What would you do if your computer died?

[HowardE]

Hypothetically...

You're at a dive resort for a week and you get 5 days of unlimited dives- for you, that's about 5 per day. It's the middle of the 2nd dive and your computer runs out of battery. You surface, slowly and safely with your buddy, with no incident. You're now back at the resort about to have lunch with 2 afternoon dives and a night dive planned...

What do you do? Call the rest of the dive day off? Dive shallow, short dives? Go off your buddy's computer- after all, he was right there with you for the first 2 dives? You have access to a rental computer or you can replace your computer's battery, but either way, the computer you'd wear for the rest of the day doesn't have your residual nitrogen figured in.

My husband and I were discussing this today. Try to be honest with yourself. Imagine you only get maybe one serious dive trip a year. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

I use my backup computer. If for some reason I didn't have it. I would use a dive table.

I don't usually plan dives using tables, even though I do teach tables in open water.

Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Insta-Gator]

If on an extended dive vacation, I'd rent one (after sitting out an extended SI to ensure I'm starting with a base nitrogen level)

 

[AfterDark]

Watch, depth gauge, SPG, tables. A computer? We don't need no stinkin' computer.

 

[Insta-Gator]

Watch, depth gauge, SPG, tables. A computer? We don't need no stinkin' computer.

Agreed, except if your 'puter is dead you don't know how to determine your pressure group. Either way (rent or use tables) a nice long SI would be the wise thing to do, even if you have to reschedule your dives or skip one or two.

 

[HowardE]

Not to start a tables vs computer argument, but why would someone plan on using tables for a dive Vacation? Tables are much more limiting, and on vacation, I want bottom time.

Sitting on the flight to Cozumel...

Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk 2

 

[rhwestfall]

I'd spend the day sight seeing, and finding a place to rent a computer for diving again after 24 hours of SI (depending on previous diving) , or continue to use my tables/wheel based on my logs of the dives previously completed....

If your expectations are more, than your planning and equipment to support that mindset need to be more... (such as a back-up comp). At $199 for a B.U.D., it seems an interesting alternative.

 

[spectrum]

First of all most computers will tilt when the remaining power is not enough to support a dive and thus should not run out of power mid dive. Nevertheless for this discussion assume an outright computer failure. If the first 1.5 dives were modest then I'd conservatively complete the dive following my buddy assuming I had not lost cylinder pressure data through integration. (Just say no to integration.)

Get a new battery and rent a back-up. This way you are back in business and should there a flood or other failure you won't need to be estimating when you nitrogen loading is more significant. Make another shallow dive or 2 but scratch the night dive.

On day 2 be conservative like, a 60 foot maximum depth leaving a margin on your NDL.

While it's never a good plan running parallel to your buddy is another watchdog , just make sure you are diving no deeper/longer. If you follow that rule then 1 computer is as good as 2.

With every minute that passes and dive made the effects of the first 2 dives diminish and by day 3 you are statistically as valid as anyone else. (my guess) Remember that this whole empire is based on estimated behavior with layers of assumptions and safety margins.

If the dive op throws a flag then back tracking to tables should get you back in the water. Let the computers catch up and go from there.

This is vacation, adapt and roll with it.

Pete

 

[SC_Hoaty]

I try to fill out my log ASAP so I would have data for the dives prior to the battery failure. I would get max depth and bottom time (for the dive when the computer died) from my buddy and adjust as needed (was I deeper, or down longer?). Then use the tables to figure residual nitrogen, and plan what dives for the rest of the day so I could have fun, but still have enough SI overnight to start with a new computer the next day.

 

[CamG]

Hypothetically...

You're at a dive resort for a week and you get 5 days of unlimited dives- for you, that's about 5 per day. It's the middle of the 2nd dive and your computer runs out of battery. You surface, slowly and safely with your buddy, with no incident. You're now back at the resort about to have lunch with 2 afternoon dives and a night dive planned...

What do you do? Call the rest of the dive day off? Dive shallow, short dives? Go off your buddy's computer- after all, he was right there with you for the first 2 dives? You have access to a rental computer or you can replace your computer's battery, but either way, the computer you'd wear for the rest of the day doesn't have your residual nitrogen figured in.

My husband and I were discussing this today. Try to be honest with yourself. Imagine you only get maybe one serious dive trip a year. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

Greetings Kryssa very good question that happens.
It is always a good idea to put a new battery in your computer before leaving on a more remote dive vacation or at least have a extra battery.
For many of us we plan our dives with tables then run the plan with the computer as a back up device.
If mid dive the computer decides to glitch then we have backup bottom timers or timing device along with the plan.

Like Spectrum mentioned most comp. have a bailout to get you out of the dive.
However you should always have a plan incase of failure.
You can loose tissue saturation but that is why tables are important and diving very conservatively.

If I was on this dive I would finish the dive conservatively replace the battery in my comp. if available then plan the remaining dives on tables to allow extra conservatism.
This happened to me at Ginnie Springs training we had deco obligations so when I lost my tissue saturation I was very glad to have tables and very clear dive plans.
I realize the different level of diving you are speaking off but the philosophy / thoughts are the same.
Being prepared for failures and have at least a back up timing device with clear dive plans area good ideas for every dive.

No reason to loose all the dives on the trip if no battery is available then rent one but the idea of a backup / table plan is still my practice.
Good luck and good question.

CamG Keep Diving....Keep Training....Keep Learning!

 

[BabyDuck]

keep going using my other computer - redundant diver is redundant...