the first 10

[M.D.]

Hey SB,
As this post involves more than one topic I couldn't decide where to put it. Anyhow...
I frequently have problems descending the intial 10'. I suspect it has something to do with my BC being a backinflate (Genesis Tropic, Weight Integrated). I'm weighted fairly well and after that first 10' there's no prob, I can get neutral and enjoy the dive. On the initial decent I purge the air from the BC, holding the power-inflator above my head and leaning to the side as I've been taught... nothing. still floating. I've get my buddy to squeeze the bladder... nothing. I always have to do a head first descent while opening the lower purge valve. Once I get under the surface there's no problem.

Could be the wetsuit I suppose. I'm usually fully suited up in a 7mil john, jacket, gloves, hood, and boots. It's new gear too, so I guess it's not 'worked-in' yet. After the first water column the air bubbles in the suit squeeze a bit and it's not as buoyant.

Lastly, it could very well be me that's the problem. I'm not in the greatest of shape and likely have a high-ish percentage of body fat, which could contribute to the problem. I'm working out to rectify that.

Hmm... well maybe it's a combination of all of the above. thoughts?

 

[Ann Marie]

Do you have any problems holding depth during your safety stop?

 

[Jcsgt]

Sometimes, if I'm a bit tense, I have more trouble descending. Once I get myself to relax and completely exhale the air out of my lungs, I sink a lot easier.

 

[jwalko]

I have the same problem. When diving with a DM, he told me to forcefully exhale all the air from my lungs until I started to sink, then take in a little air and exhale again. Keep doing this until you get down to about 10' and then you should be nuetral. This is a bit uncomfortable at first, but you kind of get used to it.

At least this worked for me. This past week end, I used the same weight as normal, but had on a 5 mil hooded vest in addition to my suit. Ususally, I just wear the 5 mil suit. I forgot to add more weight and was actually a bit underweighted, so I had to swin down head first to get under, but once at 10', I was neutral. I found this interesting, and at my safety stop, still found it easy to stay neutral. Guess I am getting better at not keeping so much air in my lungs.

 

[H2Andy]

Hmm... well maybe it's a combination of all of the above. thoughts?

you are making sure all the air is out of the BC, good

now

stop kicking. don't fin. keep your feet still.

then

exhale. get all that air out of your lungs. empty those lungs.

then

wait. just wait a few seconds. you'll start to sink.

promise

 

[TSandM]

A tip NW Grateful Diver gave me early on was how to time your breathing with your descent. If you lift your inflator and push the button and exhale, by the time your head goes underwater, you're ready to inhale again, and you stop your descent. On the other hand, if you INHALE as you lift the inflator, and as your head goes under the water, forcibly EXHALE, you'll push yourself down the couple of feet necessary to get your descent started.

Andy's point about not finning is an important one, too -- in order not to fall over on my back, I used to fin and push myself back to the surface. Bend your knees a little bit and cross your ankles. The water will push on your fins as you descend and shift you into a horizontal position. Crossing your ankles keeps you from finning. Try it -- it's surprisingly hard to do.

 

[tstormdiver]

It's good to hear I'm not the only one that's ever had that issue. I thought it was just me being new to diving and still learning how best to weight myself for different wetsuits. I have most of my trouble when I wear my 2pc. 6.5. It s new and I tend to wear this until the water gets above 60- 65 degrees. A couple of weeks ago, after sitting out for the winter I dove a quarry in S.E. Illinois. Not having dove much in thick wetsuits I used the recommended weighting that was in my AOW handbook (by the book I should have had about 24#). With a combination of the thick wet suit & nerves because it had been a while since I last dove and the cold of the water, I found I couldn't descend at all. I would sink to where the water was just over my head then pop back up. I added 2 more pounds & was able to descend with a little difficulty, and once the air squeezed out of the suit I was fine, until we came to our safety stop, I had real difficulty staying down & actually came up about a miute early (I know tsk, tsk). :shakehead I am finally figuring out what weights work with me and trying to trim & even it up. I am also enrolled in a specialty class for buoyancy to help me better be able to control my buoyancy and enjoy my dives without harming the environment.

 

[Rick Inman]

stop kicking. don't fin. keep your feet still.

Crossing your ankles keeps you from finning. Try it -- it's surprisingly hard to do.

I'll bet you a Krispy Kream that this solves your problem.

 

[Lost_At_Sea]

you are making sure all the air is out of the BC, good

now

stop kicking. don't fin. keep your feet still.

then

exhale. get all that air out of your lungs. empty those lungs.

then

wait. just wait a few seconds. you'll start to sink.

promise

I agree!

 

[Nailer99]

Good post for me to read. I've been having the same exact problem.