TERRY'S TIPS
These articles are a compilation which appeared in past newsletters. These hints and tips were meant to help you maintain your gear in top condition at a minimum expense.
Sherwood's first stage dry air bleed system is now even better. A first stage must compensate for the change in ambient pressure as we descend. Most other brands do this by allowing sea water to enter the first stage to sense pressure against a diaphragm or piston. Of course, sea water allowed to dry inside causes damage to the chrome plated parts inside. Sherwood senses the water pressure internally by converting it to air pressure thru the dry air bleed system. A small flow of air (10 cc/minute) is allowed to escape thru a one way valve, effectively transmitting the pressure to the piston. The result is much longer life and a faster acting pressure regulator. Naturally, it is important to have your Sherwood regulator serviced by a qualified service center that knows the intricacies of the 1st stage.
The 1st stage of the new Sherwood Magnum SRB5300 has been redesigned with a downstream sensor, two HP ports, and lower cost for maintenance. Many regulator specifications point out "air flow" levels that are useless during conventional use. A better measure of performance would be intermediate pressure regulation. The SRB5300 is unbeatable in this respect. Because of it's downstream sensing, no matter how much air you remove from the 2nd stage, 1st stage pressure remains constant. This converts to better performance at any level, depth or breathing rate. Along with the 1/2 inch primary hose and newly designed 2nd stage, this is the best regulator for the money on the market I have ever seen.
The Brut, Oasis , Blizzard , and Maximus have also been redesigned to include all the improved features.
In the July issue of Dive Training Magazine is a very detailed description of Rinsing your BC. Considering the investment you made purchasing your BCD, it is worthwhile reading. In a nutshell; rinse the bc inside and out, drain the bladder-if water still tastes salty after ocean diving-rinse again, inspect the bc for wear and tear, and air dry while fully inflated. Do not store it away until completely dry. For most items of scuba gear, salt is a real killer. If you let it dry on your equipment, corrosive or abrasive damage is likely to occur. That's also true for BCs, but they are even more susceptible to damage by chlorine. Most of the materials used in the construction of BC's are fairly resistant to the effects of saltwater. Chlorine pool water, however, will quickly break down rubbers and plastics. Manufacturers recommend rinsing your BC immediately after exiting a pool.
This is a great looking dive watch and digital depth gauge. It is not a decompression computer. It sells locally for $425 or less. We have become a dealer as of DEMA and sell them at discount price of $305. Many of our customers already own this watch so I thought I would share some observations with you.
When flying, take the watch off your wrist. Changes in cabin pressure can fake the watch into thinking it is diving at 6 feet. This will wipe out all your stored data before you get home to download it into your computer. There are two things that happen in the watch when you dive. A pressure sensor detects depth and a small gold dimple on the side detects the presence of water. In a jet plane, descending can simulate depth. Damp skin touching the dimple can simulate water. (Just touch this dimple with a damp finger and you will see the little diver appear.) To avoid this, you can put the watch into a Mason jar, or simply take it off your wrist!
From the Citizen Hyper Aqualand User's Manual, page 14: "When exposed to a sudden pressure change as in the inside of an aeroplane, if the water sensor is touched with a finger or moistened, the watch may change to dive mode. If it changes to dive mode, dry the water sensor, and cancel dive mode by holding down button M (Mode) for more than 2 seconds."
Batteries are starting to wear as these watches age. Do not let the drug store replace your battery. Citizen recommends that you send the watch back to them for battery replacement and testing at a cost of $87. I can replace the battery for $25 and o-ring for a few dollars more.
WHEN TO BUY GEAR Feb 1996
To rent or to own That is the question. At some point, the cost of renting will exceed the cost of owning your own dive equipment. Of course, that point will depend on how much you dive and how well you maintain your equipment.
There are lots of variables, so lets assume that Joe S. Diver dives locally 10 weekends per year. This equates to 40 dives per year. Joe owns most of his personal gear, so he needs to rent only his 2 tanks, BCD, wet suit, and regulator. Using weekend two day rates, it costs $69.00 to rent his gear. In 10 weekends, it will cost $690, and over a 5 year period it will cost $3450.
If Joe would have bought all this gear outright, it would have cost only $1529. Assuming Joe is a Responsible Diver, he has the annual maintenance done. Adding in maintenance costs over 5 years totals $1912. Adding air fills for the 5 year period would total $2476. Joe could have saved $974 if he had bought his gear. He could have also saved hundreds of hours because of the convenience of having the gear on hand and knowing the gear was available, would fit right every time, and being familiar with his own gear would make his diving more enjoyable.
