Buddy Checks - do you do them?

[kathydee]

I actually do a mental head to toe before leaving the house in the morning. This saved me a couple of occasions until I forgot the wife's undergarment. Now, I add undergarment, socks, and glove liners

Good idea! I actually have an Excel spread sheet scuba packing list with little check boxes that I just print out every time I pack my equipment .

 

[northern sole]

BWRAF and more before EVERY dive whether it is an OW student or my usual Winter MSDT buddy.

B = BCD/Buoyancy so air in air out, dumps right shoulder & left kidney.

W = Weights, have we both got them, what sort are they ie integrated, harness, belt, how do I release them, is belt on right hand release WITHOUT the loose end tucked in over the top, if you need to tuck it it in double it up and push up from underneath so it can still be released quickly .

R = Releases, how many, what type and where are they, REMEMBER underwater the viz maybe 2/3 m, maybe a current and other factors which could make things difficult if you are not familiar with you and your buddys equipment.

A = Air Is it on (it happens) how much have you got, breathe off both regs whilst looking at SPG, note WHERE buddys alternate is AND how it releases in the unlikely event.

F= Final, mask, fins, SPG and anything else you need for the dive, torch, slates etc.

This buddy check is done by me and my buddy whoever it is before each dive.

REMEMBER most problems occur due to DIVER ERROR.

 

[Revog]

I must admit over the years my buddy checks have become a bit week, but after reading this post I will be putting more effort into them

 

[DaleC]

I have to admit I've cashed in my PADI BWRAF pnemonic for BAR (simple things for simple minds).

Bouyancy: I check my BC and DS inflators to make sure they work. Also note my SMB and liftbag.

Air: I breath both regs while looking at my SPG's (air is on, volume is noted and partially cracked open valves are caught). I also do a modified S drill after suiting up to ensure my hose is not trapped.

Releases: Feel my quick release weight buckles and crotch/waist strap.

It catches the same stuff. Two last things I do in the water are to make note of the compass direction for emergency exit and a bubble check.

Some of those other things like where are we going, for how long and with who, are more part of dive planning than buddy checking.

 

[Sas]

I have to admit I've cashed in my PADI BWRAF pnemonic for BAR (simple things for simple minds).

Bouyancy: I check my BC and DS inflators to make sure they work. Also note my SMB and liftbag.

Air: I breath both regs while looking at my SPG's (air is on, volume is noted and partially cracked open valves are caught). I also do a modified S drill afer suiting up to ensure my hose is not trapped.

Releases: Feel my quick release weight buckles and crotch/waist strap.

It catches the same stuff. Two last things I do in the water are to make note of the compass direction for emergency exit and a bubble check.

I don't even know what BWRAF means, but I use BAR also. I find it easy and helpful when it comes to buddy checks.

 

[DaleC]

I don't even know what BWRAF means, but I use BAR also. I find it easy and helpful when it comes to buddy checks.

BWARF is a pnemonic PADI uses to indoctrinate new divers into a sexist POV aimed at objectifying a certain segment of the female population. It stands for "blonde women really are fun". What that has to do with diving I do not know but everytime I repeated it to myself before a dive I would get flustured and make mistakes

 

[Sas]

BWARF is a pnemonic PADI uses to indoctrinate new divers into a sexist POV aimed at objectifying a certain segment of the female population. It stands for "blonde women really are fun". What that has to do with diving I do not know

I'm sure they are but how does it help with buddy checks?

 

[TSandM]

The lack of buddy checks was one of the first things that bewildered and upset me, when I finished OW and began my AOW class. My buddy was often my instructor, but we never did checks. (His explanation, later on, was that after all, he was watching me and checked out everything, so it wasn't needed.) I loved the emphasis on having a dive plan and doing buddy checks that I got in my DIR training. To this day, I'm considered a bit of a PITA about it, even by my DIR friends. (Kathydee asked NwGratefulDiver, "Does she always do this for a 10 foot reef dive?")

I have felt pressure on occasion to rush my checks, or omit them, because the boat crew was in a hurry or other divers were making fun of us. An instructor on a boat in Moorea said, "This is going to be a night dive by the time you guys get through!" But my dear friend and role model, KMD, stood up to a DM in Cozumel about this, and gave me a good example to follow.

It was very nice, on our South Pacific dive, to have other divers come to us after a couple of days and say, "We saw what you guys were doing, and it seems like a good idea. Can we bogart your checks?"

Dive Plan: Goals, Unified team, Equipment, Exposure, Deco, Gas, Environment
Head to toe equipment check.

Every dive. Everywhere. With everybody. It takes very little time, and saves an awful lot of inconvenience, aggravation and stress. Every time I get intimidated into omitting it, I pay for it by ending up with something awry.

 

[Thalassamania]

Religiously.

 

[DaleC]

Dive Plan: Goals, Unified team, Equipment, Exposure, Deco, Gas, Environment
Head to toe equipment check.

Every dive. Everywhere. With everybody.

Even on a 20' lumpsucker dive?