caseybird
Contributor
Has anyone ever used one of the roll-up kind to breathe through? I saw one a few years ago, and it seemed more designed to be used to satisfy the always-dive-with-a-snorkel rule than actual deployment and use. Anyone try it?
snorkel, whats it good for?
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DevonDiver
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cloudflint
Contributor
I carry one strapped to my mask, I generally use it every dive. Generally ill start out on the snorkel, switch to my reg, do the dive then switch back to my snorkel on the surface.
I find the snorkel to be one of those things that I would rather have and not need than need and not have. Ive never lost it or had it snag on anything so I have no real reason to get rid of it. I remember when I was a young and naive diver I went into a dive as a group of four with a dive leader.
An hour later we got low on air so we surfaced only to discover that the shore was a thin line in the distance and we where in heavy swell. I spent the next 45 minutes swimming furiously and being incredibly thankful I had my snorkel. My buddy who never carried a snorkel sucked their tank dry within 20 minutes and had to swim the rest of the way on their back which meant they where constantly getting swamped by waves and swimming off in the wrong direction.
Another reason I carry my snorkel is that if I do a really good dive ill swim back to the boat, hand in my tank and reg then go back in on the snorkel. Also when you have spent 3 hours on a cold winter night sitting in a hut filling air tanks you soon learn to not waste air
I find the snorkel to be one of those things that I would rather have and not need than need and not have. Ive never lost it or had it snag on anything so I have no real reason to get rid of it. I remember when I was a young and naive diver I went into a dive as a group of four with a dive leader.
An hour later we got low on air so we surfaced only to discover that the shore was a thin line in the distance and we where in heavy swell. I spent the next 45 minutes swimming furiously and being incredibly thankful I had my snorkel. My buddy who never carried a snorkel sucked their tank dry within 20 minutes and had to swim the rest of the way on their back which meant they where constantly getting swamped by waves and swimming off in the wrong direction.
Another reason I carry my snorkel is that if I do a really good dive ill swim back to the boat, hand in my tank and reg then go back in on the snorkel. Also when you have spent 3 hours on a cold winter night sitting in a hut filling air tanks you soon learn to not waste air
If you're getting swamped swimming on your back and aren't overweighted a 7" plastic tube isnt going to help.
Ive seen the cause incidents at and below the surface. We've banned the wearing of them from anyone using our club boats for safety reasons. If someone really wants one it must be stowed in a pocket.
Ive seen the cause incidents at and below the surface. We've banned the wearing of them from anyone using our club boats for safety reasons. If someone really wants one it must be stowed in a pocket.
diver 85
Contributor
Nothing much--except it can save your life from time to time---other than that, nuttin'....
EDIT--& BTW, do a search-that might save your fingers & wrists some wear & tear....
EDIT--& BTW, do a search-that might save your fingers & wrists some wear & tear....
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I carry a snorkel when I teach ... because my agency says I have to. It's useful for teaching skin diving skills.
I take a snorkel with me when I go diving in the tropics ... because sometimes it's fun to slip off the dock or boat during surface interval and play around in the shallows.
I've found a snorkel to be useful for getting into a back-zip drysuit without assistance ... but only if you own a simple J snorkel ... the ones with the floppy corrugated hose are useless.
And snorkels can be quite entertaining when your dive buddy forgets to remove his snorkel and replace it with his regulator just prior to descending.
Snorkels are mostly useless while diving. They add clutter to your rig, and newer divers will often try to use them to dump air from their BCD ... again, the ones with the floppy corrguated hose.
Some people find them useful for surface swimming. I never have. Most times I just swim on my back, which is comfortable and uses the body's strongest muscles ... so you can keep it up for long periods of time without tiring yourself out. If conditions are rough, or I desire to swim face-down for some reason, I'll use my regulator ... if the small amount of gas you use out of your tank on a surface swim is a concern, then you're using too small of a cylinder ... or cutting your reserves too short.
Like every other item you can choose for scuba, snorkels have advantages and drawbacks. They let you do some things better, and they get in the way while doing others. It's up to each individual to decide whether or not the advantages outweight the drawbacks.
About the only thing I disagree with in terms of anybody's take on snorkels for scuba is that they are "essential safety equipment". I don't think so ... there's nothing a snorkel will do for you that you can't do some other way, either with better planning or different technique.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
I take a snorkel with me when I go diving in the tropics ... because sometimes it's fun to slip off the dock or boat during surface interval and play around in the shallows.
I've found a snorkel to be useful for getting into a back-zip drysuit without assistance ... but only if you own a simple J snorkel ... the ones with the floppy corrugated hose are useless.
And snorkels can be quite entertaining when your dive buddy forgets to remove his snorkel and replace it with his regulator just prior to descending.
Snorkels are mostly useless while diving. They add clutter to your rig, and newer divers will often try to use them to dump air from their BCD ... again, the ones with the floppy corrguated hose.
Some people find them useful for surface swimming. I never have. Most times I just swim on my back, which is comfortable and uses the body's strongest muscles ... so you can keep it up for long periods of time without tiring yourself out. If conditions are rough, or I desire to swim face-down for some reason, I'll use my regulator ... if the small amount of gas you use out of your tank on a surface swim is a concern, then you're using too small of a cylinder ... or cutting your reserves too short.
Like every other item you can choose for scuba, snorkels have advantages and drawbacks. They let you do some things better, and they get in the way while doing others. It's up to each individual to decide whether or not the advantages outweight the drawbacks.
About the only thing I disagree with in terms of anybody's take on snorkels for scuba is that they are "essential safety equipment". I don't think so ... there's nothing a snorkel will do for you that you can't do some other way, either with better planning or different technique.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
diver 85
Contributor
I have used, without difficulty, my folding snorkel. Not exactly rocket science.
I do agree with vladimir about HAVING a snorkel. We ran into a pod of about 30 dolphins on the way back from a dive in the Red Sea -- I jumped in the water, but without a snorkel, I could only watch for a little while, and then I had to come up for air. I also had an opportunity to swim in the Bay in Puerto Aventuras, on one of our cave trips, and found the corals had TONS of great life in them. But again, it wasn't snorkeling, it was breath-hold-and-pop-uping. As a result, I take a snorkel on all my Mexico cave diving trips
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