So where is the break even point? How much must you dive in order for it to be cheaper to own your equipment? Well, for Joe S. Diver, it would be 33 weekends over 5 years or the equivalent of only 26 dives per year!
If Joe rented only tanks, the break even point would be slightly higher. This is because the cost to rent tanks is lower and you have to buy airfills for your own tanks. The break even point is 43 weekends over 5 years or 34 dives per year.
Additionally, The BASC gives huge discounts when you buy all your gear at the same time. Joe would have paid $180 less for his gear using this discount.
Of course, your figures may vary. You may do more island diving and less local diving than Joe. This means it would be more economical for you to rent tanks when needed but own the rest of your gear. The BASC always has plenty of equipment to rent. These figures were over a 5 year span. After 5 years, you will probably have to replace your wet suit and maybe BCD. Your tanks and regulator will last much longer, bringing the cost-to-own down even further!
How often should an inspection be done? From my experience, one year is the perfect time period for the inspection cycle. Of course, the best time is during the winter when you are not using it. Unless you're going to Bonaire for a week. Then, one week before is not a good time. Four weeks before is a good time. If you dive master ocean trips every weekend, then 2 or 3 times during the season is a good idea. I encourage anyone to bring in their gear for a test on a tank or free adjustment anytime before a trip.
What all is done to your gear when you drop it off for annual inspection? Besides satisfying the manufacturer's warranty requirements of having your regulator serviced annually, we do much more while it is in the service shop. We clean, lubricate and adjust it to prepare for the coming dive year. We also check for worn parts such as pistons, seats, and o-rings, and check that all parts are working properly. Many times we will find something working incorrectly that was not obvious to the customer. Some parts are routinely replaced at each inspection. We also do the extra things that will help the gear last longer, such as a little silicone grease under the bleed valve, yoke screws and pressure gauge stem threads to prevent corrosion. We also take note and alert the customer of problems he may be causing such as incorrect rinsing or storage of his gear. Depth gauges, timers, and computers are tested upon request.
What is the difference between an inspection and an overhaul? Inspection requires disassembly, cleaning, lubrication, replacement of annual parts, and adjustment of the gear. You may be charged a little extra for an overhaul if additional cleaning or repair is required.
We have never been the type who send out notices that your equipment is due its annual service, although that could change if enough gear owners requested it. Most of our customers automatically bring their gear in on the anniversary of it's purchase. However, if you've forgotten, and you are going to use your gear this spring or are planning a summer trip, please don't wait less than three weeks before hand to have it serviced. Turnaround time varies between one and three weeks. Tank vips take a couple of days and hydros take a minimum of one week.
Why do you have to have your tank VIP'd every year? We are looking for certain problems involving damage to the cylinder. The biggest problem would be moisture and/or salt in the tank. Salt water in a tank could destroy it in a few weeks. We don't actually want to fill a tank that has been damaged or our personal injury could result. We look for cracks, pits, dents, and external problems. The neck threads of aluminum tanks are tested for stress cracks using the Visual Plus eddy current tester. Any tank that has been freshly painted will be questioned about the paint drying techniques. No scuba tank should ever be heated for any reason. We check the valve for operation, leaks, and the burst disk for proper type and size. The cost of repairing a worn valve or replacing an old burst disk is not normally included in the cost of the inspection.
Some manufacturer's have changed from a lifetime warranty to a two year warranty. For a warranty to be valid, the original owner must provide proof of annual service and original purchase. Read the warranty in your owner's manual. There are some exceptions, such as: gauges, hoses, seats, and o-rings which are common overhaul parts. For Scubapro, please bring your green service slips from the previous year when dropping off for service. For Aqualung, please bring your Passport or User Manual.
Several weekends ago, a student, who also happened to be a scout leader, was having a problem with one of our rental compasses. The DM found that the compass always pointed in the wrong direction. He removed the compass from the console and found it worked OK. I found that half of the depth gauges in our rental room had a magnetic charge, 3 of them severe. Brand new units in inventory were also affected. Brand name was irrelevant. To test your depth gauge: remove it from the console. Place it next to your compass and rotate it. If the compass needle moves, your depth gauge has a magnetic charge. To remove the charge, bring it into the BASC and have it degaussed using our degaussing coil.
Some high performance regulators use an oversized exhaust valve for less exhaust effort. This is good, unless the flap becomes tucked under itself, say while you're doing that giant stride off a 6 foot deck. Your first inhale could be a mouthful of water. It doesn't happen very often but is something to be aware of. If it happens, switch to your octopus, clear the exhaust valve using your little finger in thru the exhaust manifold, then switch back. If you can't reach the exhaust valve with your finger, you must abort the dive and repair it back on deck using a small probe.
