When to Use Dump Valve

Yeah, um no. I've tried the various dumps on my BCD, it takes a second or two to find them especially when wearing thick gloves, even after doing it multiple times; and they don't operate all that well as compared to a quick tug on the inflator hose. Is it "lazy and ineffective" to use what one is comfortable with and has found to work best?

In your world maybe. Perhaps you should get an older car that has those cranks to roll up the window or pull out an old map rather than use GPS because, well, it's lazy to just press a couple of buttons when there are other ways to do it.

 

seems everyone does it differently here. i exclusively use the corrugated hose, wouldn't say it's lazy and wrong, I feel I have more control over how much air i'm dumping when I use the inflator. i'd argue that if you're "bucking up" to dump air from the rear dump valve you're just as out of trim as you would be tilting head up slightly to dump from the hose..

 

You and me both. Good point about pulling on the hose giving more control, it sure does. I wonder if they sell 'lazy ineffective" diver patches for guys like you and me? We could buy in bulk and distribute them to other divers who use the corrugated hose exclusively to dump their bcds.

 

To be clear, diving is probably the only thing i'm not lazy about

 

if I want to dump gas from the hose I need to get seriously out of trim, much more than just raising my head. Dumping from the back means hardly movement or no trim breaking at all. But I use W/BP and I'am in horizontal trim during the dive. Your mileage may vary. I would nog call using the hose lazy however. Just use what works best for you.

 

Since you are on the Internet, chances of someone calling you wrong are pretty good regardless of any position you take. When I have my arms at my side, it is lazier to use the rear dump 'cause my hand is right by it. As for control, that's a matter of technique and practice, one can throttle the release of air from the dump rather than opening it fully.

The only time that one needs to change the trim to dump air, regardless of end, is when there is little air in the BC anyway. Diving wet in NorCal, I only need that maneuver at the end of the dive, when I'm shallow YMMV.


Bob

 

My Dimension i3 works really well. I just use the up/down lever to control everything

One of the features that drew me to this BCD

• i3 Control System provides easy, one-touch control for inflation and deflation. Eliminates the traditional inflator that dangles at the end of a corrugated hose. i3 is simple and intuitive - just lift up on the lever to inflate and push down on the same lever to dump air. What’s more, when you push the lever down, all the dumps, upper and lower, open at the same time!

I didn't like the hose setup on the rental gear I used on my first couple of pool sessions.

 

When I was using a jacket BCD I only used the inflator hose dump valve by pulling on the corrugated hose and never raised the hose above my head. I found it easier and had no trouble staying in trim while doing it.
The Ghost doesn't have one of these valves, so I mostly use the inflator hose. Like someone above said while in horizontal position I just raise the hose above my head and if it is really necessary I may tilt up a bit, but it's so slight and not a problem to naturally settle back horizontal.

 

Absolutely. Maybe you dive with seahorse trim in which case the kidney dump is useless, but if you are ever head down it is the only one that works and if flat it is less disruptive.

In fact, the tug on the hose type you are talking about is not what I am referring to, specifically I am talking about divers seen perpetually holding up their left arm pressing the inflate or dump buttons and ignoring both the right shoulder dump and the hip/kidney dump.

Your pleading that with thick gloves the dump is harder to find, or less sensitive (than pulling a hose? really?) indicates that you’ve not really made much effort with the alternatives. Honestly, persevere it is worth it and will enhance your control.

 

What's "thick gloves" to you? Most of my diving is in my home waters, and I've used three different types of gloves:
6.5mm three-finger wetgloves
5mm five-finger wetgloves
Drygloves with wool liners.

Yes, it takes me a second or three to find my butt dump if I'm wearing the thick three-fingers. But not much more than if I'm wearing other gloves, or if I'm diving bare-handed in warm-ish water. I slide my hand down my wing until I find the valve, position my index and long finger on each side of the valve and close them to position the line between my fingers. From there, I can either just pull on the line having the plastic "ball" on the end (which I prefer not to remove) stopping the line from sliding between my fingers, or I can involve my thumb as well. And I do it the same way no matter what kind of gloves I'm wearing.

If I'm dumping from my suit and my wing at the same time, I'm usually slightly head-up, so I'll probably use the inflator to dump from my wing. If I'm horizontal, using the butt dump valve may be a better option for me. It all depends on the situation.