Night dive, divemaster air monitoring

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Painter

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I have done 42 dives now, almost all with dive "guides" in warm water. I tend to go through my air faster than others in the group and on a few occasions I have had to signal to the divemaster that I was low on air; twice, in my opinion, dangerously low (below 500 psi). (If you would like to start a different thread on that topic, I would be happy to go into more details, but I have a pretty specific question here.)

The best divemasters (in my opinion) have regularly monitored all the divers in their groups, asking, with signals, for a check on air levels. I may do a night dive on my next trip, but I am feeling somewhat anxious about how the divemaster will keep tabs on us "hoovers?"

What has been your experience? What would you who have done night dives want from the divemaster?
 
On night dives it can be done the same way.

One hand using a flashlight to illuminate the signalling hand displaying pressure. Another way is to simply show the guide your gauge.

At night it is even more important to reply in your training as an autonomous divers and stick with your buddy. The guide is a guide, keeping yourself within the safe limits of your training (Gas management included) is your responsibility.

During your dive planning you can discuss with the guide which signals they would like when you communicate your remaining pressure.

Will you be diving with someone you know? Could practice on dry land with how to light a hand and not blind your buddy while waving it around. Helps.

Enjoy.
Cameron
 
Often night dives tend to be shallower than your day dives, and if so expect your air to last longer. You may also want to ask if there are larger tanks (100cf?) available until your consumption slows down.
Under 500 psi Is still not good, unless you are really close to the boat. Your 2nd stage is working off pressure of about 140 psi, so that is a point at which breathing will certainly get tougher. Don’t think you have until zero on your tank. Leave even more of a planned reserve on the night dive.
And I too notice you mentioned the dive master, and the group, but not a buddy. Definitely pair off - your buddy is your back up plan, and you are theirs.
 
To the OP,

I think Cameron covered this in his reply but I'd like to share some observations. From my own experience of night diving in the tropics, Dms, more often than not, do monitor the gas consumption of the divers in their group and choose benign sites to conduct the dive. I have also found that the dive time for a night dive is usually curtailed - a dive on the same site might be 60 mins in the daytime but 45 mins at night and the deepest part of the dive tends to be about 40 feet or so.

Firstly, as Cameron pointed out, the ultimate responsibility for gas monitoing is you - don't assume the Dm will do this automatically you need to be proactive in this. What you might find useful is to determine from the dive briefing how long the dive will be and then monitor your gas accordingly. From experience I can guestimate my gas consumption but I make a point of checking my gauge at the half point stage of the dive so for a 45 min dive I'd check at 20 mins. You might want to check every 10 mins particularly if you are feeling anxious.

Secondly, I find divers naturally cling together on a night dive. The less experienced divers often stick to other divers like glue :) This in itself is not a bad thing but you may find yourself having issues with divers accidently running into you - instead of getting annoyed by this, be proactive in giving your buddy some space to move around and keep an eye on the movements of other divers particularly those with cameras. (For me, this is the greatest hazard on a night dive)

Thirdly, relax and enjoy. Go nice and real slow - you'll understand this point when you do the dive.
 
Dude, take responsibility for your own diving. You're an adult, watch your air pressure. It's arguably THE most important skill. If you aren't capable of keeping track of it, you should take up golf.

Notice how I didn't mention anything about your air consumption. That's because it's irrelevant. There is no excuse for running out of gas, regardless of you consumption.

I'll also opine that 500 psi isn't necessarily "dangerously low". If you're under the boat in 18 feet of water, then 500 psi is lots to complete a safety stop if you need to, and get out.
 
The guides aren't asking you to check your air as a reminder to you, but to gauge group air consumption so that he/she gets the group to the safety stop with enough air to complete the dive safely.
 
Take the initiative. Keep an eye on your gas. Signal the DM with your light and give them updates.
 
I don't know that I've ever been asked about my gas by a dive guide. An occasional "OK?" from time to time has been it.
 
Tell the DM and your buddy that you’re concerned about running low on gas. Night dives should always be conservative so there shouldn’t be any problem with you and your buddy surfacing early if you need to. It’ll help your consumption if you relax, go slow, and stay a bit shallower than the group.
 
The guides aren't asking you to check your air as a reminder to you, but to gauge group air consumption so that he/she gets the group to the safety stop with enough air to complete the dive safely.

Exactly. I don't think that the OP was asking about how he was going to monitor his gas. At least to my reading, he was worried about the DM keeping the group together at night, since the dive plan was for all buddy teams to surface when the first diver in a large gropu reaches ascent pressure, and the only one who knows everybody's tank pressure would be the DM. A reasonable question...
 

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