US vs British Diving Vocabulary

[Akimbo]

This thread got me thinking how many different words are used in the US and British Commonwealth countries for the same thing. It is the word "Spanner" (typically fixed open-end) for "Wrench" in this thread.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/487808-how-do-i-loosen-super-tight-reg-hose.html

These differences confuse me, I hate to think of how difficult it is for divers where English isn't their first language. I thought it would be useful to create a translation dictionary. Here are a few terms used in diving that come to mind.

Brits use "Spindle Valve" for valves with a rotating stem (shaft). I'm not sure if that includes "Gate", "Diaphragm", "Bellows", or "Butterfly" valves but definitely not ball valves. The US doesn't have a universal name for rotating stem valves with a soft flat seat that are used on Scuba tanks. Probably the most common name used in the US is "Globe valve", which technically has a hemispherical or conical hard of soft seat.

The US tends to use "Gear" instead of "Kit".

A "Dock" in the US is a "Quay" in the UK.

We also use different names for a lot of shell fish, most of which I can't recall or spell.

 

[scubadiver888]

As an old Canadian I use these terms interchangeably. We are a former British colony but heavily influenced by the USA. I know I'm using British terms when I see that funny look on an American's face (zee versus zed; couch, sofa or chesterfield).

I know for diving a "light" (American) is a "torch" (British).

 

[Mustard Dave]

DSMB Vs. safety sausage

 

[Akimbo]

The "K Valve" designation must be really confusing to most divers in general, and especially those outside North America. Strange as it may sound, the designation came from the 1953 US Divers Catalog (now Aqua Lung). The widely used "K valve" and the now rare "J valve" were based on the item designation in the price list. See attached.

It has been around 30 years since the lever-style reserve valve has been widely available in the US and I'm not sure it was ever sold outside North America, yet "K Valve" is still widely used here, at least verbally.

 

[Ste Wart]

UK: Dived = past tense of dive
US: Dove = a bird

 

[Akimbo]

UK: Dived = past tense of dive
US: Dove = a bird

So what's the past tense of drive?

 

[Nemrod]

When I try to speak with my Spanish speaking friends from Latin America it seems we mostly have common concepts and ideas expressed in a different language, whereas when I speak to Brits, I have come to the conclusion that while our words/language may have similar pronunciations, the same language, the concepts and ideas are not congruent.

N

 

[knotical]

Some Brits I dived with many years ago called cylinders bottles, while we Yanks called them tanks. Don't know if it was just them, or if it is still used.

 

[Bazzer69]

So what's the past tense of drive?

Drove?


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[Akimbo]

DSMB Vs. safety sausage

This seems to be evolving and totally inconsistent in the US. A safety sausage most often refers to the inflatable tubular buoys without an OPV (Over Pressure Valve), which can only be inflated at the surface. I have heard them called SMBs just as I hear SMB and DSMB used interchangeably. I notice that a lot of manufacturers are avoiding the acronyms entirely and using terms like Marker Buoys and or just Markers.

Nobody uses a towed surface buoy on the US West Coast, mostly because Kelp makes it impractical. I have seen them called SMBs (Surface Marker Buoy) on the Internet, but never encountered them in real life.

---------- Post added July 20th, 2014 at 02:42 PM ----------

Drove?...

Which is why I prefer to use Dove instead of Dived.

---------- Post added July 20th, 2014 at 02:46 PM ----------

Some Brits I dived with many years ago called cylinders bottles, while we Yanks called them tanks. Don't know if it was just them, or if it is still used.

I use all three for Scuba pressure vessels, but almost always use Cylinders for large industrial pressure vessels used in dive shops for cascade systems clear up to tube trailers and onboard storage on a DSV (Diving Support Vessel).