First time to 70'

[RDRINK25]

So were you diving with your wife or someone else as a buddy? What Regulator sets do you have, as some have an adjustment knob designed to adjust the cracking pressure, so if it seems to be bleeding air it just means that the cracking pressure is set to low and you can tighten the knob to a point where it isn't bleeding air. If the regulators are not adjustable then I would take them to where you purchased them to have them adjusted.

Yea there were 3 of us! Wife ended her dive when we saw her reg bleeding. The regs are Mares Abyss. LDS services them I will have them checked asap.

 

[Mike Boswell]

In my 7-mil wetsuit I am nice and comfortable down to 55 degrees.

Below 55 degrees, I really don't need a thermometer.

At exactly 54 degrees, my hands begin to hurt and my feet turn numb.

At 50 degrees my breathing accelerates, my heart rate jumps.

At 47 degrees, my lips turn blue and my eyes begin to bug out in their sockets.

This is how I know it's too damn cold!

 

[Jim Lapenta]

60 fpm is the maximum recommended rate of ascent. The preferred rate is half that- 30fpm. For OW recreational divers that are not approaching their NDL's I recommend to my students even less. There really is no such thing as too slow of an ascent if you are not following a deco schedule. It is on those 60 and even 30 fpm ascents that many divers miss some great sights. Like the barracuda hanging out near the line, the ocean sunfish, in freshwater the freshwater jellyfish. Or the big carp that is just swimming around. On shore dives I have taken a s long as 20 minutes to come up from 15 feet. Just to relax, off gas, and look for cool little stuff. I find things all the time that others miss and never see. Except for CESA training I don't think I've come up at anywhere near 60fpm in 4 years. No reason to. Many reasons not to.

As to the anxiety for a new diver in cold water it could also have been the beginning stages of a dark narc experience. 70 is deep enough to notice it. I;d also bet if you'd come up slowly just 10 feet all of the anxiety would have went away. No need to fly to the surface. You actually risked an uncontrolled ascent there had you not been able to vent quickly or had a buddy that had their stuff together.

 

[elmer fudd]

I don't really notice much difference between diving at 70' and diving at 30'. For me, narcosis isn't really perceptible at that depth and the compressed air isn't thick enough for me to overbreathe my regulator. What I'd guess is that you just had some anxiety brought on by using new equipment and operating in unfamiliar surroundings.

Now if you go down deeper than 100', that for me is where I often feel anxiety. At that depth I notice the narcosis, and it just gets more pronounced the deeper you go. Plus, when you start getting that panicky feeling it's much easier to overbreathe your regulator and get that feeling that you can't suck enough air out of it. Throw in some silt and bad visibility and I am definitely not enjoying the dive anymore.

When this happens to me, I just keep telling myself, "I'm not in any danger. I've done this before several times and never had a problem. Don't do anything stupid." Then I generally ascend 30' or so and the problem goes away. Sometimes if the feeling isn't too bad I continue the dive at depth.

One thing I find is VERY important though is keeping your visual references. If you suddenly find yourself in zero visibility or hanging in dark open water with no visual reference under those conditions, it's a recipe for panic. I've learned this first hand. If it's at all safe to do so, swim towards something solid and keep it close. Just being able to see the bottom, an anchor chain or the side of a seawall is reassuring.

 

[Teamcasa]

Got certified in Feb ... started down a line to 65'. It was cold! I saw 56 on my computer and we continued down to 70'. ... All I wanted to do is ascend I signaled to my buddy and start my ascent at 60fmp and he slowed me down to about 30fpm. once I hit about 35' ... I guess I just stressed out down there. Is this normal or should I have a concern this was 8 dive in total. Thx for the help.

Normal? For new divers, nothing is normal. Everyone reacts differently at first but with more diving, good mentoring buddies, 70' will seem like a easy depth to reach.

...narcosis isn't really perceptible at that depth...

Narcosis can start signaling it's arrival at just about any depth. Your job is to recognize it and manage how you are going to deal with it. This too comes with more diving. Again, Just try to dive more often and with sensible buddies. (Like the one you had that slowed your ascent.) Avoid buddies that start out by saying, "Hey, let's try to go really deep this time." or "Hold my beer, I want to try something..".

 

[TSandM]

There really is no such thing as too slow of an ascent if you are not following a deco schedule.

I know what I think you are trying to say here, Jim, but I'd like to revise this to say that you can't spend too much time in the shallows (30 feet and up). There IS such a thing as too slow an ascent, if you are spending so much time deep that you are continuing to ongas. The Marroni study showed that a steady 10 fpm ascent from a 75 foot dive produced higher grade bubbling than a 30 fpm ascent with shallow stops.

 

[elmer fudd]

Narcosis can start signaling it's arrival at just about any depth. Your job is to recognize it and manage how you are going to deal with it. This too comes with more diving. Again, Just try to dive more often and with sensible buddies. (Like the one you had that slowed your ascent.) Avoid buddies that start out by saying, "Hey, let's try to go really deep this time." or "Hold my beer, I want to try something..".

That's why I prefaced it with, "for me". I don't notice narcosis at 70', although I understand that impairment is detectable in testing at as little as 50'. At 100' however, I do notice narcosis. My dive buddy says he has never felt it even at 140'.

I'm guessing however, that even if someone does feel narcosis at 70' that they aren't as impaired as they think and that people like my buddy are much more impaired than they realize at depths over 100'.

 

[Teamcasa]

That's why I prefaced it with, "for me". I don't notice narcosis at 70', although I understand that impairment is detectable in testing at as little as 50'. At 100' however, I do notice narcosis. My dive buddy says he has never felt it even at 140'.

I'm guessing however, that even if someone does feel narcosis at 70' that they aren't as impaired as they think and that people like my buddy are much more impaired than they realize at depths over 100'.

My remarks were not directed at you per se, but to the OP and others in general.

The fact is everyone starts getting narced as soon as they begin breathing air below the surface. Narcosis steadily increases the deeper you go and the more Nitrogen on take on. It's just that some people notice its affect sooner. I used to not notice it much above 140-160 but now recognize its effect on me beginning at 100 - 120 or so.

Knowing that, I try to stay above 120 unless I have some real compelling reason to dip below that depth.

 

[gcbryan]

I think it was just anxiety (normal for a new diver experiencing new conditions/equipment).

 

[DwayneJ]

Got certified in Feb during certification went to 50' no problem. This past weekend went diving in a quarry and went down to 50' + without an issue other than water being low 60's. I was wearing a 3mil, hood and no gloves(lost on the way). It was the end of the day and I put on my 7mil and hood and started down a line to 65'. It was cold! I saw 56 on my computer and we continued down to 70'. I guess i was way uncomfortable when all I wanted to do is go up. It was 54 and I was cold mixed in with the air at 70' being tight. All I wanted to do is ascend I signaled to my buddy and start my ascent at 60fmp and he slowed me down to about 30fpm. once I hit about 35' I was fine when the water warmed up to mid 70's. I guess I just stressed out down there. Is this normal or should I have a concern this was 8 dive in total. Thx for the help.

The golden rule in hang gliding which I believe is just as applicable to scuba diving is not to change more than one thing at the same time. You changed wetsuits, gloves, and dive profile all in one time. Training and experience is not a race.