"Correct Weighting" Identified as #1 Needed Improvement in SCUBA Diving

[REVAN]

Correct weighting was #1 on a list of "DAN’s Top 10 Most Wanted Improvements in Scuba Diving"

(#1)

Correct Weighting
Diving with the correct weights is critical for safe diving. We hear that over and over again yet it still frequently becomes one of the triggers for a diving mishap. If you read the annual report you will find case studies of divers being grossly over weighted. One of the fatal cases concerning a diver using a steel tank found on the bottom after being observed sinking from a safety stop. The diver was found with a fully inflated BCD and he had removed his weight belt. However, this was not enough to become positively buoyant at the depth he was found. Investigation showed that the diver had 50 pounds of weights but only 17 pounds of that was on his weight belt. Another drowning case had a diver 20 pounds over-weighted.

You will also see cases where divers ran into trouble being under-weighted. Mostly these led to DCS when the diver was unable to maintain a safety stop and to control their rate of ascent.​

This quoted from the article:
DAN's Top 10 Most Wanted Improvements in Scuba Diving – DeeperBlue.com

I believe the most effective solution would be to return to old way where divers first learn to dive with a tank on a simple backplate (no BCD). Proper weighting to within -+1 pound becomes very important to planning a successful dive. Once that level of weight tracking is ingrained to near OCD behavior levels, then the divers can learn to dive with a BCD as a specialty. What do you all think?

 

[2airishuman]

I believe it would lead to more students drowning when they panic, since there would in many cases be no way for them to become buoyant at the surface.

It isn't hard to get weighting right. It does require that skills be learned in midwater instead of on the bottom, though.

 

[TMHeimer]

Good article. We're talking about weight placement and removable weight, I gather. Correct amount of weight, I learned in OW, is found by doing the simple weight check. Having enough that can be removed to be positively byuoyant seems just logical. But perhaps more attention should be paid to this in the OW course. It's not a factor at our shop because students have belts and integrated, each removable (some remove themselves during courses...yuk yuk). I wear suspenders to hold up the belt, so always tell a buddy to pull out my two 10 pound pocket weights if I'm in trouble. Just logical.

 

[stuartv]

What I don't understand is those reports where the diver was very over weighted and didn't have a problem until the end of their dive.

How do you get to a safety stop being too heavy to get neutral? If you're close to the end of your dive, then you were even more negative at the start. Are they spending the whole dive finning to keep from sinking, but not recognizing that there is a problem?

 

[REVAN]

I believe it would lead to more students drowning when they panic, since there would in many cases be no way for them to become buoyant at the surface.

If they are not overweighted to begin with it won't be an issue. That's how you learn. If every dive, they are heavy, they learn to remove some weight and get neutral on the dive instead of covering up the mistake with a BCD. If they f*#ked up too bad to even be able to stay on the surface with finning, they need to drop the belt. Loose one belt like that, and they will learn real quick the value of good weight planning.

Besides, students drowning was not an issue in the days before the BCD. So, we already know this was a workable situation.

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

I myself am more of an occasional scuba diver and spend the majority of my time in the water doing freediving. So my perspective may be biased towards my experience.

Freedivers are very attentive toward fine tuning their ballast. We generally use rubber belts that are comfortable, don't slide around, are depth compensating, and are secure, yet easy to ditch.

Another thing we offer our customers are small weights which can be instantly added or removed from the belt - even without removing the belt. The ability to quickly fine tune your weights should help reduce the propensity to dive with too little or too much lead.

I hope it is appropriate to mention the MAKO weight belt policy since this thread pertains to safety... We will replace any . MAKO belt or lead ditched in an emergency. See our website for details.

Dive Safe

Dano

 

[Gr8WyattWhale]

Is there typical weight amount?
Is there a number that is always too much and should be a red flag?

 

[2airishuman]

The Mako belt is nice, I have one. I have occasionally encountered weights on dive boats that won't fit it, but so far they've only been one or two of the weights on the boat so I've been able to work around it.

The removable trim weights are a good design. I use them but they aren't that much help for SCUBA. Ordinarily if I'm off by a pound or two I make adjustments between dives.

Is there typical weight amount?
Is there a number that is always too much and should be a red flag?

For me it varies from 0 to around 30 pounds depending on wetsuit, equipment configuration, and fresh vs. salt water. There are some calculators out there that will get you close if you provide body weight, wetsuit type and thickness, and salt vs. fresh.

 

[Remy B.]

IMHO The problems is that the INST's don't spend enough time in the OW courses, Scuba diving has turned in a factory of not enough prepared OW divers, I speak from my own experience, my wife, friends and new OW instabuddies, all different instructors, so it is not a coincidence, unfortunately there is no other way around it, there is no will for the instructors to extend the hours of teaching without the course still remain affordable and there is no will from the students to spend more time taking the OW course

They shall merge both courses in one and not Buoyancy Control and OW as apart courses, but that is my perspective I'm sure others view it differently.

 

[kelemvor]

50 lbs of weights PLUS a steel tank? I wonder what was going through that person's mind.