What Size Wing Do I Need?

[tkmcdon]

I'm a new diver and have purchased a backplate with a zeagle wing that has 34lb of lift. It seems kind of small to me. I weigh 155lbs and will be using a steal 130. Is my wing too small? If so, what size should I get? Any assistance would be much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Hickdive]

#1 Your bodyweight is irrelevant, unless you belong to a very small minority you will swing around neutral buoyancy with each breath.

#2 what does your full cylinder weigh in water? If it is less than 34lbs then your wing is adequate.

 

[ae3753]

Some recent threads on this topic for you:
* Is a 45lb wing too big for a single tank?
* Wing lift capacity doubt
* Required buoyancy in wings

 

[DaleC]

The short answer is No... if you weight yourself properly. I dive twin Al 80's with a 32lb wing.

To begin you should aim to be neutrally bouyant with about 500psi in the tank. Then add about 10lb's for a full tank (the approximate weight of compressed air in a 130. Someone else can please chip in with the exact weight). This means at the beginning of the dive you will be the heaviest, 10lb's negative. Your wing can lift 34lb's. In reality you may be slightly more weighted when you add lights, cutting tools, pony bottle etc... but you get the point.

The second part is to have an appropriate amount of ditchable weight should a wing failure occur. In the example above, at the start of the dive you are 10lb's negative. You should therefore have at least 10lb's ditchable weight if possible. If you can't ditch that much weight you must either swim up a negatively bouyant rig (hard) or rely on a back up lift system.

If you dive a drysuit it can be used as a back up bouyancy device. If you dive a wetsuit you can carry a liftbag as a back up device. Whatever you decide make sure you practice deployment before you really need it.

That's just my 2CW. Hope some of it helps,
Dale.

 

[tkmcdon]

Some recent threads on this topic for you:
* Is a 45lb wing too big for a single tank?
* Wing lift capacity doubt
* Required buoyancy in wings

The short answer is No... if you weight yourself properly. I dive twin Al 80's with a 32lb wing.


Thanks for the input!! I's very helpful!! :banana:

 

[pittyyofool]

A 34lb wing should be more than enough for most-all recreational diving, unless you like to collect 89lbs of goodies while you are down. but then you should probably be using a lift bag.

ps, 130cf of air weighs about 10.491lbs at about 70F

 

[WD8CDH]

The weight of your air plus the weight of your head is a good minimum.

 

[rstofer]

Without knowing how you dive, nobody can say for sure!

The buoyancy compensator does just that; it compensates for the change in buoyancy caused by a) your tank getting more buoyant as you consume the air or, conversely, the fact that your tank is more negative at the start of the dive and b) your wetsuit getting less buoyant as it is compressed.

For T-shirt diving, it is rare to require any air in the wing if you are properly weighted. The only buoyancy change that occurs is the air consumption and that is kind of small. The only reason to have a wing is to provide flotation at the surface.

Maybe you dive a 7mm wetsuit. If so, perhaps it can lose 20# of buoyancy at 100' and perhaps your tank is 8# more negative at the start of the dive than it will be at the end. If you are weighted perfectly, you will still need 28# of lift in the wing at the beginning of the dive at depth. As you consume the air, you need less from the wing. As you ascend, you also need less. But, of course, the wetsuit doesn't expand as quickly or as much as it compresses.

BTW, does that mean you can be pinned to the bottom by 28# if your wing fails? Yes, it does!

You need to think carefully about the kind of diving you do: cold water, wetsuit, how much lead, tank characteristics. Then get the 'sticky' "Ultimate Wing Lift Calculator" spreadsheet from the Equipment -> BCs and Weight Systems forum.

FWIW, I dive a 7/8mm one piece wetsuit with an HP 100 tank and 20# of lead. So far, a 30# wing has been fine.

Richard

 

[HowardE]

I'm a new diver and have purchased a backplate with a zeagle wing that has 34lb of lift. It seems kind of small to me. I weigh 155lbs and will be using a steal 130. Is my wing too small? If so, what size should I get? Any assistance would be much appreciated. Thanks!

I don't think there is a singles wing on the market that is too small for any single tank on the market, with maybe the exception of the Heiser tanks - which I've yet to see ANYONE use.

Even 20 lbs of lift would be enough for a single 130. In the water... Most steel 130's are less than 12 lbs "negative" - so it would only take 12 lbs of lift to float the tank. Remember that if you're switching from diving an aluminum tank to now a steel 130, and maybe a steel backplate? Whatever weight you were wearing with the aluminum tank... Drop about 7-8 lbs because of the tank, and another 5 if you have a steel plate.