PSD Diver99
Registered
Just wondering if anyone is using Steel 50 for deco gas instead of the usual AL40? Thoughts?
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
Difference between an 80 and a 46 (or 50) is substantial, especially if you're going into a wreck. A 46 is virtually the same as a 40 but gives way more deco gas.Why? With steel stages/deco bottles, you are most likely overweighting yourself and if you’re only slinging one bottle, you’ll have a lot of weight on one side. If you need more deco gas, sling an 80. It was not uncommon in the past to have steel tanks used for O2 or another deco gas when cave diving since you usually stash the bottle at the entrance and don’t carry it for any real distance. But I can’t see any upside to using steel tanks for stages/deco if you’re going to be swimming with them for the duration of the dive.