Had my 1st confined water dive last night

[Herk_Man]

If you only want to spend 10 minutes instead of 180 scouring your mask with toothpaste, there is a product at your dive shop (forgot the name) that will cost you about $5 that takes the film off much quicker.

And this is just me because I know there are many people that find spit works just fine; but spit has never worked for me for defogging. But I've come up with a pretty good technique to get just the right amount of defog on the lens. Just put the place where the defog comes out of the tube right against your lens and give it enough of a squeeze for the defog to touch the lens. This will leave a very small 'tit' on your lens. Use a finger to wipe this around the lens and then just swish water in the mask to clear the excess.

This works perfectly for me if I do it at least every other dive.

Congrats on moving toward your cert.

 

[mboyd03]

Water temps. vs. air temps. in a pool can cause masks to continually fog up after defogging. My instructor suggested defogging and filling it with water -- letting it sit full of water while gearing up. Haven't tried that yet.

After I put defog on the mask I keep water in the mask until it's time to put the mask on. Also baby shampoo works well for defog.

 

[Aggiebq86]

Use your saliva, but don't rinse it away. Just smear it on the lenses, then put the mask on.

 

[Jersey]

Silver - where and with whom are you doing your class and pool work? Feel free to PM me if you don't want to name shop/individual. (I'm looking to get a family member certified in SJersey.)

Sounds like you are doing well getting through 4 hour pool sessions - that's a long time and lots of task loading! Good for you! Personality fit is an important part of any educational experience -glad you found one who 'gets' you! Bouyancy will come, practice, practice... Plus it is far harder IMO in a pool then open water. Proper weighting as well takes time and experience and a re-check anytime you change gear (that is why logs are so beneficial). Throwing on an extra bit of insulation or thicker gloves or hood can +/- a pound or 2. After time you will be able to tell the difference that one pound, as small as it sounds, makes. Proper placement of weights is important as well at least on my weightbelt, never used weight integrated. If they are not distributed properly around my pudgy waist, I kind of tip or roll more to one side, then have to compensate via kicking.

Also - I don't fare as well with saliva or baby shampoo as others. I like a product called 3000PSI. A decent smeer, rubbed well, rinsed well and then as others have suggested, keep water in mask until right before I jump in.

Good luck!

 

[SephirothQ]

I found that i needed to clean the outside of the lens as well. After a few pool dives the outsude was getting hard to see through. I had to scrub the outside since then it has been good.

 

[silvernotch]

So yesterday we signed up for AOW class! we also leave tonight to head up to Dutch Springs for our checkouts. we're going to be busy busy busy!!!!!! I'm nervous but excited at the same time. I hope this goes well!! haha

 

[jemmini6]

regular baby shampoo works great as a defogger. get your lenses wet, put 1-2 drops each, rub around with your finger and rinse. no need to spend $8 on a 3 oz bottle of defogger.

 

[ScubaDiverRyan]

Hey Im really Sorry to heat about your equalizing problems. So i found some stuff for you.
To perform the Valsalva maneuver:

1) Pinch your nose using your thumb and index finger.

2) Try exhaling forcefully through your nose as if it was open.

3) A 'clanck' sound should be heard as if coming from the inside of your ears.

4) Repeat underwater as many times as needed.

The Frenzel Maneuver
Herman Frenzel was the Luftwaffe commander who taught this technique to dive-bomber pilots during the World War II. The technique is to close off the vocal cords, as though you are about to lift a heavy weight. The nostrils are pinched closed and an effort is made to make a 'k' or a 'guh' sound. By doing this you raise the back of the tongue and the 'Adam's Apple' will elevate. This turns the tongue into a piston, pushing air up. This maneuver can be done relatively effortlessly and is not as oxygen consuming as the valsalva maneuver. It can be repeated many times quickly underwater and is effective in depths of up to -80 meters. For a manual of Frenzel, an advanced variation of this technique and more general information about equalization see the Frenzel-Fattah manual.

The BTV (VTO) Maneuver
Stands for 'Beance Tubaire Volontaire'. In the 1950's the French navy developed a technique for middle ear equalization called 'Voluntary Tubal Opening'. This technique is difficult to teach and only approximately 30% of taught can perform it reliably. Muscles of the soft palate are contracted while upper throat muscles are employed to pull the Eustachian tube open. This technique is similar to the events that happen in the back of your throat at the end of a yawn. It is also similar to wiggling your ears and some people seem to be born with the talent. For a manual of BTV see the BTV (VTO) manual.

The Wet Equalization Maneuver
Performed by allowing water to flood the sinuses - by doing this the freediver cancels the need for air in order to equalize the pressure in the middle ear and sinuses. The freediver may chose to use the Frenzel maneuver in order to push water into the inner ear to reduce the air space further. This technique requires a lot of training to prevent aspiration of water into the lungs and drowning. The practice of this technique may cause infection of the ear and sinuses.

The Toynbee Maneuver
Joseph Toynbee lived in the 1800's and was the first to identify the crackling sound present in ones head with the anatomical opening of the Eustachian tubes during swallowing. His technique is to pinch nostrils shut while swallowing. The muscles in the back of the throat pull open the Eustachian tube and allow air to equalize if a gradient is present. Using this technique during a freedive, there is very little or no margin for error if the Eustachian tube doesn't equalize on first effort.

And about your mask fogging. You probably all ready know this but spiting in your mask works as well. Hope this helps.