LarryR
Registered
I don't think our BCD's get the credit they are due. I see by the way they get treated we take them for granted. Our regs are in cushioned boxes that travel first class. Our computers are in cloth lined cases or bags that never leave our sides.
But our BCD's get thrown in the back of the pick up truck for the ride to the boat or the dive site.
They deserve more respect.
I have to admit I have never really given any thought to what would happen if mine failed to function at all. Yes in training we all were taught to drop weights in the event of a catastrophic event but that is a last ditch effort and this really didn't fit that category.
I might suggest the next time you feel so inclined you purge the air out of your BCD in a safe place and find out just how much we need this equipment to operate.
Then you may better understand the situation I found myself in last week. If nothing else, you will be better prepared to deal with this event should it ever happen to you.
The event,
I was diving a charter off NC in 100+ feet of water recently. My purpose was to spearfish and I was diving solo. I was carrying more than enough gas for the dive as well as my 19cf pony. I routinely dive solo and felt confident and comfortable in this setting. It was the first dive of the day.
In my effort to get off the boat before the larger group I forgot my wreck reel. I realized this 15-20 feet down but decided it would be wise to surface and get it since visibility wasn't great and it was an easy area to get turned around in. This would prove itself to be a wise choice 12 minutes later.
I descended down the line without any current and clipped off my reel to the anchor chain. With a ledge off to my right I took a look at my compass and started to hunt as I let out line. At this point everything seemed normal with no buoyancy issues. I had traveled maybe 100 feet when my reel fouled up. (Was that a sign?)
With a solid ledge on my right I felt comfortable in leaving the reel on a rock and continuing a bit further down the ledge knowing it was an easy return trip.
Maybe 50 feet further I shot and missed a target. I also remember starting to settle down to the bottom and that my balance felt off like I was top heavy. I shot a couple of quick bursts of air into my vest without much thought and started to reload as quickly as possible since my time at depth was limited. I had started this process standing on a rock but off balance, I had settled to the sand in a standing position. This was the first sign of trouble but it went unnoticed with my concentration on loading my gun. At this point my BCD was not holding any air and the off balance feeling was me feeling the entire weight of my gear without buoyancy.
Once reloaded and still unaware of the issue, I pushed off the bottom, hit my inflator for a brief moment and kicked a couple of times expecting to be floating about 10 feet off the bottom in a horizontal position. Instead, I found myself horizontal alright, headed straight back down to the sand and rock a few feet below.
Enough, where's that inflator hose. BIG air blast. It was then I noticed the sound of escaping air and a quick look up confirmed my suspicions that I had a problem as I watched my once plentiful gas supply rise to the surface without me.
Now I will admit, the pucker factor kicked in pretty quick at this point. Not so much scared, that came later, but knowing that I had a real problem and I need to work it out.
Take stock, gas? 1600 lbs and change. OK. Pony 19cf 3000 lbs good. Lost ? No. Follow the ledge to the reel to the anchor and up.
How bad can this be ? Unload the gun and start swimming.
It was then I found out just how much I count on that extra buoyancy. I pushed off the bottom and angled my body about 45 degrees up to start and gain altitude from the bottom as I retraced my route. It was much harder work than I ever imagined. Remember I said something about not being scared yet? It showed up then. The feeling of immediately sinking if I stopped fining was very unnerving to say the least. According to the data I later retrieved on the home computer off my dive computer my SAC rate had tripled. Tripled at now 90 feet down burns allot of gas. I made the mistake of looking at the amount of gas I was using computed to minutes on my dive computer. Seeing that rate of consumption and at that depth made me put a permanent wrinkle in the butt end side of my wetsuit. I needed to keep moving.
I am happy to say though, I never did panic. I was scared though I will admit.
I followed the line I had almost forgotten to bring back to the boat anchor. Once there, I pulled myself to the surface, made my safety stop and got back on the boat with only an assent warning and a high heart rate for my trouble. I didn't bother to retrieve my reel, it was unimportant given the situation. It was later brought to the surface by another diver.
What did I learn?
Don't overlook any part of your equipment. If you dive with it, it is important. This failure came in the form of a simple twist cap on the top of my inflator line. But it could have been any cap or vent in my BCD. You can bet I will check everyone of them every dive from here on out.
Know where you are and how to get back to the boat. Had I been lost or even just unsure of where I was, my choices would have been much more limited and carrying a higher risk.
As it was, I had a plan based on knowing where I was and it worked. (Wreck reel, never leave home without it.)
Don't be overconfident in your abilities in a stressful situation. I have been fortunate to participate in a number of activities that most would consider "risky". I feel that I handled this situation well and my SAC rate still went through the roof.
And with that, don't try to be the guy with the least air in his tank back on the boat. Had this happened with a few hundred pounds less air, things would have much more interesting, to say the least.
Simply put, take more gas than you need.
Pay more attention to your weight, I have 3 suits and dive with 3 different size tanks. I had never dived the suit tank combo I had that day. I may have been heavy to start with.
Should this happen to you, remember any other floatation gear you may be carrying such as a lift bag or safety sausage. I had a sausage but never thought to use it for extra lift. It would have been a bit cumbersome but a may have helped if things really started going south.
