i'm doing a scuba diving course in few weeks time. any ideas on safety/survival equipment that is worth carrying?

Woft,<br><br><br>It may be that I am accident prone (ok, I am), but I had so many close calls diving that I finally it gave up. My advice:<br><br>Always, always, always carry a knife. Always. Obvious reasons.<br><br>Have a whistle that works when wet (Fox 40, JetScream, etc...). When you surface far from dive boat and don't feel like swimming to it (or can't), a whistle is far more likely to be heard than your voice. Likewise, some sort of visual signaling device is also a good idea.<br><br>A "Spare Air" is nice to have, but not really neccessary.<br><br>That's all I can think of for now.<br><br>Take care,<br><br>Andy

>>It may be that I am accident prone (ok, I am), but I had so many close calls diving that I finally it gave up.<<<br><br>As one who dives only once in a blue moon, as a tourist, I'd be interested in hearing details.<br><br>I understand the feeling though- I have not personally known anyone well who has died in an automobile. I have known three who have died on motorcycles. It sure looks like fun, but...

I would look into a rescue streamer as discussed in the signalling section. Should you become seperated from your dive boat this will greatly enhance visibility to air units during daylight hours. for twilight or darkness a waterproof flashlight with a directed beam is a fair signalling devise. My use of the strobes only gave me a eye twitch. They are nice if your unconscious. You may elect to make for shore. The surf is actually one of the most dangerous areas of the seas, so a local knowledge of conditions is helpfull. If you make a successfull landfall, a metal match with your knife will provide reliable fire starting,neccessary for signalling and warmth. I doubt Altoid tins are rated for many atmospheres, so Id keep it simple.

<<A "Spare Air" is nice to have, but not really neccessary.>><br><br>forgive my ignorance, but is that a product or a concept? i remember seeing tiny hand-held air cylinders on 'Baywatch' once...

Pick a good knife. Don't settle for a cheap molded rip-offs. Get a good titanium blade with strong straps. I would recommend a knife with blunt tip for safety reasons. Get a good flashlight. I saw people using two flashlight system. One is a very big but powerful wide beam light and second one is a smaller type also powerful but not as wide. I only use a smaller one. It gives me greater chance to go around and doesn't slow me down. Now attach couple of climbing carabiners to you BCU. In high waves or when waiting for your turn to enter the diving platform it's much easier to get attached to the rope thrown from the dive boat. Or if you are just resting next to a buoy and you don't want to drift away or if you want to attach yourself to a buddy in a poor visibility. Get your self couple of glow sticks or a Krill light and also attach it to your BCU. Krill light is better because you can turn it on or off but it requires practice (I flooded mine once). Try sticking to white lights for a true color views underwater. Princeton Tec Aqua Strobe is strobe light, water tight down to 2000 feet. It will blind you underwater but when you surface it's an excellent locator for a night time. For my on-board kit my bag has load of rubber straps for my mask and fins, rubber bands, duct tape, o-ring and sealants, ropes plus set of small wrenches and Swiss Army Multi Tool. Pony bottles are great back up systems but they do cost a lot. But they should NEVER be used or calculated into your diving plans. You should plan such that you still have air left in your tank when you surface and pony tank would be used in emergency situations only. You place pony tank on your BCU around your chest flat usually. My gauges (air, navigation, compass, dive computer) are electronic so I carry a spare battery but I also strap magnetic compass to my wrist just in case. Now all the strobes, hoses and things have a tendency to go into different directions when underwater. Try keeping everything tight and organized. <br><br>But all the about gear (except for pony bottle) will increase your survival chance mostly on the water. Under you are still forced to make sound and reasonable decisions. You have to maintain your equipment and observe all the safety rules. Listen in class and ask questions, go over thing you are unclear about. You will get better with time. Underwater your life depends on your gear so take care of it. And be friendly and cautious of other divers and aware of your surroundings... Never had a bad experience when diving and that's probably because it is the only thing in my life that I did by the numbers. I never tried to skip a step. As you get more experienced you will see you can push yourself little further and go places where you couldn't at the beginning.<br>

Yes, it's a product, and yes, that's what you've seen on Baywatch.

I can't help thinking about the Leatherman ad/survival story about the diver who was descending a line from a bouy to a wreck and his hand became impaled on a very large fish hook that was stuck in the line. The barb had him trapped there, but he used his leatherman to cut the hook in half to free himself.<br><br>I think I'd want a leatherman with me, maybe in a water-proof enclosure to minimize the maintenance needed to prevent rusting. I also like the idea of a whistle, compass, flashlight and fire as a "bare minimum" starting point. Next I would consider a signal mirror for daytime signalling.<br><br>And the suggestion of carabiners makes a lot of sense, not so much as survival gear, but just part of your general equipment (for the reasons given) along with some cord.<br>

Woft,<br><br><br>Yeah, tiny cylinder of air with an integrated regulator/mouthpiece. A web search should turn up about 6 zillion scuba sites that sell them.<br><br>Andy

Mr. Polak187 pritty much has it. In my "Topside Kit" I have fresh water. A basic First Aid kit with tweezers, antihistimine, possibly anti-sea sickness medication (I have never needed any).<br><br>I second and third duct tape and a good knife. If you dive in kelp (like we do in California) be carefull about equipment that can get caught an fowled.<br><br>larry<br>

Storm Whistle<br>Rescue Reflectors or Ultimate Survival Signal Mirror<br>Rescue Laser Flare<br><br>

