Making the dive / monitoring your dive

[Steve_Dives]

I'm working on a project for a masters degree. I'd like to understand what you do during your dive to keep it safe. For the dives, please consider recreational dives only, but feel free to pull in experience from other areas.

Some questions to stir your thoughts might include:
What triggers you to check your gauges? Or your buddy?
What do you do to monitor your dive plan (if you have one)?
What is the most important information you want during a dive?
Do any of your responses change if the dive is at 20 feet in 85F water versus 120 feet in 45F water?
Should the dive computer display change based on depth, water temperature, air pressure, etc.?

Thanks

 

[TMHeimer]

I am always checking gauges anyway- a bit of OCD.
Monitoring dive plan: If below 30 feet I use the computer and a back up dive watch, as well as my analog stuff on the console. Above 30 feet, no computer. Since most of my dives so far have not been multi-level, I use the tables (Air or Nitrox) to plan each dive and S.I., even with the computer.
For the 120 foot dive I of course check gas even more frequently, if that's possible. 40-55 F water is the norm here, so I don't do anything different. Haven't yet done the 80F dives, but soon. On the 120 foot dive in 35F diving wet I don't mind the short NDLs- may ascend early!
I use the computer mainly so see remaining bottom time. Mine doesn't show air pressure. For the other stuff I can check either the computer or the console.

 

[onefastpony]

Always checking my gauges, I have an air integrated atom 2.0 wrist computer, Checking gauges is like checking your instrument cluster while driving. Most important info to me is gas remaining, dive time remaining and my tissue bar. Nothing changes as long as I am diving recreation. Display should always be the same, no changing locations of important info based on depth.

 

[TSandM]

Well, I dive using a constant sweep: What's my depth? Where's my buddy? Look at the fish . . . My gauge is on my wrist, and I just sweep my eyes over it as I look around, checking depth and time. I check my gas, on a recreational dive, about every ten minutes. I am more careful about that when I am deeper, and as we come up to the shallows at the end of the dive, I'll probably space the checks out more. I have a very good sense of my gas consumption now, and as long as the first few checks track with what I expect, I relax a bit.

The most important information I want during a dive is my depth and elapsed time. One of the things I really like about my computer is that it prioritizes that information, giving those two things about two thirds of the screen. Decompression information gets the remaining third, which is fine, because it's really just an object of curiosity to me anyway.

I can't think of any way in which I would want the display to change based on depth or temperature, and my gauge doesn't give me my gas pressure, anyway.

 

[Garrobo]

On deep and wreck dives after about ten or fifteen minutes I start checking both my time and air pressure every few minutes. I use two computers and a watch. On shallow reef dives I don't pay that much attention to my air consumption but keep track of the time so as to get back to the boat in a timely manner.

 

[DianeKim]

I am constantly checking my gauges - really just a habit. We also like to dive small groups - typically no more than 6 divers. I have a habit of keeping track of everyone - again just a habit. I guess I'm a bit like a working dog - watching over the pack - helps me feel secure kind of keeping track of divers whereabouts, plus they might see something interesting! I'm also keeping an eye out for the boat before and while surfacing and I'll cruise around below and let other divers get out first so there's not such a cluster on the step/ladder.

 

[Quero]

I have a very good sense of my air consumption, so when I check it's more like confirming what I already expect. I start consciously checking and making a proper mental note of air reserves about 10-15 minutes into the dive (what I mean is I actually say to myself, "time to check air pressure"). I watch this time closely since I'm also monitoring the pressure for my divers as well. I set a mental benchmark for their consumption in order to do good dive management.

I watch depth continuously. I am never surprised at how deep or shallow I am, but again, when I am conscious about checking, it's more for confirmation than anything.

The most important factors for me on a standard dive are:
• where are my divers? (buddies or students or customers--doesn't matter)
• how much pressure do we have?
• what is our current dive duration?
• where are we (depth and location on the dive site)?

I can't say that any one of them is more important than the others--they all weave together to form a single tapestry. These factors don't change for me regardless of where I'm diving, how cold or how deep. I always want this information at the forefront of my awareness.

 

[Sas]

I'm working on a project for a masters degree. I'd like to understand what you do during your dive to keep it safe. For the dives, please consider recreational dives only, but feel free to pull in experience from other areas.

Some questions to stir your thoughts might include:
What triggers you to check your gauges? Or your buddy?
What do you do to monitor your dive plan (if you have one)?
What is the most important information you want during a dive?
Do any of your responses change if the dive is at 20 feet in 85F water versus 120 feet in 45F water?
Should the dive computer display change based on depth, water temperature, air pressure, etc.?

Thanks

Hi Steve, hope your project is going well

I check my gauges based on time elapsed and I make it at least every 5 or 10mins. More frequent if I am deeper, less frequent if I am shallow. My computer I check far more regularly than my SPG as that information is more important to me as well as being more accessible. I also am quite good at estimating my air consumption now and it is always within an expected range for me now but I still check it just in case something has gone awry that I have not noticed. I have a non-AI computer on my wrist and an SPG for gas pressure. I don't know if I have a trigger that I can specify exactly but basically do it whenever I am unsure about any information as well as at set intervals (this is so I don't get lax about checking it).

I check on my buddy pretty much all the time, it's now a subconscious thing really. It's hard to explain... but I just *know* where my buddy is all of the time and how they are doing. I usually do an ok signal every five minutes or so if deeper or more like 10-15mins if shallower.

The most important information is depth and time. I also like max depth and temperature Temp when I think about it isn't really important but I dunno, I just like knowing the temperature! I find it fun going through thermoclines and doing before and after checks of the temperature and so on. NDL time is not so important as I plan that in advance but I find that more and more handy the more repetitive recreational dives I do. For decompression dives I have my computer in gauge mode.

My amount of times I check my gauges and computer does vary with depth. The deeper I go the more I check my computer + SPG. I also check things like depth far less frequently at sites that I know well with a hard bottom.

I would hate having a computer that changes at all during a dive. I want it to keep the same information throughout the dive. I have borrowed a computer off a buddy that you press a button to change between information and I HATE it. But that's just me

 

[QatarDiver]

I'm pretty good at guessing my air consumption, so tend to concentrate more on air time remaining and non deco time remaining, just keep one greater that the other and trim up on about 3 mins non deco remaining. (assuming non deco time is the determining factor) I rarely fiddle with the display.

 

[Steve_Dives]

Hi Steve, hope your project is going well

Hi Sassy Tater!

It's going along swimmingly. My that was pun...