The case against ditchable weight

[2airishuman]

In the PADI OWD materials, there is great emphasis on being ready, able, and willing to ditch your weights.

For a panicked or otherwise poorly coping diver who is already on the surface, that makes sense.

But at depth, it's not going to save you, and accidental releases have resulted in accidents and fatalities. I read one report where someone spent a week in a hyperbaric chamber because the velcro came loose on their weight pocket.

What am I missing?

 

[decompression]

You are missing the knowledge of a "balanced rig". This is how to properly weight yourself through the entire dive to be neutral and not risk an unintended ascent, through a weight coming loose or you purposely ditching a weight and corking to the surface.

You may ask yourself, "why wasn't I taught this before?"

There are only a few agencies and a handful of instructors that include these gems into the open water course.


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[doctormike]

For a panicked or otherwise poorly coping diver who is already on the surface, that makes sense.

See you really do grasp the main scenario where ditchable weight makes sense, especially with new divers. Weight should be ditched at the surface by a diver (or more likely by the rescuer of a diver) who is panicking, unable to keep their head above water, and is at risk for going under without a regulator in place.

Now if you read enough of these threads, you will see that new divers think of ditchable weight like an ejection seat in a jet - push the button and it gets you out of trouble. I guess in very rare cases, ditchable weight at depth might just save a VERY overweighted diver with a completely compressed wetsuit and a wing failure.

But that's not how you should be diving, as my friend decompression here will teach you...

 

[brilab]

Bent is preferable to dead. So, there's that. I think it's viewed as an absolute last resort in situations where death is imminent, but, like you said, there are caveats.

 

[KevinNM]

A balanced rig can, when needed, require you dumping something negative such that you can swim to the surface in case of a failure. This assumes you need some additional weight to dive.

In addition, what is a balanced rig depends on the totality of the situation. The gear I use in the pool with just a bathing suit is not a balanced rig. It's terribly negative, I'd never use it like this in open water, no matter how warm. It's very hard to get to the surface without using the BCD. But in open water I'd normally be using a drysuit and then it is a balanced rig and I can easily swim it up.

---------- Post added November 30th, 2015 at 10:31 PM ----------

Now if you read enough of these threads, you will see that new divers think of ditchable weight like an ejection seat in a jet - push the button and it gets you out of trouble.

Well, when they get to the surface they will look like a Polaris missile, so it's kind of like an ejection seat....

 

[DevonDiver]

Firstly, a balanced rig does NOT preclude ditchable weight. It simply considers what that weight might be... not just lead. But every diver needs the capacity to:

1. Ensure positive buoyancy on the surface.
2. Ensure they can rise in the water column, even if unable to inflate/retain gas in the BCD.

A ditchable weight belt is the simplest solution to achieving those aims - and that simplicity makes it the chosen method for entry-level scuba training in most agencies.

The debate regarding risks of accidentally dropping weights versus not having timely access to positive buoyancy is primarily a matter for technical divers. Accidentally losing weight, and resulting uncontrolled rapid ascent, is likely to kill a technical diver. An open water level diver, diving conservatively as advised, isn't anywhere nearly as inert gas saturated.... so DCI is unlikely... and easily resolved if it occurs. Fatality is improbable, except if they held their breath... and that's a skill/training issue, not an equipment one... As others have said/will say, you can fix bent, but you can't fix dead.

Far too many divers drown having already reached the surface and, failing to quickly achieve positive buoyancy, sinking back down. For that reason, the diver must be able to ditch weight. The weight belt or quick-release pockets etc, is the most straight-forward method of doing that. Technical divers, in balanced rig, have other stuff to dump... deco cylinders, canister lights etc etc... and they (should) have the training, stress control and presence of mind to achieve that if needed. Such assumptions cannot be made about recreational divers as a whole...

What is missing from basic scuba education is the concept that the diver ONLY needs to dump sufficient weight as to achieve positive buoyancy. That needn't be ALL of their weight. 1lb positive is still positive. The only way you will go is UP...

 

[decompression]

Ok Andy, I could of used more detail......


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[Steve_C]

It is important to have a secure way that the ditchable weights are attached. It should be possible to only ditch some weight, which i can because I have two pockets.

On deeper local salt water dives I dive a slung AL19 pony. I am weighted for not having the pony and for a near empty HP100. So at the start of a dive with a full HP100 and full pony I am a little heavy. However that leaves me free to pass off the pony if needed and also not be light at the end of dive. If I had a BCD failure early in a dive rather than drop the pony I would drop part of my weight. Lead is a lot cheaper than a new pony. Note that I always am diving over hard bottom within my MOD.

 

[Storker]

If you need a bit of weight to sink, being able to remove some of it can make life easier. If you dive in cold water, it's not unusual to require some 10-15kg (20-30#) of ballast due to the air trapped in your undergarments. Even if you're so shrink-wrapped that your mobility suffers. My rig, including weights and belt, weighs some 30-40kg (60-80#) topside. If I'm diving from a small boat, removing and handing up some 10 of those kgs to the boat tender makes it a lot easier to climb aboard.

And if your weight pockets fall out by themselves, ur doin it rong.

 

[Doc]

..?have resulted in accidents and fatalities. I read one report where someone spent a week in a hyperbaric j because the velcro came loose on their weight pocket.

What am I missing?

The Fastex connector?