Deco divers and yellow emergency SMB

DSMB and deco dives. How many and what color

  • None

    Votes: 1 2.6%
  • Only One large (more than 5 gallons/ 20L) orange

    Votes: 1 2.6%
  • Only one small/medium orange

    Votes: 10 26.3%
  • One large orange and one large yellow

    Votes: 12 31.6%
  • One large Orange and one small Yellow

    Votes: 5 13.2%
  • 2 Oranges

    Votes: 7 18.4%
  • More than 2

    Votes: 2 5.3%

  • Total voters
    38

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Freewillow

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I am just contemplating purchasing eventually a small yellow SMB to be launched at deco stops in case of emercency, such as, need for supplemental air or EANx.....................

I would like to know what the percentage of light tek divers ( making deco dives ) have a yellow SMB and in this case, what model(s) they have. Thanks
 
I have a dive rite.
 
Sorry wookie, You answered while I was putting together a poll. If you do not mind your dive rite is your only one or a yellow one? Thanks.
 
Yes, yellow is sometimes used to indicate an emergency, with orange being just the surface marker while decoing. Here are the problems: (1) this is not a standard convention (I believe it is more popular in the UK than elsewhere), and (2) yellow has been shown to be more visible so many of the new SMBs are yellow for that reason. Some new ones are also yellow on one side and orange on the other.

The problems can be mitigated by discussing the color code to be used with your buddies and your boat, in advance.
Also, one can send up an SMB with a small slate/wetnote page indicating what the problem is.
 
The yellow/orange thing isn't widely practiced here in the US. I think it would have to be arranged on a case-by-case basis with the boat generally.

I was diving in south florida about a month ago and we shot a yellow one and didn't mean anything special.
 
Sorry wookie, You answered while I was putting together a poll. If you do not mind your dive rite is your only one or a yellow one? Thanks.

I have a yellow DiveRite, an Orange DiveRite, and an orange AP with inflation bottle that I hook to the scooter. As in the UK, on the Spree, on a tech trip, yellow indicates an emergency, orange indicates a drifting deco, and the orange with inflation bottle means come get this damn scooter. Orange/yellow DSMBs are treated as orange.
 
If you are shooting a SMB to obtain supplimental deco gas you had better have arranged a tank and a support diver before hand because on most boats just shooting a yellow bag will only get you a lot of puzzled looks. Using a support diver is a little beyond light tek. Maybe you need to figure out what its real purpose is before deciding which one to buy.
 
Sorry wookie, You answered while I was putting together a poll. If you do not mind your dive rite is your only one or a yellow one? Thanks.
Is your poll about what do you take on a tek/deco dive, or what we own?
 
Yellow could mean more than needing supplemental deco gas. But as was already said you'd need to have that in the dive plan and coordinated with the surface team/vessel. It could mean come and look for a slate or wet notes page indicating the nature of the problem. Missing diver, diver with a medical issue that may require evac, etc.. You'd let the surface know before you splashed that if they saw the yellow marker that something was wrong and to come check it for the aforementioned note or slate. Or to send a diver down to assess the situation and let topside know the details.

Hopefully whatever is going on can be dealt with by those on the surface in some way. Including getting help on the way if necessary.

My main signal devices are a DAN tube -orange, 50 lb lift bag-orange, 36 inch orange SMB, and 36 inch yellow SMB. The dive will determine when I carry the yellow one or the lift bag. Simple checkouts and recreational limits quarry dives? The 36 inch orange and the lift bag since any real emergency is going to involve a direct ascent without mandatory stops. Inland dives with deco - lift bag, and both 36 inch SMB's since it's highly unlikely I'll need the 6 footer to be seen over wave tops. Open ocean -DAN tube, 36 orange and yellow, and the lift bag. All of which is easily stored.
 
I rarely carry lift bags. I opt for two 6ft Orange/Yellow sausage tubes with the one way duckbill open bottom. I think mine are XS???

Yellow for emergency is not standardized as has been stated before. Some folks will just send up another bag/sausage on the same line to indicate emergency.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/
http://cavediveflorida.com/Rum_House.htm

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