Why jump in the water and then float around?

[DiverBeth]

Wow another thread where there is a difference of opinion. I belong to the camp that beleives in doing what works best for you considering the conditions. I've dived where there is a current and 5 ft. waves. I didn't wait on the surface but then nobody did we grouped on the anchor line. I've also waited on the surface for my buddy/group when the surface has been calm and had turtles and barracda come and check me out.

I'm not going to worry about everyone else. Before I jump in my buddy and I have already decided if we're meeting on the surface or down below. It's worked well so far.

 

[1_T_Submariner]

Plan the dive then dive the plan....I know this has been said many times but, if you and your buddy want to enter and descend without waiting then great just make sure the capt and/or DM know you are doing that so you don't get rescued. Other divers on the surface should not bother you if they are in the way just ask them to move.

 

[Tom Winters]

Let me clarify something here. If divers are skilled and know what they're doing on a dead calm day, go ahead and schmooze on the surface all you want if there's no current.
There were too many times where I had to jump in and swim down numbskulls who messed around on the surface forever with their gear, couldn't grasp the concept of grabbing the drift line, and wound up too far for them to swim back to the anchor line. Since I couldn't untie the boat, I'd have to swim them down and drag them back to the boat.
On a crowded dive boat, you go messing around on the surface and sooner or later, you're going to have another diver roll on you.
It never happened on any of my boats, but as a civilian on other commercial ops, I have seen it, and it ain't purty.

 

[Charlie99]

I had adjusted the angle on my inflator hose on the wing. I thought I had properly tightened it. I jumped in, tried to pop a bit of air into the wing...nothing, turned out it had cross threaded and wouldn't seal. Had I not tried it out and just done a hot entry, I would have had to at least dump weights to get back to the surface, as it was I was struggling to stay up until I could grab the boat and get someone to look at it.

So how many cubic feet of air were carrying that you were so negatively buoyant that staying on the surface was a struggle?

Unless you are overweighted, the only thing you need to be supporting is the weight of your gas --- about 6 pounds for every 80 cubic feet.

 

[Sideband]

Come on up to Lake Michigan and do a decent without working your way to the down line at the bow of the boat. Those of us that spent time on the surface to get to the down line will tell you all about the wreck you missed completely because the current didn't stop at 10' and surface vis was less than the beam of the boat.

 

[mikerault]

"So how many cubic feet of air were carrying that you were so negatively buoyant that staying on the surface was a struggle?"

This was my first dive with a wetsuit after a winter season with a drysuit. I used my dive log but I was using a aluminum verses ss backplate, single verses doubles and a SS STA. I made my best guess and was a bit overweighted, but not enough I couldn't fin and stay on the surface. But what would have happened had I gone to greater than 20-30 feet and loss the wet suit bouyancy?

Mike

 

[RadRob]

I like to go out on boats that have an upper sun deck. Then I can jump off the top and I am instantly at 15 feet and counting. If I have any problems, I can handle them when I get to the bottom where I sit down in the muck and kick silt up for the rest of the group. While I am sitting there, I use my rambo knife to dig up coral, swing at animals, whatever I can find to use my knife on. Last one down is a rotten gull egg!

 

[Nemrod]

Let me clarify something here. If divers are skilled and know what they're doing on a dead calm day, go ahead and schmooze on the surface all you want if there's no current.
There were too many times where I had to jump in and swim down numbskulls who messed around on the surface forever with their gear, couldn't grasp the concept of grabbing the drift line, and wound up too far for them to swim back to the anchor line. Since I couldn't untie the boat, I'd have to swim them down and drag them back to the boat.
On a crowded dive boat, you go messing around on the surface and sooner or later, you're going to have another diver roll on you.
It never happened on any of my boats, but as a civilian on other commercial ops, I have seen it, and it ain't purty.

Again words of wisdom from a wise man. Obviously nobody is saying always do it this way, the dive plan should meet the needs of the dive, occasionally hanging on the surface is no big deal and even serves for some fun time, just as often it winds being a dive killer. Experienced divers adjust, inexperienced divers force fit their PadI rule book dive template to every dive often with bad results. Anyways, see you on the anchor line.

N

 

[bigfrog23]

it real doesn't matter how you get in the water as long as you do it safely note the great form my frind has on his front role; trained professional do not attempt
p.s. this type of entry also keeps the sharks away

 

[Abbo]

Sometimes I'm on a business trip and have a chance to dive, but the only boats going anywhere are cattle boats. You're asked to all meet up at the surface before descending. OK, everyone's here: what are we waiting for? Then the dive leader starts giving a briefing again on the surface! Then someone says that they're feeling sick and want to get back on the boat, so you all wait for them to be loaded back on the boat. That's the kind of trip I hate!

There are certainly times when there are large waves or there's a strong current: then it makes sense to spend the minimum time possible on the surface. As long as conditions permit, I, for one, like to do a bubble check or s-drill at 5m. If I'm on rebreather, I like to spike my cells to ensure they are not current-limited. There are too many cases of people not putting air into their wings before splashing and not being able to control their descents. This is particularly a problem with people using doubles or rebreathers, where there they usually don't have weight belts they can drop. Plenty of people have died from splashing in deep water and not being able to slow their descents. I also remember on pair in Guam who failed to slow their descents and landed at speed in thick mud at 40-50m - up to their knees. Then they couldn't get themselves out of the mud! Fortunately, there was a third man to help them out who was more controlled on the descent, though he was laughing fit to bust!