Question about free-flowing reg

[dundyo]

Hello, everyone. During my OW course I found it difficult to breathe form a free flowing reg. I did everything exactly as my instructor showed, but nevertheless I swallowed a fair amount of salt water and I can't say I mastered the technique enough to feel confident in my abilities to deal with a free flow situation. Any ideas?
I was also wondering is it really necessary to keep the reg's mouthpiece partly out of my mouth? If the idea is to equalize the air pressure with the ambient water pressure, won't the exhaust valves do the job?
Thank you in advance.

 

[zaberman1]

The best way I can describe the proper technique without drawing or taking a picture is:

1. Peel back the left part of the mouthpiece with you left thumb.
2. Tilt your head to the right so that the bubbles coming out of your regulator do not jiggle your mask off
3. Place the right section of the mouthpiece into your mouth with your head and regulator tilted to the right.
4. Breathe normally.

You were probably holding the regulator too far from your face during the drill. The air coming out of a free flowing regulator is pushing out where you normally breathe air, not the exhaust, where the exhaled air goes.

Also, if this occurs in real life, follow your training or:
-A lot of times, just putting the regulator back in your mouth and breathing may stop the free flow
-Adjust the flow via the side knobs or pre-dive/dive mode to minimize the flow
-You should have an alternate if all else fails. Although if the problem is in the first stage, both regulators will free flow
-You have a buddy.

 

[dhuskins]

If you are getting water in your mouth, then you probably (1) had the regulator too far out of your mouth or (2) you were not pushing on the purge button very hard.

Since you are trying to emulate a free flowing regulator, press the button hard and make it flow like it is really free flowing. The cloud of air it produces will prevent any water from being anywhere near the front of the mouthpiece. That is why we remove one half of the mouthpiece. The blast produced is very great that we don't want to be pummeled inside our mouth by the force of the air.

Left bite tab out of the mouth because the right side is connected to the hose. It is more difficult to hold that side out. Leave the right side in the mouth to form a seal, preventing water from coming in on that side. Tilt the head so the flow of air does not push your mask off.

Finally, like all underwater breathing, breath slowly and remember your airway control. Just like you can breath over a partially filled snorkel, you can breath over any water that gets caught in your cheek (remember you are tilting your head to the side.)

 

[dundyo]

Zaberman1, dhuskins, thank you very much for your advices. I will certainly try them on my next dive, it's something I should train until I get it right. A few more questions, though:

1.

Also, if this occurs in real life, follow your training or:
-A lot of times, just putting the regulator back in your mouth and breathing may stop the free flow

- do you mean that in a real-life free-flow situation the air blast will be so violent that the reg will come out of your mouth?

2.

The blast produced is very great that we don't want to be pummeled inside our mouth by the force of the air.

- I'm not an experienced diver, so my question is not based on practice, but purely on theory. Air (like any other fluid) follows the pressure gradient from high to low pressure and it uses (much like human beings) the path of the least resistance. If I keep my free-flowing reg in my mouth there are two ways for the air - 1. into my lungs (not really a nice alternative, given the pressure), and 2. out through the exhaust valves. If my airways offer greater resistance than the valves, the excessive air pressure will eventually "vent" through them. Like I said, purely theoretical reasoning, I could easily be wrong on this one. So the question is: could I keep the entire mouthpiece in my mouth and avoid swallowing water or the air pressure will inflate my lungs like a baloon?

 

[Kevrumbo]

Shut down your tank valve; when you need to take a breath, just crack open the tank valve and then shut it down again. Repeat as needed.

Continue this tank valve "feathering/modulation" breathing technique as you do a CESA (if your buddy is nowhere in sight). . .

 

[zaberman1]

Not necessarily, just giving you options if the free flow creates a violent/panicky situation

 

[dhuskins]

Zaberman1's comment is based on the fact that a common cause of a regulator free flow is because the valve is stuck. Try the following experiment and you will see:

Standing in the pool's shallow end, submerge your regulator mouthpiece down. Notice nothing special happens. Repeat, but this time with the mouthpiece pointing up. The regulator may very likely free flow. If it does, simply put your thumb or finger over the mouthpiece opening for a moment. The pressure backwards will stop the free flowing.

 

[TSandM]

The idea that the exhaust valve will keep the pressure in your mouth from going up is based on the idea that the exhaust valve can manage the flow rate that the inlet valve is providing, and I don't know if that is true or not.

You can always put your secondary reg in your mouth, if it is not freeflowing. Me, I'd go on my buddy's long hose and shut the darned tank down. My experience with a freeflow was that the bubbles ruined my vision and the noise was stressful.

 

[rsigmund]

Another way to handle a free flowing regulator is to have a hand overthe top of the mouthpiece and cup your hand to gather an air bubble. the free flowing regulator will replenish the air as you breath in from the cup of air. This keeps the regulator further from your face and increases visability. This works well in most scenerios. There is a caveat to this however; this method requires both hands (one to hold the regulator and another to cup and make an air pocket).

Like so many things in scuba, I would recommend practicing this and the other technique in the shallow end of a pool and then the deep end, until you feel comfortable doing this while swimming.

Rich

 

[dundyo]

Thank you all once again for your advices, I really appreciate your time and your effort to educate me. Now it's time for some practice...