Awkward in the Water

[neil]

Originally posted by hjhlota


(I am only 4'11" and had on a full length tank....) [/QUOTE

You should definitely be using a smaller tank. If you are that small (sorry ) you most likely don't need all that air, and a smaller tank will be much more comfortable for you. Geez, an AL 80 is probably 1/3 your weight! Anyway, try smaller tanks, it should make a big difference. If you were in my class, I'd have you using a 50 to start out with.

Neil

 

[Ber Rabbit]

Feel free to post all your questions here, you'll get good advice from friendly people! Keep us posted on your progress! Welcome to the family!
Ber

 

[Walter]

I believe Neil has nailed the problem. That tank is probably pushing you forward when you try to kneel.

DSSW,

Walter

 

[JustAddWater]

Some great advice above. Buoyancy and trim can be tricky, but improvement comes with practice. Does your LDS have a pool? If so, ask if you can practice a bit. The smaller tank suggestion is worth a try.

 

[Se7en]

I'll agree with the tank issue - and take a punt that the valve and regs are hitting you in the back of the head as well?

Anyway - in your OW course you are probably being overweighted so as that you stay in one position - just try and keep that weight lowish and evenly spread, and you won't feel too clumsy.

While you are doing it, remember that divers are not meant to be in contact with the bottom - you are meant to be floating free. In effect, kneeling on the bottom is like being a grounded bird, waddling around ungainly, waiting to fly.

Final thing - for me, I never achieved boyancy and trim I was happy with until I started diving with gear that fit me perfectly, and I was diving with exactly the same gear week after week. At this point you can discover that moving the tank up or down as little as an inch makes all the difference... or the exact position of weights on your belt.

So for now, don't stress too much, and don't laugh TOO hard when you fall over... we pretty much all did it, and occasionally still do.

Mike

 

[Zagnut]

..of your BC, you might try this... Most BCs have a little velcro type loop on the left shoulder. It is used to help keep the power inflater positioned on your shoulder. Often times it holds the part of the hose that's closest to where the hose attaches to the BC, in a downward position. Air gets trapped in your BC because the air can't travel downward to get past that little velcro strap on your shoulder. To remedy this, all you have to do is take the power inflater out from under that strap and let it hang freely over your shoulder. This way, when you extend your arm up to release the air in your BC, the power inflater hose is in a straight up position pointing toward the surface because it doesn't have to hook under that strap. Once the power inflater is fully extended and pointing toward the surface, the air in your BC can and will follow it's natural path..out of your BC and to the surface. Give it a try and see if it helps.

Welcome to the board, by the way. :hi:

 

[Ber Rabbit]

Zagnut made a good point and I had to do that very thing with my BC. The only problem was the inflator kept getting behind me so I had to search for it and I didn't like that either. I solved that problem by putting the power inflator hose that comes off of the first stage under the velcro strap but letting the part that is attached to the BC stay out from under the strap. Now I can extend the inflator hose completely and it doesn't "hide" from me when not in use.
Ber

 

[Uncle Pug]

Ber makes a good observation that an untethered inflator hose can *disappear*....

I would suggest that trapping the lp hose under the velcro strap might cause it to be disconnected.... ( I have actually seen this happen so this is not mere cyber conjecture )

Another solution:

A loop of small diameter bungee placed around the left shoulder strap of sufficient size to contain the inflator hose and allow it to be lifted up to dump...

The inflator hose is passed through the bungee loop before the lp hose is connected... that leaves the lp hose on the outside of the bungee and it cannot be accidentally disconnected by raising the inflator hose to dump...

 

[Ber Rabbit]

Disconnected from where? Would hate to lose the inflator hose and not notice. I always give mine a good tug to make sure it's fastened tight and there is so much room under the strap since it is the width of the shoulder that the lp hose hardly touches the BC when dumping. What exactly is a small diameter bungee and where do you get them? Doesn't the bungee end up pinching the inflator hose? I'm always looking for new ways to make my scuba life easier and the angle my inflator hose hangs at still doesn't please me (especially in the dry suit) even with the lp hose under the shoulder strap. Thanks for the help!
Ber

 

[Uncle Pug]

Originally posted by Ber Rabbit
Disconnected from where? What exactly is a small diameter bungee and where do you get them? Doesn't the bungee end up pinching the inflator hose?

I have seen the LP hose disconnect from the power inflator when pulled.... it won't happen all the time.... just at the worst possible time... Murphy told me

1/8" Bungee can be purchase at boating supply stores like West Marine or at hardware stores like Lowes.... we use a loop of it fixed in place by a D-ring and SS weightbelt keeper on the left shoulder strap of our harness.... you might have to experiment to find the best way to locate it on your BC shoulder strap..

The bungee does not pinch the inflator tube because it is fairly loose... but another thing is that our inflator hose (the corrugated one) is very short and we can have the bungee loop up fairly high without the inflator hanging down... I do not have to get vertical to dump air out of the BC and I can swim very close (inches) to the bottom without anything dragging...

Something else to get this even further off thread (sorry mods)... I seldom have all the air out of my wing (BC) because I use it for buoyancy control... and I try to keep all the excess air out of my drysuit... so the issue of *trapped* air is not the problem for me that it might be for those who only use the BC for surface support...

Anyway get some bungee and mess around with it