Double short hose regulator configuration (for non-wreck / non-cave environments)

[Remy B.]

Thank you all for the comments. As initially stated, there are different preferences - hence I really appreciate all the comments!

I should have added that in APAC, I only dive AL80 (or occoasionally AL40).
Guess I will give it a try and report back how I like it. Another learning from this discussion: Air sharing shall always be practised - particulary with short hose configuration.

Everybody has been exposed to air sharing in the OW course, I don't see it as uncomfortable, if it gets to that point that you really need to share your gas, it is the end of the dive anyway.

I have shared my long hose with my brother and my wife as I want to keep diving and they are at half of their tanks, it makes it very comfortable as both can keep swimming without hitting each other's fins.

the other advantage of a long hose in case of low on gas buddy and in a current is that both can swim the current until you reach surface because both have room to do so, doing that with a short hose in the same situation I think will be interesting

 

[Remy B.]

If you want to donate a cylinder, that's fine. I don't care to in general, although I have done it with an 80.
No, not at all what I said. And, I don't think that's what Tom said.

Understood.

 

[Doby45]

I would love to see some of these AL80 gurus that think you should be able to simply swap tanks around, grab a couple of HP100s or HP120s and swap and hand them around.

 

[Subcooled]

A sidemount diver is trained to be weighted properly so he can donate a bottle, without a problem of buoyancy.

Clearly you have not dived in a drysuit and thick undergarments. That d**n thing floats and requires a lot of lead. Negative steel cylinders are lovely. Donating those can be challenging - depending on your planning of course.

Short hoses (only) is a good and uncluttered option for solo dives, dives with a rope tender, and so on.

 

[Remy B.]

I dive all year long here in Nederland dry-suit, thick undergarment, the bottom of the lakes are at 4* to 6*C, I don't even own a wetsuit, if diving tropical waters I don't use a wet-suit

No, I don't dive full steel tanks for sidemount, I dive Carbon-steel or AL, it doesn't make sense to dive steel sidemount at least in my point of view.

I had dived steel double back's, with a 3rd 10L steel 200bar bottle with air and still I can un-clip that bottle.

Will I prefer to un-clip a Al or Steel Carbon over a steel bottle, of course, AL or Carbon Steel is much better in order to avoid looking like a balloon underwater, with the wing/bladder fully inflated plus a lot of air in your dry-suit.

will it be suicidal to dive Steel tanks going deep with sidemount, I think it is.

the thing is that a lot of divers don't spend enough time to properly weight themselves with different configurations, it take time to tune yourself, but you shall be able to un-clip one bottle at all times.

( you will look like a balloon under the water, sure, well you be streamlined Fu... no, will it take time to find the proper weight F... yeah )

Here is EU they have an assortment of tanks of different configurations, what you guys call HP-100 and HP-120 are does steel 12L and 15L @ 300Bar tanks ?? or are they the AL- @ 232 bars ???

 

[Patoux01]

AL or Carbon Steel is much better in order to avoid looking like a balloon underwater, with the wing/bladder fully inflated plus a lot of air in your dry-suit.

You are new to proper weighting and what it involves, right? The amount of air in a wing is not a matter of what the tanks are made of. It's a matter of their content.

 

[tbone1004]

@Remy B. come to America, dive our caves. Try doing it in al bottles. You'll see that not only are we not suicidal for diving to trimix depths with steel bottles, that it is quite impractical, if not impossible, to do those dives on AL bottles since they aren't big enough. Dives that will require 4 bottles plus safeties now require 6. Very difficult to get through sidemount restrictions with 4 bottles, not possible to get through with 6. We'll keep out steel bottles thank you very much.

What @Patoux01 said is correct as well. If you are diving in a drysuit, the gas in the wing should only be the gas content of bottles. It's going to be big regardless of if you have 6x al80's, or 2x19l/lp121's and 2x 80's. If you are weighted properly, it is the same amount of gas.

Donating al bottles in open water is one thing, try doing it in a single passage cave or wreck and let me know how it goes for you. That's why no one dives the Toddy Style system in the US, it's not safe

 

[Jim Lapenta]

If everyone is sidemount, I don't see why everyone couldn't use short hose. Just donate the entire tank.

If I'm diving dry that is not going to work. I either lose my ability to inflate the drysuit or the BC. Neither is acceptable.

 

[DevonDiver]

I think a lot of people pipe-dream about tank donation in an OOG emergency. Most recreational divers can barely manage a regular gas share if they under the slightest bit of real-life stress.

Day dreaming about it doesn't make it a reality option. Nor, really, does some calm, pre-scripted practice in perfect conditions that you have anticipated because it's a forewarned drill.

Tank donation under real emergency stress demands some quite high level skills. It's not the right option for novice divers looking to shortcut the 'hassle' of learning reliable long hose use...

My personal thoughts on short hose for purely recreational diving is that a diver can dispense with a 7' hose... just have enough to loop the neck direct from the tank... That'd equate to, what, 40"?

40" is still a generous hose that allows some distancing and for the sidemount diver to maintain horizontal trim on ascent, thus preserving their stability.

I'd still hog loop the hose.
I wouldn't hedge any bets on tank donation.

 

[Diver-Drex]

@DevonDiver - I agree 40" being the minimum donation length in a rec situation. To me it seems harder to stow, not quite long enough to stay under tank bungies. I use a 60" hose on my left which stays stowed nicely. I route it in front of my chest rather than around the neck. Do you see an up or down to this compared to a 40" hose?