Check your mouthpiece often for pin holes in the area where it attaches to the reg body. Damage is sometimes caused when the reg snags on the edge of the bench or dive platform. (see DON'T DANGLE)
Steel 80 or 100 cu ft tanks are much less buoyant than aluminum 80's. This allows removing up to 6lbs. of lead from your belt, which may be convenient if using one of the 7mm wetsuits or a drysuit where extra weight would be needed. These tanks are available in high pressure (3500) and low pressure (2400) designs. Over 3500 psi requires a DIN type valve and connector. Steel tanks cost more but are well worth the price when comfort level is compared.
The most common cause of camera floods are elements of dirt and salt water that enter the o-ring gland via the water, and are allowed to dry there. To avoid this problem, never let the camera dry with salt water on it. If no fresh water rinse is available, store it in a ziplock bag or tupperware, or leave it in salt water until you find clean rinse water. Beware of water on some islands that has high calcium content. It does not make very good rinse water, use bottled water instead.
The second most common cause of floods is assembly error while changing film or lense. Avoid doing these on a wet rocking boat. Carefully examine glands & o-rings for contaminants and hair.
If you were to have a flood, TAKE OUT THE BATTERIES, rinse immediately in distilled water, let it dry in sunlight, sent it immediately to be serviced.
If you own a Nikonos V or other camera, be aware that it also requires annual maintenance. The Nikonos IV or V has 20+ o-rings that are not user serviceable. These o-rings are of a softer "dura" than what we use in other scuba gear. The o-rings actually deform or compress over time, requiring replacement of all o-rings every year to 18 months no matter if the camera is used or not.
Your compass at the end of your console is a sensitive instrument along with your gauges. A good knock could take it out of alignment or crack the oil filled module. Don't leave your gauges out in the sun uncovered and keep them tied up while diving. This will also help protect our reefs. A very cheap and effective way to tie up all your hoses is to use 6 - 8" of surgical tubing and 2 wire ties. Make one loop and wire tie it to your BCD. Make the other loop just big enough for the octo mouthpiece or console to fit in. BASC stocks manu unique devices to hold your gear up.
How to rinse the old wetsuit. Salt and pool water can damage the suit if not rinsed out immediately after use. The easiest way to rinse is to spread it out on a deck and spray it thoroughly with a hose. Spray out both the inside and outside, then hang up to dry. An alternate procedure is to fill up the wash basin with luke warm water and hand agitate. You can use a mild soap or wet suit cleaner if required to help kill the odor. We also have several bio odor kill rinses (Sink the Stink). Never put any neoprene wetsuit in the automatic washer or drier as this will damage the suit. It will float to the top during the spin cycle and severely damage it. The heat from a drier will break down the neoprene cells.
If you are using more than 20# on your weight belt, you should be using a metal buckle. We have found that the plastic buckles from all vendors wear out and tend to slip apart with excessive weight on the belt, causing a dangerous rapid ascent condition.
While diving off the coast of Delaware or Ocean City, we sometimes use a guide line or "reel" to find our way back to the anchor line. It is important when diving these waters to always use the anchor line for decent and ascent. Ocean currents can move you way off your target if you try to swim directly to the wreck and cause a dangerous and life threatening free ascent. When you reach the wreck, tie your reel onto the wreck near the boat's hook. This way you will be able to return to the anchor easily and avoid a "free ascent". Never tie a guide line directly to a mooring line because the hook can break loose during the dive. In a situation where the hook cannot be found, the reel can be used as an ascent line although a heavier "upline" would be a better choice. A reel is a must for any wreck penetration.
Dive lights require some care for reliable operation. When changing the batteries, service the o-ring and gland carefully. Be careful not to drop your light. This may put a crack in the bezel which will flood next time the light is used. Remove the batteries during long storage time (over 2 months). Weak batteries can leak or build up pressure of explosive hydrogen gas. Use only alkaline batteries (I prefer Energizer) in non-rechargeable lights. If a light floods, we may be able to save it if you remove the batteries immediately (discard batteries properly) and rinse in fresh water. When traveling, remove batteries or light may overheat and melt if accidentally turned on.
What items have I found to be really useful to have in my dry box? Items
that I have used to save my own or a buddie's dive:
spare fin straps, the kind that snap into the fin buckle
mask strap
silicone grease and a paper towel
o-rings sizes R003, R010, R011, R014
spare seats for Sherwood & US Divers (requires certain skills to
change)
large paperclip
Scubatool and a sharp knife
Sherwood 1st stage tool
pliers
adjustable wrench, as big as you can pack
a couple of wire ties
spare mouth piece
HP hose
gauge to check regulator intermediate pressure
black electrical tape (Judy prefers duct tape)
Many divers suffer from otitis externa, or outer ear infection, I would suggest using a glycerin based ear wash after diving or swimming instead of an alcohol based product. If used regularly, it prevents infection caused by PH imbalance and moisture that is retained in the ear. And you can use as much as you want without fear of causing dryness that alcohol can cause. A few drops in each ear after every swim should do the trick.
