Mike, you may have too much weight as well. Constantly having to adjust your bcd is a symptom of too much weight. Having too much weight forces you to a carry a big bubble in your BCD. Since the bubble is so big, even slight changes in depth translate into pretty big changes in buoyancy.
Basically, the air in your bcd is compensating for the weight of the gas in your tank, which you will dump one breath at a time throughout the course of the dive, and the compression of your wetsuit. (since you are wearing a good bit of rubber, this can be significant.)
Ideally, at the end of the dive, hanging motionless (no sculling with hands or fins) if you dump all the air from your bcd you should not sink, nor float and control your buoyancy with your lungs. It's good to have a buddy check your bcd for trapped air when you do this. If you find that your bcd is trapping air, work on discovering which way you need to roll and dump or whatever to completely empty it.
Basically, the air in your bcd is compensating for the weight of the gas in your tank, which you will dump one breath at a time throughout the course of the dive, and the compression of your wetsuit. (since you are wearing a good bit of rubber, this can be significant.)
Ideally, at the end of the dive, hanging motionless (no sculling with hands or fins) if you dump all the air from your bcd you should not sink, nor float and control your buoyancy with your lungs. It's good to have a buddy check your bcd for trapped air when you do this. If you find that your bcd is trapping air, work on discovering which way you need to roll and dump or whatever to completely empty it.
