Safety sausage vs DSMB

[ScottFL78]

DSMB is a no brainer. They can be inflated on the surface or at depth. 6' is good because when the seas are high; bigger is better for the boat Captain. If you buy an SMB then you are limited to inflating on the surface while you look around for speed boats.

 

[tomfcrist]

I’m not comprehending the recommendation to forego a 72” DSMB with a semiclosed bottom for a 6’ safety sausage...they are essentially the same thing....

 

[ScottFL78]

I would forgo the safety sausage. When you inflate a DSMB the bottom closes. It is the best of both worlds. A DSMB can be held underwater and inflated and deflated as needed to provide emergency lift if your BC were to fail. Again a no brainer.

 

[Aloha Joe]

I’m not comprehending the recommendation to forego a 72” DSMB with a semiclosed bottom for a 6’ safety sausage...they are essentially the same thing....

That’s what I don’t understand, either.
6ft SMB w/ Whistle

 

[tomfcrist]

That’s what I don’t understand, either.
6ft SMB w/ Whistle

Either can be inflated orally, both are the same height, the semiclosed bottom is nice for deploying from depth. Buy once, cry once.

 

[Wookie]

Meh. A DSMB is designed for use underwater, most divers use them improperly, and from a Captains point of view, a limp dsmb is not better than a rigid 6 foot safety sausage that any fool can use. Be a smart fool, use a safety sausage in the appropriate situation, and use a DSMB when the situation calls for it, and after you get trained.

 

[ScottFL78]

So that says SMB which is a fact but it is also known as a DSMB. Delayed Surface Marker Buoy. Can be inflated below the surface OR on the surface. That is the what you want. Mine was also $40 from Divers Direct.

 

[tomfcrist]

Meh. A DSMB is designed for use underwater, most divers use them improperly, and from a Captains point of view, a limp dsmb is not better than a rigid 6 foot safety sausage that any fool can use. Be a smart fool, use a safety sausage in the appropriate situation, and use a DSMB when the situation calls for it, and after you get trained.

So you are saying you can’t fully orally inflate a dsmb on the surface? Come on big guy...you know darn well the NUB that can’t figure out how to fully inflate it probably can’t inflate the closed bottom tube either.

 

[IncreaseMyT]

I don't understand the need for a 6 ft safety sausage, the 36 inch is plenty big enough. If your inflating on the surface you can hold the safety sausage above the water 2ft. The reason why the DSMB is 6ft is because you will be sending it up and it will erect 6 ft from the surface. When you hold up your 3 ft safety sausage 2 ft in the air it is basically going to be 5ft.

The only difference between the two is the DSMB has an air outlet valve on it like your BCD so that if you inflate it underwater it doesn't pop on the way up to the surface as the air inside it expands.

3 ft safety sausage is plenty for a normal dive. The DSMB would be valuable on a drift dive, or if the boat was not anchored down and the person operating the boat had little experience and you didn't trust them to stay on top of you by following your bubbles.

 

[Wookie]

I’m saying that DSMBs are harder to handle and make hard so that they are seen than a safety sausage is. But most folks in my experience don’t use either one anyway. The folks who actually use them are folks who use them delayed. I don’t think it’s a tool our OP needs at this time yet. He can go buy a weenie at the used bin for less than 10 bucks and get the same 10 bucks for it in a couple years. Task loading is real.