Where Is Your GF?

[rjack321]

I noticed before I switched to a Helium computer that just putting in the O2 content in a Nitrox only Nitek computer came out very close to the tables.

Once I got the Nitek HE, I was shocked at the Helium penalty, an additional 45 minutes on one dive. I actually sent it back thinking it was defective. I got a nice 2 page letter from Lemar explaining the error of my ways. However, I couldn’t use the computer in Helium mode after that because it gave much longer runtimes than the group I was diving with.

That computer is not exactly state of the art. And has an inordinately harsh helium penalty as well. You could always just lie to it like everyone else who owned one in 2008 did.

 

[rsingler]

Perhaps our sister thread on this question would be worth adding to the mix, at the risk of hopelessly muddling the answers:

no matter what GF you actually dive, what is your Surf GF? The question is relevant because of all the answers here that tack on, "Well, I usually pad my last stop", or "I've got the gas, why not look around in the shallows?"

Half of our DCS concern starts with the deep stop argument, but the other half rests with how saturated we are at the surface (or last stop, if that's all you have to measure).

Oops! Another shameless plug for Shearwater.

 

[DeepSeaExplorer]

That computer is not exactly state of the art. And has an inordinately harsh helium penalty as well. You could always just lie to it like everyone else who owned one in 2008 did.

Well, it was state of the art back then. I think it actually spurred many discussions about the importance of deco models because people would buy them for the Helium capability and then be in for a surprise.

If I remember correctly, I still used it in HE mode on smaller dives, with 30/30 or 21/35, especially cave dives where there was no boat waiting, and waiting. But, for deeper dives with 18/45 or 10/70, I put it in gauge mode.