Rule on hot showers after diving

[FFMDiver]

Not sure if this is true but I heard somewhere hot showers after diving increases DCS. Does anyone know the rule on hot showers after diving?
i.e. does this rule pertain to deco diving only? If not, how long should one wait etc. ?

Thank you.

 

[vapovick]

yes, I have heard this too. It has to do with off gasing... let me look and I will post more.

 

[vapovick]

found another thread...


http://www.scubaboard.com/archive/index.php/t-77710.html

 

[MaxBottomtime]

My friend Elaine got bent pushing her limits, but stayed out of deco, then took a hot shower.
http://diver.net/bbs/messages5/44633.shtml

 

[PaulChristenson]

http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/topic121.htm

These Docs have the reference to hot showers/baths...

http://www.scuba-doc.com/Riskdcs.html

 

[Red Sea Shadow]

Yes this is true because hot water increases the volume of nitrogen bubbles. One should avoid hot showers directly after any deep dive, even if it's not a deco dive. However, I don't know any time limits for that.

 

[Snowbear]

Seems to me increased blood flow is a good thing ~ isn't that why we are told to stay hydrated and some folks advocate aspirin? As long as you're not on the verge of bentness by riding the limits of NDL or ascent rates, what's wrong with increasing whatever offgassing is still taking place after a dive?

I personally prefer to be as denitrogenized as possible before I even surface, so for me, a hot shower or soak in a hot tub is way better for finishing off what little decompression I have left than "shaking the pop bottle" by shivering uncontrollably after any dive

That said, those who ride the NDL limits of their computers, tables or PC generated deco programs are probably better off just sticking to the no hot water immersion to avoid that dreaded horrible death of the bends :11:

 

[vertaqua]

I wouldn't worry about taking A shower after a dive, there are a lot of more serious risk factors to worry about especially being cold which contstricts blood vessels which limits your offgassing rate.

 

[partridge]

I am sure all of you know much more than me regarding all of this physics. But, it occurs to me that with all the "undeserved hits" we have read about, a lot of us are close to being hit and dont know it. If this is true then any contributing factor will increase the likelihood of a hit moreso if you are borderline already. I dont know about you guys but I will avoid hot showers. Easy in my case. We dont have hot water at the site and we dive in 82 degree water.

So much in recreational diving is learned about in tech diving. Maybe in 10 years this will be in our open water manuals.

 

[airsix]

* Divers who have been chilled on decompression dives (or dives near the no-decompression limit) and take very hot baths or showers may stimulate bubble formation.

quoted from emedicine.com

It's real. On my second day of OW dives in an ill-fitting wetsuit I was a fair margin of safety inside the NDL at the end of my last dive. I was cold to the bone and took a hot shower back at the hotel and ended up with skin bends. I've been more careful since then (that was almost 20 years ago. I was 16 and a lot more reckless).

-Ben