Also, avoid putting anything in the ear that can scrape the thin cell layer that normally protects the ear canal. Cotton swabs, fingers, even ear plugs can damage this lining and admit bacteria under the lining. Use only a warm water rinse while bathing to clean the ears, they can take care of themselves if you are worried about wax buildup. The key is keeping everything out of the ear that can push the wax back towards the ear drum.
There is much good diving to be done in our area. We cannot afford to go to NC or FL every weekend. Diving here requires different equipment and technique than diving in warm water. We must wear full 5mm to 7mm wetsuit, hood, boots, and gloves, even in the summertime. Bottom temps at the quarry and offshore are 45F to 55F year round. More weight is needed to offset the additional neoprene. Drysuits with thermal underwear are used even in the heat of summer. We use steel tanks which have more negative buoyancy characteristics and weight integrated BCD's and tank ballast. Always check your buoyancy in a controlled environment before going deep in a quarry or offshore. Always dive with a buddy. Redundant air supply such as a pony bottle or doubles should be used at depths under 100'.
LIVEABOARDS June 1996
Our experience with live aboard dive trips has always been a positive one. Many times we have chosen the obscure place to dive. The undeveloped islands are also the unspoiled islands and have the reefs in the best condition. Tourism and development can adversely effect the very natural wonders that are the attraction. One way to see areas not serviced by dive resorts is to take a live aboard vacation.
A live aboard is a resort on waves. It offers everything a land based resort may offer including good food, fresh air, spectacular diving and quiet solitude. However, some may offer different levels of service, and the price varies accordingly. There may be 6 to 25 guests with 2 to 8 crew. If you really want to dive your fins off, a live aboard is the way to go.
The Peter Hughes Dancer Fleet, Nekton, and the Aggressor Fleets are examples of luxury live aboard dive vacations costing between $1100 and $1500. Their fleets cover the best dive spots of the world. The phrase "spoiled rotten" comes to mind when I recall how we were treated on board the Wave Dancer in Belize. Hot towels after the night dive, hot cookies after the morning dive, 3 good meals per day, every room had it's own shower and head, some had TV's with VCR.
The Blackbeards Cruises are an example of a more economical trip. ($929) They motorsail from Miami to the Bimini islands and sometimes the Berry and Andros islands. They will go to special places if the whole group agrees. This summer, the BASC is chartering one of the boats to go to Cay Sal in the Florida Straits. Cay Sal is a huge plateau between Florida and Cuba owned by Bahamas. There is no development or islands to speak of, but the diving is fantastic. You will share a head with 7 other people, and you get 60 seconds per day under the single fresh water shower on board. Sleeping quarters are small with four to a room. However, the food, diving, and camaraderie was very good and you spend little time in the room.
There are too many other live aboards running to name in this newsletter. But here is some information that will make your voyage more enjoyable.
Some dive schedules are aggressive, but you don't have to do every dive. There's always plenty to see and do. A shore trip is often included to a deserted island to have a look around. I've found that there isn't enough time to "do it all". The live aboard experience has a unique sense of freedom that everyone should try.
John Ware has compiled a series of charts of sea surface temperatures from around the world. Right now most of the data is from the Caribbean, but he also has Austrailia, Galapagos, and the Red Sea. The data is taken from the Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set (COADS). COADS data is derived from engine-inlet temperatures taken from ships of opportunity. The depth at which the temperature is recorded is usually from 25 to 50 feet. Since the upper 150 feet or so of the ocean is well mixed, these temperatures should correspond with temperatures experienced by SCUBA Divers. If you are travelling soon, stop by and look at John's charts or d/l at http://www.brassanchor.com/pdf/seasurfacetemps.pdf
We get many questions concerning health and diving. Most often it takes the advice of a doctor who dives to understand the effects of pressure on the bodies systems. Consult DAN and Diving Medicine Online first for dive medicine questions. Both have an online medical center.
RETURNING RENTAL GEAR
When starting out, you may choose to rent some or all of your gear before buying. Here are some tips to use when returning that gear to the store.
These helpful hints will also apply to your own gear once you buy, so it's a good idea to develope good habits when you start.
