While on Vacation, Why don't u like other people changin your tank?

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You know, on our first day at KBR in Lembeh, the hard-working and earnest and well-meaning staff set up my gear totally wrong. I mean, they had the tank on the "diver" side of the backplate, and I looked at the mess and wondered cheerfully how they expected me to put the rig on.

It was no big deal. I took it apart and put it back together correctly, and they watched. They put it together every subsequent day, and never made an error. That doesn't mean I didn't check the cambands, to make sure they were in the right place, and adequately tightened. It doesn't mean I didn't run my head to toe equipment check before diving. But honestly, how much can somebody screw up your gear, that you wouldn't notice?

With technical diving, things really are different. For one thing, the gas you're diving is expensive, and losing any of it is a big deal. For another thing, the stakes are far higher. But even there -- and knowing that tech divers don't allow ANYONE to touch their stuff except them -- assuming no gas loss, how much damage can somebody do that you won't pick up during a diligent check?

It isn't the assembly that we should be intense and anal about. It's the pre-dive check.
 
I prefer, no I demand to setup my gear. Becouse I do not trust anybody, I want my diving to be my diving and if somone would have made an error setting up my gear I just could not forgive myself.

Best regards,
 
As others have noted, there are times when a dive op really needs to be the one to set up the gear. And, with divers who only do a few dives a year, the DMs probably do a much better job than the diver would. (One way I evaluate a potential dive buddy is by watching them assemble their kit).

That said, I like to set up my own gear:
1) I am particular about how my gear is set up. Is the cam band at the right height on the tank (too high and the tank may hit me in the head, too low and it hits you in the but or the tank might slip)? Is the first stage set up as I like it with regard to the swivel and how the hoses lay? Are the hoses routed appropriately? Did the LP inflate hose click all the way on to the inflator? (And add a staged pony...)

2) I know my gear well and I can look for changes every set up. Is a hose looking like it is cracking? Is a strap fraying? Is the velcro getting worn on the weight pouch? Were the cam bands super tight the way I like them?

3) I am responsible for my own gear. I would never delegate that responsibility (although, as TSM noted, that is really more about the check than the set-up).

The OP said that she checks the fittings. And that is good -- but I would also check a few more things.
 
When I was a NOOB I let the DM's set up my gear on the boat... that pretty well ended on Dive 3 of the trip when they put me on a tank with 600 PSI and told me "you are all good to go".

I checked the SPG, 600 PSI... showed it to the DM, and he said "Wow, that would have sucked, wouldn't it?"

Yes, it would have sucked.

At the very least I would have had to climb back on the boat and changed the tank out and wasted 15 minutes when I could have been diving.

My response? "I think I will just take it from here, thanks..."
 
For another thing, the stakes are far higher.

The stakes aren't higher - no matter what your dive profile or methodology are the stakes are the same. Your life is on the line. Perhaps you meant the risks are greater? I agree with the rest of your post.

I prefer to setup my own gear. I enjoy it, and I know it's done right. If the crew starts to change my gear, I politely say "I can handle it". If they continue, I'll simply let them finish and do my usual check to make sure everything is OK. I expect on the next dive that I shouldn't see them at my station. If I do, I'll be more insistent this next time to let me handle my own gear. However, that has never happened.

If it's changed while I'm away from my station (such as when helping my girlfriend with her gear), I'll simply do my pre-dive check as I would any other time and know things are done right. No significant risk posed with this situation.

I dive with a standard jacket-style BC and a AI-wireless computer. The risks associated with damaging my equipment are fairly small and remote so I don't adopt a "don't you dare touch my stuff" approach. There is a risk with trying to lift the rig by the transmitter, but that situation isn't really presented with a tank change on the boat.

For those posting about the dangers of divers traveling around the boat changing their own gear I don't see how that happens. All of the boats I have been on I sit where my tank and gear are. So to change my gear means I'm standing in front of my station. The tank is in a retaining device of some kind so that also serves to keep me steady on the boat as I'm working on my gear. For boats where the tanks are against the side of the boat behind where you sit, I need to stand away from my tank for someone else to change it. So I'm now free-standing during this process which seems more prone to safety issues than doing it myself.

I also have seen a lot of posts about "letting the crew carry around the heavy stuff for me since I'm on vacation" and not setting up your own gear. Those aren't mutually exclusive. I don't see how setting up your own gear prevents the crew from carrying around all the heavy stuff for you. They bring the tanks and you put your reg and BC on it. They carried the heavy stuff and I set my gear up.

For those posting to "let the professionals do it because they're more experienced" should realize this is a very weak argument. Every person must start new before they're a seasoned professional, and I don't have any real way of knowing where on the spectrum the person setting up my gear is. Also, the professionals can become overwhelmed and get rushed servicing a large dive outing thus creating a real risk of making a mistake.
 
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