What duplicate items do you carry?

[Mouth Breather old]

Well went on quite a shopping spree yesterday... Will be stuck on a liveaboard this week and hated the idea of not having some backup gear. So bought another mask...I like the idea of diving with it but I have no pockets. Bought a third AI dive computer (will only dive two at a time) Bought a 19 cf pony (hope that was the right size). I really believe in back-ups but hate to look like "Instpector Gadget" on a boat

 

[vicky]

I carry in my BC only the least to allow me to end safely a dive:

A mask
Several tear-ups
A few meters of "cave-rope"
Cutting device (shears)

So the only duplicate I'm taking is a mask.

I can't figure out why one would like to take so many pieces of redundant equipment for a recreational dive, like an extra tank, two computers, two time devices, two knives, two torches, liftbags, first and second stages on an "H", etc. Are you diving on the liveaboard for fun or you're planning an arctic underwater expedition???
Most liveaboards will be able to supply every piece of gear in case yours gets lost or damaged. I wouldn't take a spare tank to a liveaboard (actually I never take my tank and weights to safaris because tehy are too heavy and bulky).

 

[metridium]

vicky wrote...
I can't figure out why one would like to take so many pieces of redundant equipment for a recreational dive, like an extra tank, two computers, two time devices, two knives, two torches, liftbags, first and second stages on an "H", etc.

If your single computer fails during a dive on a liveaboard, you're out of the water for at least 24 hrs, possibly the entire trip if you're unable to fix it.

Sure, someone on board may loan you one, but I don't really cherish the idea of trusting an unfamiliar computer after a crash course in its use.

If your reg fails during a dive - and it does happen - are you prepared to bail out safely, or do you have to hope that the buddy you were assigned on the boat hasn't wandered off again?

 

[Rick Murchison]

vicky once bubbled...
I can't figure out why one would like to take so many pieces of redundant equipment for a recreational dive

This is an excellent question, Vicky, for you are correct that safety alone doesn't dictate carrying all this extra stuff on a recreational open water dive on a tropical reef. But there are reasons - three, principally:
(1) Many of the posters here dive in conditions that dictate more equipment for safety purposes.
(2) (and this applies to me) To some of us, every dive is so precious we want to be able to complete the dive we're on no matter what fails, and we want to be able to make the next dive without unneeded delay. Missing a dive for anything other than weather or water conditions is a horrible sin to us, so we are diligent in our management of all facets of diving under our control - everything from buddy selection to training, to pre-dive planning to boat selection to redundant equipment.
(3) Some are pursuing a "higher level of perfection" in their diving, fine tuning every aspect of how they dive and what equipment they carry; forever closing in on an exact standard of perfection as they see it - and that standard may require a higher level of redundancy.
-- or -- any combination of the three.
Rick

 

[gentlegiant]

Here are the redundant items I carry:

2 cutting devices (shears and z-knife)
2 light sources plus a strobe for night dives
2 lift devices (BC and 50# lift safety sausage)
bungee cord to create a new fin strap
spare line for the sausage/lift bag
spare/backup reg on H-valve post

I do not yet carry a spare mask as I have not found a good place to stow one yet. I currently dive a TP II, but word has it that Santa is going to bring me a BP and harness (he has Fred T's address). For those of you using a BP/wings setup or a back inflate BC with no pockets where do you stow the backup mask? I have seen some wear the mask backwards on their neck, but I am concerned it will be hitting my 1st stages. I have a thigh pocket, but it is already pretty full with some of the above gear. I do have a backup mask in my dive bag already so it is just a matter of finding good stowage for it underwater.

 

[sea nmf]

I will begin taking a spare mask to the dive site. I probably won't take it on the actual dive, however.

About that spare fin, though. No one said anything about that. I bet more of you have lost a fin than a mask. (I haven't but have come close).

I guess most of my diving has been pretty easy. I dive the inland waters of Puget Sound mostly. The other cold water diving is in pretty calm waters in Canada. Then, the easy warm water spots so far. I don't do tech, or surf entries, etc.

My experience so far (in 10+ years of fairly regular diving) has not indicated the need for taking spare items on the actual dive. I just last year upgraded my console so now I have two computers. But that is it. Sometimes my buddy or I will throw in an extra tank and regulator as a spare at the site. Oh, and an extra light. And, of course, the Save-A-Dive kit. But that's it. From now on, though, I'll add a spare mask for the surface.

 

[Zept]

sea nmf once bubbled...
From now on, though, I'll add a spare mask for the surface.

Even if you don't use it yourself, you can make friends by lending it to people who have dropped theirs over the side. I've seen it happen a couple of times... particularly tragic in the case of the brand new, six-window mask with prescription lenses throughout.

Zept