owlbill
April 21st, 2008, 05:04 PM
The following is taken from the April issue of the Owlmanac (http://thescubaforum.com/showthread.php?p=2595#post2595). Just looking for others thoughts and opinions on this.
Your buddy suddenly turns to you and gives you an Out of Air signal (a nice, calm, well trained buddy apparently). What is your first reaction? Which regulator will you donate? The one in your mouth or the “octopus” or backup regulator clipped to your BC somewhere. I am a subscriber to the “donate your primary regulator” protocol. It is not because I dive mostly with a “tec” configuration with a seven foot hose but because I think it is much faster to react with and you know 100% that that regulator is fully functioning.
Recreational divers who are not diving inside shipwrecks or cave often will not think of the “long hose” option when it comes to setting up their scuba gear. The most common long hose option would be having your primary regulator on a five or seven foot hose (donate this to diver in need of air) and having your backup regulator on a shorter hose, about 22 to 24 inches, hanging around your neck on a “necklace” for you to breathe from when needed. The problem here is many recreational BCs just don’t allow ideal routing of that long hose so it can be kept neat and tidy and yet easily deployed when needed.
Another option, one which I used with my first set of dive gear, is an Alternate Air Source Inflator such as the Scubapro Air 2, the Atomic SS1 or the TUSA Duo-Air. There are others out there on the market, but I named these three as they are very good designs. These devices put your backup regulator (octopus) on your BCs corrugated hose where your power inflator normally sits. Don’t worry; the power inflator is built onto these devices as well. This location is ideal for a backup regulator as it is always (should be always) in front of you and can easily be found without having to look down for it. Now when your buddy comes to you for air, you can very quickly donate your main regulator from your mouth then take your backup into your mouth and then end the dive. A slightly longer hose on the main regulator can be helpful, perhaps around 32 inches or so, but still easy to manage. Another advantage to the alternate air source inflator is that whenever you vent your BC through it, you are helping to keep it clear of debris and ready to be breathed from.
Of course, the choice is entirely yours. I just wanted to share an opinion and an option with you the same way I do with my students. I of course teach them the “standard” method of donating the backup regulator as that is probably still the most common method, and also most common gear configuration for rental equipment. I also show them my Air 2 and how it works so they have better information when looking at purchasing their own gear down the road.
Whichever method or equipment configuration you choose to use, just be sure to practice with it so you are very comfortable when needing to donate a regulator to someone. Practicing many other skills can be very beneficial as well, but I will save that discussion for the next issue.
Your buddy suddenly turns to you and gives you an Out of Air signal (a nice, calm, well trained buddy apparently). What is your first reaction? Which regulator will you donate? The one in your mouth or the “octopus” or backup regulator clipped to your BC somewhere. I am a subscriber to the “donate your primary regulator” protocol. It is not because I dive mostly with a “tec” configuration with a seven foot hose but because I think it is much faster to react with and you know 100% that that regulator is fully functioning.
Recreational divers who are not diving inside shipwrecks or cave often will not think of the “long hose” option when it comes to setting up their scuba gear. The most common long hose option would be having your primary regulator on a five or seven foot hose (donate this to diver in need of air) and having your backup regulator on a shorter hose, about 22 to 24 inches, hanging around your neck on a “necklace” for you to breathe from when needed. The problem here is many recreational BCs just don’t allow ideal routing of that long hose so it can be kept neat and tidy and yet easily deployed when needed.
Another option, one which I used with my first set of dive gear, is an Alternate Air Source Inflator such as the Scubapro Air 2, the Atomic SS1 or the TUSA Duo-Air. There are others out there on the market, but I named these three as they are very good designs. These devices put your backup regulator (octopus) on your BCs corrugated hose where your power inflator normally sits. Don’t worry; the power inflator is built onto these devices as well. This location is ideal for a backup regulator as it is always (should be always) in front of you and can easily be found without having to look down for it. Now when your buddy comes to you for air, you can very quickly donate your main regulator from your mouth then take your backup into your mouth and then end the dive. A slightly longer hose on the main regulator can be helpful, perhaps around 32 inches or so, but still easy to manage. Another advantage to the alternate air source inflator is that whenever you vent your BC through it, you are helping to keep it clear of debris and ready to be breathed from.
Of course, the choice is entirely yours. I just wanted to share an opinion and an option with you the same way I do with my students. I of course teach them the “standard” method of donating the backup regulator as that is probably still the most common method, and also most common gear configuration for rental equipment. I also show them my Air 2 and how it works so they have better information when looking at purchasing their own gear down the road.
Whichever method or equipment configuration you choose to use, just be sure to practice with it so you are very comfortable when needing to donate a regulator to someone. Practicing many other skills can be very beneficial as well, but I will save that discussion for the next issue.