let you down.

I'd go for the Blizzard over the the Maximus due to less overall parts -> less to go wong.

I actually had my brut out in 35 degree water, and was one of the few who didn't freeze the 2nd stage & start freeflowing. I will hopefully be getting a Blizzard though before next winter (if I ever get a job!)

I did see something from Apex I thing that would install between the 2nd stage & the hose that essentially was a shutoff for the 2nd stage in case of a freeflow. I may look into getting a pair... would be much easier to resolve problems in cold water.

-beaker

beaker once bubbled...

I did see something from Apex I thing that would install between the 2nd stage & the hose that essentially was a shutoff for the 2nd stage in case of a freeflow. I may look into getting a pair... would be much easier to resolve problems in cold water.

-beaker

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But...I think that if a first stage seat goes bad something will have to give. If the concern is a free flow, IMO, the answer is redundant regs and simply shutting down the offending one.

I have sherwoog magnums, Zeagles and Apeks regs. All have been on lots of ice dives and fairly deep dives in 40 deg water and all have performed well.

... All regulators can freeze up if used improperly (e.g. dry breathing at surface) or if conditions get really rough. The better regulators are just less likely to do so.

The most popular regulator used today for cold water conditions both in terms of over all sales, and independent testing is the Sherwood Maximus.

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From a U.S. point of view, perhaps. Personally I believe U.S. cold-water divers number less than, say, UK and Scandinavian cold-water divers combined (but I may be wrong). My guess is that the most popular cold-water regulator is the Apeks series (above TX20 level), in competition with the Poseidon series. Yes, I regularly see Poseidons free-flow in winter, but since my own DS4/TX50 free-flowed this fall on the surface after being serviced (and the flow probably set to high) I'm not so cocky ...

Then again, the Aqualung Glacia series is effectively a rebranded Apeks TX50, but considerably cheaper where I live. One of my buddies has dived it, and it's a great reg. Nowadays he dives a Divex (the Swedish make, not the UK one) and that is a superb regulator. I've never seen one play up. Personally, I'm happy with my Apeks, which has never let me down while actually diving. And the US Antarctic Program are happy with their Sherwoods and the U.S. Navy are happy with their Poseidons (as are the Swedish Navy, BTW. )

There are a lot of good regs out there, but you really have to know how to use them in cold-water conditions.

I'm in Westlake (near Cleveland). I bought an Aqualung Legend LX Supreme for Ohio diving. Breathes great, environmentally sealed, dry in any position. I hear the Titan LX Supreme is comparable.