Remember, our regulators allow us to travel in the underwater world. Our BCD's bring us back to our world. When did you last check yours?
Dive safe, Dive smart, Dive prepared
But our BCD's get thrown in the back of the pick up truck for the ride to the boat or the dive site.
They deserve more respect.
I have to admit I have never really given any thought to what would happen if mine failed to function at all. Yes in training we all were taught to drop weights in the event of a catastrophic event but that is a last ditch effort and this really didn't fit that category.
I might suggest the next time you feel so inclined you purge the air out of your BCD in a safe place and find out just how much we need this equipment to operate.
Then you may better understand the situation I found myself in last week. If nothing else, you will be better prepared to deal with this event should it ever happen to you.
The event,
I was diving a charter off NC in 100+ feet of water recently. My purpose was to spearfish and I was diving solo. I was carrying more than enough gas for the dive as well as my 19cf pony. I routinely dive solo and felt confident and comfortable in this setting. It was the first dive of the day.
In my effort to get off the boat before the larger group I forgot my wreck reel. I realized this 15-20 feet down but decided it would be wise to surface and get it since visibility wasn't great and it was an easy area to get turned around in. This would prove itself to be a wise choice 12 minutes later.
I descended down the line without any current and clipped off my reel to the anchor chain. With a ledge off to my right I took a look at my compass and started to hunt as I let out line. At this point everything seemed normal with no buoyancy issues. I had traveled maybe 100 feet when my reel fouled up. (Was that a sign?)
With a solid ledge on my right I felt comfortable in leaving the reel on a rock and continuing a bit further down the ledge knowing it was an easy return trip.
Maybe 50 feet further I shot and missed a target. I also remember starting to settle down to the bottom and that my balance felt off like I was top heavy. I shot a couple of quick bursts of air into my vest without much thought and started to reload as quickly as possible since my time at depth was limited. I had started this process standing on a rock but off balance, I had settled to the sand in a standing position. This was the first sign of trouble but it went unnoticed with my concentration on loading my gun. At this point my BCD was not holding any air and the off balance feeling was me feeling the entire weight of my gear without buoyancy.
Once reloaded and still unaware of the issue, I pushed off the bottom, hit my inflator for a brief moment and kicked a couple of times expecting to be floating about 10 feet off the bottom in a horizontal position. Instead, I found myself horizontal alright, headed straight back down to the sand and rock a few feet below.
Enough, where's that inflator hose. BIG air blast. It was then I noticed the sound of escaping air and a quick look up confirmed my suspicions that I had a problem as I watched my once plentiful gas supply rise to the surface without me.
Now I will admit, the pucker factor kicked in pretty quick at this point. Not so much scared, that came later, but knowing that I had a real problem and I need to work it out.
Take stock, gas? 1600 lbs and change. OK. Pony 19cf 3000 lbs good. Lost ? No. Follow the ledge to the reel to the anchor and up.
How bad can this be ? Unload the gun and start swimming.
It was then I found out just how much I count on that extra buoyancy. I pushed off the bottom and angled my body about 45 degrees up to start and gain altitude from the bottom as I retraced my route. It was much harder work than I ever imagined. Remember I said something about not being scared yet? It showed up then. The feeling of immediately sinking if I stopped fining was very unnerving to say the least. According to the data I later retrieved on the home computer off my dive computer my SAC rate had tripled. Tripled at now 90 feet down burns allot of gas. I made the mistake of looking at the amount of gas I was using computed to minutes on my dive computer. Seeing that rate of consumption and at that depth made me put a permanent wrinkle in the butt end side of my wetsuit. I needed to keep moving.
I am happy to say though, I never did panic. I was scared though I will admit.
I followed the line I had almost forgotten to bring back to the boat anchor. Once there, I pulled myself to the surface, made my safety stop and got back on the boat with only an assent warning and a high heart rate for my trouble. I didn't bother to retrieve my reel, it was unimportant given the situation. It was later brought to the surface by another diver.
What did I learn?
Don't overlook any part of your equipment. If you dive with it, it is important. This failure came in the form of a simple twist cap on the top of my inflator line. But it could have been any cap or vent in my BCD. You can bet I will check everyone of them every dive from here on out.
Know where you are and how to get back to the boat. Had I been lost or even just unsure of where I was, my choices would have been much more limited and carrying a higher risk.
As it was, I had a plan based on knowing where I was and it worked. (Wreck reel, never leave home without it.)
Don't be overconfident in your abilities in a stressful situation. I have been fortunate to participate in a number of activities that most would consider "risky". I feel that I handled this situation well and my SAC rate still went through the roof.
And with that, don't try to be the guy with the least air in his tank back on the boat. Had this happened with a few hundred pounds less air, things would have much more interesting, to say the least.
Simply put, take more gas than you need.
Pay more attention to your weight, I have 3 suits and dive with 3 different size tanks. I had never dived the suit tank combo I had that day. I may have been heavy to start with.
Should this happen to you, remember any other floatation gear you may be carrying such as a lift bag or safety sausage. I had a sausage but never thought to use it for extra lift. It would have been a bit cumbersome but a may have helped if things really started going south.
Remember, our regulators allow us to travel in the underwater world. Our BCD's bring us back to our world. When did you last check yours?
Dive safe, Dive smart, Dive prepared
