Why I bought a 7' Hose - story and questions

[Scuby Dooby]

I recently had an experience that convinced me to buy a longer hose for my primary. I was on a dive with a dive buddy that was new to me during a rescue refresher class I took a couple of months ago. After the class had finished we decided to do an optional fun dive to a nearby site. We planned to do a dive to a max of 100' (hit about 103) and it was a pleasant, low stress dive right up until the end. About every 5 mins I would point to my spg and throw an ok at my buddy - he responded with an ok every time. About 1/2 way through we took the dive quite shallow ~30' and proceeded to tool around the corals and blow bubbles up until the 45 minute mark that we'd agreed to call the dive. At about 35 minutes I feel a strong tug on my fin, turn around and find my buddy looking all bug eyed while shoving his spg in my face - it reads about 250 psi. I signal ok, get nice and close and motion to head for a safety stop. He shakes his head no and signals that he is going to do a direct ascent (big thumbs up!) I shook my head no very strongly and motioned to stay at the safety stop and calm down. I then offered him my primary and switched to my second (already bungied around my neck - great idea, thanks scubaboard) and showed him that I still had well over 1000 psi. He gladly took my primary and seemed to calm down a bit until we started to drift away from the reef into deeper water (still holding 15 - 20 '). At this point he got pretty antsy and I had quite a struggle maintaining buoyancy for both of us. This was made extra difficult by the fact that he was attached to me by such a short hose - it made it very difficult to maneuver, especially since he seemed to be on the verge of panic and not in great control. Several times his movement just about ripped the reg out of his mouth. All ended well, he regained his composure miraculously upon surfacing (of course!).

So . . . I've bought a 7' hose with my new regs and I have a few questions about setting it up:

- What is the best way to route the hose off of an mk16 1st stage? there ar 2 LP ports on the right side of the reg, can't remember the exact designations but basically one gives more air than the other. Which should I put my primary on?

- What is the best way to route the hose using a zeagle ranger? I realize that it goes down my right side and can either be lrun around something or tucked into my waist and then across to the left and around the back of my head but what do I 'loop' it around or where can I tuck it best on my BC?

- I don't think I need to worry about a breakaway clip on the primary hose (it should always be in my mouth or my buddies underwater anyway, correct?) but I can see that clipping it off while topside should save some wear and tear on the primary with that big hose dangling down. Can I put a loop of bungie or something my left D ring to hang it or is there a better method? I really don't like the idea of a boltsnap dangling off the hose while I'm diving it, seems like it is in the way underwater and I'll only be using it topside - is there something here I'm not understanding?

Thanks for listening to my rant and thanks in advance for helping with the questions above!

[Scubaroo]

Putting a boltsnap on the 7' hose a few inches from the regulator is not a problem. I never notice it underwater.

The first time you go to rig up your gear on a boat and have a 7' hose flopping all over the place, you'll realise the value of this boltsnap

[SA-Diver]

I use a MK16 with a 7' hose for my primary.
The primary is on the high flow port with the backup on the other port.
I use a pouch on my waist belt to loop the hose under, then across my chest and around the back of my head.
The bolt snap attached to the primary does not get in the way during the dive at all. A couple of minutes and you will be used to it.

[roturner]

Putting a boltsnap on the 7' hose a few inches from the regulator is not a problem. I never notice it underwater.

The first time you go to rig up your gear on a boat and have a 7' hose flopping all over the place, you'll realise the value of this boltsnap

I've got a boltsnap on the hose too, in my case with a breakaway. I would suggest putting it about 6 inches down from the 2nd stage. That way even when it's clipped off another diver has enough hose to grab onto for pulling away the break-away. Otherwise they'll have to pull on the reg....

R..

[dsgobie]

Good move.... I agree with everyones opinions so far....

Safe divin'

[Wendy]

I never notice my boltsnap by my reg.

Other than when topside, you would clip off your long hose when you are recieving air from someone else.

[Big-t-2538]

Well, I'd suggest seeing if you can't route the hose underneath something on your right side. If not, just tuck the excess into your weight belt. Don't try any fancy or goofy loops somewhere...they just get in the way later.

As for the boltsnap...no big deal at all...I only notice mine when I'm looking at a picture of myself that someone else took. Clipping it off when topside will save you from having to buy a new second stage when someon knocks it out of the bungee and drops a tank on it.

[Scott M]

Maybe I missed it but if your on a single tank I find a 5' hose to wrap very nicely with out any excess hose to worry about. If I get a canister light I will go to the 7'.

While practicing with my rig I found the value of the bolt snap real fast.

[robh]

This is interesting. Does anyone have a pic of their gear setup?

[fgray1]

The hose should be coming from the right side of the first stage if your rig is normal. Run the hose down under your right arm acroos your chest then under your left arm then up around the back of your neck. Then into your mouth. To deploy you will only need to tilt your head down when you pass it to your buddy. If you have to receive rather then give a reg. you clip your primary to your bungy around your neck.
Good luck.
Fred