Coming back with TOO MUCH air??

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ermaclob

Contributor
Messages
523
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92
Location
Miami Dade County, Florida
# of dives
200 - 499
Lately I've been having some frustration with the amount of air im coming back with on my dives. im am an open water diver and use AL80's. One the last 12 or so dives Ive done, Ive been coming back with 2100-1800 psi on more or less 60-40 min of down time any were from 30 - 60 feet. I value the air in my tanks alot but really dislike having to pay to refill a tank that is 2/3 full.

Does any ever use just one tank for a trip out? Is that a good idea. The only reason i hesitate is because of that "What if" should happen that i end up needing more air. How fashionable is it to use a pony on a shallow dive boat, Just in case I need some extra air?
 
Dive independent doubles. Keep a tank in reserve and use one of the cylinders for both dives. Or maybe sling a 40 as a reserve.
 
Dive independent doubles. Keep a tank in reserve and use one of the cylinders for both dives. Or maybe sling a 40 as a reserve.

thats kinda what i was saying. going doubles is a step to far, dont you think? 300+ on back plate/wings and brackets ?

i already have a Steel 40 pony
 
I would not dive that way if I had to go onto my 40, except in an emergency, but then you'd not gain anything if you did, you be needed two fills, just what you're trying to avoid.
 
I would not dive that way if I had to go onto my 40, except in an emergency, but then you'd not gain anything if you did, you be needed two fills, just what you're trying to avoid.

sorry, i dont fully understand this last post??

The way im seeing it is:

If I sling the 40 and the dive goes good, i would not have used the 40 at all. only 1 refill....

if it doesn't go good and i do use the 40 i will only use a very small amount at the very end of the dive to get back to the boat. The 40 can be reused with out having to be refilled. i can probably get through at least 3 or 4 of these before the pony needs a refill. still 1 ...fill (im 90% sure i wont need the pony)

both these situations assume i had < 1800 psi on the first dive if less i just use the other 80.
 
if it doesn't go good and i do use the 40 i will only use a very small amount at the very end of the dive to get back to the boat. The 40 can be reused with out having to be refilled. i can probably get through at least 3 or 4 of these before the pony needs a refill. still 1 ...fill (im 90% sure i wont need the pony)
That's where the trouble can begin and that is a situation that I'd avoid.
 
Think about using 2 50cuft tanks for diving IDs. I'm trying to get the $$ to by 2 63 cuft and dive them as IDs instead of a single tank. The 2 72LPs I use sometimes are getting heavy as they get older :wink:
 
That's where the trouble can begin and that is a situation that I'd avoid.

well, of course, im not going to blindly jump in with a almost empty tank. ill set a minimum refill standard for that pony tank, say 1500 to 1200 on the pony. thats about equal to 750 psi to 500psi on the AL80. But im really really really estimating a usage of the pony only 1 out of 6 times in the water. For no more then like 5 - 10 min to get back to boat.
 
That's fine, I would set the minimum for my pony at FULL, no compromise, but that's me.
 
I'd go with buying your own set of tanks and getting a one-year air card at your LDS (i.e., unlimited fills for a set price). That will save you in the long run. Then you won't have to worry about coming up with 1500psi or higher, because it's not going to cost you anything but time.

Your air intake is clearly better than your buddies' air intakes. You should try diving with other people and see if there are people with your level of air intake (or people with Steel 130s).
 

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