Do get a co analyzer or not?

[eingersoll]

Hi,

We will be going to Cozumel in March and the dive shop we use gets their tanks filled from Lyn Mar on the island. I understand that Lyn Mar analyzes their fills for carbon monoxide. In light of the recent accident from on the island with co poisoning. I am wondering if I should by my on portable analyzer. Just wanted know your opinions.

Thanks,
Eric

 

[Brules]

That's a tough one since they are not cheap.....does the shop you are going to use have one?

 

[SandyRobinson]

I personally analyze all of my fills (whether air or nitrox) for O2 and for CO. This is true in the States and will be for my next trip to Mexico. I do not take anyone's word on it unless my buddy does it for me. You just never know. YMMV.

Try http://www.cavecountrydiveshop.com/analyzers/ or www.caveadventurers.com

Have a great trip to Cozumel - definitely some good diving.

 

[j2s]

They are expensive for most people, but if you plan on diving for many years, more than 2-3 times a year or around the globe, it is a good investment to avoid that one bad tank.....Think of it as a 'one-time-cost' insurance policy....And if a dive shop knows you'll be checking they'll most likely pay close attention to the fill......

 

[Johnoly]

I personally analyze all of my fills

Same with me. I've been going to my local USA dive shop for over 15 years and I hit every single tank with a CO meter and an O2 meter. Doesn't matter where I dive, Cali, Coz, WPB, or anywhere,,,,I'll hit every tank with both meters. Our sport is expensive but a funeral is over $5k. Both meters seems like a pretty cheap price to pay,,,or just take up golf instead.

 

[vladimir]

Our sport is expensive but a funeral is over $5k.

You're going to have to pay the $5K eventually, CO analyzer or not.

For those using a CO analyzer, which one are you using?

 

[SandyRobinson]

I have an Oxycheq. My buddies have the same or an Analox. I have not heard any complaints on either. The Oxycheq may be less expensive over the long run.

 

[suprane]

You're going to have to pay the $5K eventually, CO analyzer or not.

For those using a CO analyzer, which one are you using?

Sure you're going to pay the $5K eventually! (Or, at least your family will!) But I would like to postpone this expense for as long as possible!

As for my analyzer. I use a ToxRae 3. And only because the Analox CO unit had not yet been released. Were I buying one now there is no question but what it would be the Analox analyzer!

 

[suprane]

I actually had a friend die several years ago on Roatan (CoCo View Resort) from CO poisoning. Both he and the DM on that trip died! This was a long time before any suitable CO analyzers were available to divers. It really made an impression on me!

In the summer of 2010 and with a trip to Coz coming up in August I started following the Cozumel forum very closely to see who all would be going during that time. One of the people I encountered was DandyDon. He has long been a proponent of CO testing and has done more to encourage it and support the concept than anyone I have EVER run across!

It was through discussions with him that I decided it was time to invest. Don was using a Pocket CO monitor at that time as I recall. It required you to drop the monitor in a zip-lock bag and then fill the bag with air from the tank and then wait for the analysis. I wanted something more sophisticated! I settled on a ToxiRae 3 with an adapter to attach it to the BC inflator hose for testing.

Now to the good part!... When we got to Coz Don had decided that he would like to try ScubaMau. (I have no idea who was filling their tanks for them!.. So don't ask!) Daily we both check our tanks with both analyzers. That is, until a gust of wind blew his overboard and soaked it! Consistently we were both getting readings in the 8 to 10 ppm of CO! We expressed our concerns and the DM's kept discounting them and telling us they thought we weren't testing correctly or that they weren't calibrated properly.

The final day of diving we checked virtually all of the tanks on board the boat. Without exception they were all in the 16 to 17 ppm range! We had planned to do Devils Throat that day, but basically we told the DM that we refused to go that deep on air that tested that badly! We ended up doing a much more shallow dive.

After that Don and I both got very active in discussions with David Dillehay (owner of Aldora Divers) and others to try to get Analox in-line monitors installed at Meridiano. I think this has now been done. (Maybe David can chime in and confirm this.)

But it doesn't matter who fills the tank or what equipment they use. I WILL always still test my own tanks! Just like with Nitrox, YOU are responsible for knowing what is in the air you are breathing! Anything less and you are playing Russian Roulette!

Get an Analox! It is the most simple, fool-proof analyzer currently available!

 

[Brules]

Wish Analox made one that was a dual mode - CO and Nitrox......