MORE ON BUYING GEAR feb 2007
Most important after performance and function is service. Your gear must be inspected, cleaned, and adjusted annually. Where this is done is very important. BASC has over 20 years of experience and the parts and facilities to service all the gear we sell. We cannot, however, supply the same level of service to gear we do not sell. This is because we do not have the parts available to adequately do the job. When buying new gear, it is important that you also take into account where you can get the service done. If it is not convenient to have it done, you are less likely to get it done and subsequent failure will result.
Buying online to save a few bucks is not an advantage if you loose your warranty or get gear which no one will service. A dive computer that fails is completely worthless if bought online because the service level is an exchange for a new one. If not in warranty, you will pay for a new one.
BASC cannot service Aeris, Oceanic, TUSA or Zeagle equipment. If you do not send it back to an authorized dealer, you will loose your warranty. We cannot buy parts for brands for which we are not dealers.
It is important to retain all original receipts, service records and owners manuals for equipment purchased. You may be asked to produce them as proof of purchase in case of a major failure or service parts warranty.
There is no really bad dive gear on the market. But there is bad service. Service should be is a major factor in your decision to purchase gear.
RAY’S REVIEWS—DEEP STOPS FOR DECOMPRESSION SAFETY! 4/10/08
While all divers are at risk for decompression sickness (DCS) due to the increased ambient pressures they experience underwater, recreational SCUBA divers are at highest risk of developing neurological (type II) DCS because of their short ascent times coupled with the fact that central nervous system (CNS) tissue is one of the fastest nitrogen-absorbing tissues in the body. In fact, DAN statistics show that on average, nearly 65% of the DCS incidents reported annually are neurological/type II DCS.
The CNS includes the brain, spinal cord and nerves, and despite the critical role these organs play in our daytoday functioning, it is an unfortunate fact that injuries to the CNS heal very slowly, if at all. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to us as divers to do as much as we can to prevent type II DCS. Fortunately, the same characteristics that make CNS tissue fast-absorbing also allow it to off-gas quickly, so it doesn’t need much time to eliminate absorbed nitrogen.
An important addition to proper dive table and dive computer use is the practice of safety stops. Traditionally, the recommendation has been for the diver to pause for 3 to 5 minutes between 15 and 20 feet before the final ascent to the surface. This time allows for an appreciable amount of the fast tissue (CNS) nitrogen to off-gas, thereby reducing the chance of bubble formation at the end of the dive.
Recent scientific and anecdotal evidence, however, has shown that safety stops can be made even more effective by starting to perform them earlier in the ascent while the diver is still at depth, hence the term “deep stops.” Short stops at deeper depths allow more time for tissue nitrogen to off-gas before most of the ambient water pressure is gone. This appears to reduce the formation of microbubbles which, while generally asymptomatic, have been linked to type II DCS incidents due to their ability to accumulate additional nitrogen over subsequent dives.
The new trend for recreational diving is to make a 1 minute “deep stop” (safety stop) during your ascent at half of your maximum dive depth, followed by a standard stop for 3 to 5 minutes at 15 feet. For example, if you are diving at 100 feet when you begin your ascent to the surface, you should stop at 50 feet for 1 minute before proceeding to 15 feet for 3 to 5 minutes. In practice, dives of 40 feet or shallower do not need a “deep stop” because the standard safety stop depth of 15 feet is in the same depth range as the deep stop would be.
Next time you’re coming up from a dive, stop halfway and take a minute to consider your CNS safety by performing a “deep stop.”
RAY’S REVIEWS—GETTING MORE BANG FOR YOUR DIVE BUCK WITH NITROX 3/08
One of the big attractions of learning to dive is the ability to spend more time underwater, and most of us are trying to spend as much time there as we can in those precious few days per year we can devote to diving. But dive tables (or dive computers) and their no-decompression time limits often prevent us from staying down as long as we’d like. Since this is the case, how would you like to more than double your no-deco time at 60 feet? Diving nitrox can make that happen!
How does this work? No-decompression limits (NDLs) are based on the partial pressure of nitrogen in our breathing gas. Therefore, if we lower the amount of nitrogen in our breathing gas by replacing some of it with oxygen, this will extend our NDL. For example, PADI dive tables allow you to spend 55 minutes at a depth of 60 feet while breathing air. Switching to EAN36 (a nitrox mixture containing 36% oxygen instead of 21% as in air) will extend your NDL at 60 feet to 115 minutes, more than double your maximum dive time on air. And for repetitive dives, this additional available time at depth really adds up!
This benefit makes nitrox certification one of the best investments you can make in diving, right after your initial open water certification and the purchase of a dive computer.
I’ve been a devoted nitrox diver for 12 years now, and one of my favorite dive mottos is, “Friends don’t let friends dive air!”