Redundant air sources and the new diver

[themagni]

I thought a Spare Air was a great idea until someone here showed me the math. I'm happy that I didn't spend the $300 on it.

However, I don't carry any redundant air whatsoever (just my buddy). I'm not sure if that's better or worse. Nevertheless, I check my guages to see how much air I have left.

 

[OldNSalty]

I thought a Spare Air was a great idea until someone here showed me the math. I'm happy that I didn't spend the $300 on it.

However, I don't carry any redundant air whatsoever (just my buddy). I'm not sure if that's better or worse. Nevertheless, I check my guages to see how much air I have left.

If you are diving with a good buddy and you both understand that you are not entitled to 100% of the air that each of you carries as it is a reserve for your buddy then the argument for some other type of redundant source is diminished.

 

[wrybosome]

Since you asked for comments on the quoted reasoning...the person in question seems to think of redundant air as a security blanket. See their 'placebo effect' comment. They've actually thought it out enough to realize that a 3cf redundant air supply isn't much more than a placebo, yet it helps them relax in the water. That seems a bit contradictory to me, except for the case where they are diving in an effective buddy team and won't have to rely on it.

Hopefully no one diving independently relies on such a small security blanket.

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

Sometimes a little fear is a healthy thing. Being aware of the risk of OOA will mean that the new diver will spend time establishing effective routines for checking their air regularly. As their initial fears subside, hopefully they will be left with those effective routines.

Tiny SAs don't bring confidence, they bring FALSE confidence. IMHO, False Confidence is a dangerous thing. Feeling safe and being safe are quite often the opposite ends of a spectrum.

1+.

In addition to the above, and the other posts saying similar things, I'd add that a new diver should not be placing themselves in a position where a redundant air source is necessary for their safety.

Are their situations that a redundant air source is a good idea on certain "recreational" dives? Sure. But I'd consider those advanced dives, and not dives that someone using a Spare Air or a pony as a "crutch" to feel more "secure" should even be contemplating.

Best wishes.

 

[Thalassamania]

I agree wholeheartedly with Lynne and KP. Good focus on gas consumption and dive planning should make redundant gas supplies irrelevant. I would add that, at least for a new diver, adequate training, that includes buddy awareness, breath holding, significant free dive training, a lot practice of free ascents, auxiliary use and buddy breathing will provide both confidence and real skills that the Dumbo Crow's Feather of a Spare Air or even a Pony does not. I will grant that this does not apply in the same way to divers undertaking activities with any sort of ceiling or that who are diving deeper than they can comfortably and confidently make a free ascent from.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

I bring a pony bottle as a crutch. Very rarely do I forget it, but I will still dive without one and spend a good bit of the dive thinking about how irresponsible it is. Anything 60 feet or over, I plan on having a pony bottle.

This weekend, I over exerted myself chasing a fish at over 100 feet and ran out of air to the point it was "hard to breath" from the reg. I can not remember the last time I needed the pony, probably not for the last few thousand dives. Actually, I'm not sure there has ever been a time when I NEEDED a pony, until this weekend. I kinda wished that I had been using my 13 instead of the 6 cu-ft pony, since it limited my optons at the moment and cost me some money in lost gear because of pretty harsh time constraints.

I have very infrequently used a lsrger pony to extend a dive, but this was with full knowledge that I was compromising my redundancy and was a conscious choice, not an emergency situation.

Even though the pony has had very little utility for me, it is pretty much required if I am to be calm and really enjoy a dive. I think bringing redundancy to allow the diver to be more relaxed, comfortable and to fully enjoy the dive (and probably use less air as a result) is not a bad thing at all.

if there is any "placebo effect" it is associated with the buddy system and the fact that a new diver may believe that he can rely upon an equally inexperiemced, poorly trained diver to get him safely to the surface in an emergency.

 

[Doc Harry]

A new diver already has a redundant air source, his buddy.

 

[TSandM]

Doc Harry, I think you are absolutely right in theory. The problem is that, among the skills that new divers often don't come away with are the skills to keep a buddy team together, and the skill to initiate and maintain an air-share through a controlled, calm ascent. But you are right; rather than move to an independent, redundant gas source, new divers should practice the skills they need to be safe as a buddy team.

 

[IceBergSlim]

there is a placebo effect that can help a new diver calm down and focus on the dive....being aware of EVERYTHING...not just swimming in a state of angst because they are in fear of OOA.

A placebo?

"A placebo is a sham or simulated medical intervention that can produce a placebo effect. In medical research, placebos depend on the use of controlled and measured deception."

Why would anyone want to sham or simulate a "cure" to a disease that is often found underwater? (in this case the disease is drowning)

How is deception from the results of that disease going to prevent it from occuring?

A diver that is avised to carry a piece of gear that allows them to turn-off their awareness of basic gas management is going to require this "cure" pretty quickly.

And that "cure" better work when they need it.

(and even if it does work they better know exactly how to find and use it properly)



How can a diver be "aware of EVERYTHING" when they have been advised to carry a piece of gear that (from the quote) allows them to ingore the very thing they should be MOST AWARE OF..

Going OOA.


This is an illustration of exactly why new divers should concentrate on skills rather than nifty looking gagets that clip on the many plastic D-Rings they find on their BC's.

That goes for any and all forms of "redundant air sources" other than their buddy.

 

[AndyNZ]

I almost wish the OP hadn't mentioned Spare Air - they are too easy to make the target, rather than addressing the more general question about redundant air sources in general.

To be honest, I don't think there is any "right answer" here. Personally, I think that any diver needing a "placebo" to make them feel good whilst diving simply hasn't mastered the basic diving skills to the degree where they should be conducting independent dives. I've taught OW courses in three days, and I've taught OW courses in ten days. The latter students were much better prepared and would have no need for a redudant air source. The other students probably had a need - but wouldn't have had the competence to use one appropriately.....

Saying that, I can see situations where a redundant air source may be wholly appropriate - even for new divers. For example, cold water environments where a reg with two divers breathing off it may be more prone to free flow, particularly if a new diver has bought a budget reg. In that situation, you may have planned your gas to allow two divers to share gas to the surface - but the free flow would mess with that.