Presumed,<br><br>Man I don't know....most of my close calls while diving were either so easily prevented as to make me look VERY stupid, or are so far-fetched sounding that you wouldn't believe them.<br><br>For instance: 1991. 18 years old. In the Navy. Diving for conch in Puerto Rico. I found one, alerted my dive buddy who was about ten feet above me. He angled straight down toward me. The strap on his BC that holds the tank on let go, and came straight down. At me. It took his octopus with it and hit me in the head. This took off my mask, broke my mouthpiece (and two teeth). Dive buddy made emergency ascent, not bothering to check on me. The hose that I had been breathing through started free-flowing, and I had been low on air to begin with. The conch I had grabbed started sticking me with it's claw thingy (not painfull, but alarming). It finally occured to me to let the conch go. I got one more breath off of my secondary (spare? occo? I don't remember) before I ran out out of air in my tank. I got the mask back on, cleared it (sort of...nose was bleeding too) and grabbed my buddies tank and started breathing off of it. Made it to surface. Smacked buddy, told him we were trading gear and started swimming to shore. I had his gear sold before he made it back in. That was the last time I scuba dived. <br><br>That isn't even the worst story I have.<br><br>Take care,<br><br>Andy

Hmmm... First, I don't dive- I don't even like to swim. Kinda funny for a guy who just found out he likes boating. So here are a few ideas that my (hopefully not too ignorant) brain spotted missing:<br><br>Pliers: I saw the mention of a leatherman, but I don't know. I think I'd want to have a pair of short needlenose w/ wire cutters that I can slip into a secure pouch, maybe attached to my knife. For one simple reason- I can open my Leatehrman one handed on land, but underwater, I think I'd want to know I don't have to fiddle with opening it. <br><br>Other than that, I can't think of anything to add.

Ouch. Sorry.<br><br>My interest is usually in learning from other's mistakes... not sure there's any mistake here to learn from, just rotten luck.<br><br>So far, my limited diving (all in Bermuda, not counting snorkling) has been a lot of fun, but it's too high-maintenance for me as a hobby. I tend to cyclle through interests in a period of years, and diving in the US seems to be the sort of thing that's difficult to put away for years and come back to.

nt

What type of store (diving, sporting, hunting etc) sells flares?

Try sailing shops - 99,99% chance they will have some. However, sea flares, with all the certifications, etc., tend to be quite expensive.

Hmmmm... One company that makes flares is Orion. They can be bought online from WestMarine stores but I don't know to what degree are they water/pressure proof. Of course they have to be water resistant and Coast Guard approved but that also means that any boat bigger than a kayak should have a full range of signaling devices. <br><br>Now movies such as teh Abbys and Thunderbolt (with 007) feature underwater flares that are pressure and water proof but my reaserch returned only flares that are good down to 12-15 feet. This is an article about it as well as last time poeple heard from them:<br><br>http://www.boatingoz.com.au/news000714.htm<br><br>Ignoring all that and assuming that you find one I think that there may be a possible safety issue while trying to transport flares on board of the plane. After all 12 gauge flares are or can be considered a weapon and regular launching flares still are a projectile. But that's my 2 cents. Get an Aqua Strobe it will do the job. Plus the minute you start adding more and more stuff to take with you underwater more uncomfortable you become. It's not like you can take a backpack with you. Everything has to go into your BCU which really is not the roomiest thing in the world.

Living on the coast of North Carolina, in one of the best dive sites in the world (so say the readers of Rodales year after year) and an active and experienced diver, I have a few comments.<br><br>First and foremost, a companion that dives with you may be a friend or buddy, but the only person that you can rely on in an emergency is yourself. PERIOD. The most important thing to do is to have redundent systems for doing anything critical, such as breathing, ascending safely, and keeping track of your dive profile.<br><br>I never dive without a pony bottle (30 cu ft), a lift bag, wreck reel, two knives, a second computer, whistle, a mk 13 mod o flare, and a set of dive tables .<br><br>All of my diving is in water greater than 80 feet in the open ocean from a boat. The pony is an alternate air source that will get me back to the anchor line and the surface without a concern.<br><br>The wreck reel and lift bag will get me back to the surface, allowing me to do a decompression or safety stop, tethered to the bottom without drifting far from the boat and safety.<br><br>Two knives are important. Unlike Mike Nelson, I have yet to be in an underwater knife fight. In fact, I have only used my knife for cutting once underwater. I use a leg mounted knife for prying "things" loose. I have a second small and sharp knife mounted on my chest strap for real cutting and entanglement.<br><br>I never get in the water without a backup method of keeping track of the dive time and depth and any decompression penalty that I may accumulate.<br><br>For suface signalling, I keep a "sausage" and a whistle on my BC Vest. <br><br>In my opinion, a leatherman type tool is not appropriate, as they will rust solid. Also, NEVER put a "suicide clip" on anything.<br><br>Just some observations after investigating a dozen diving fatalities and treating about 100 divers with DCS.<br><br>Obviously, for a quarry, lake, or shore diver, the requirements will be different

Beachdoc<br><br>Sausage?<br>Suicide clip?<br><br>I havn't started my course yet, but i've read the NAUI book, so i only kinda know whats going on.

A sausage is an inflatable tube that is maybe 3-4" in diameter and 48" long or so. They are brightly colored and can help you be seen over the crest of waves that would conceal your head. You would be astounded to see how hard to find a head is in the ocean.<br><br>Suicide clips are metal snap clips that require no more than pressure on the gate to "snap" the clip to a line. They are often used by divers to attach goody bags, lights, etc to their BC. The drawback is that you can get caught by fishing lines, wires, and cables and find it difficult to get loose.<br><br>Best choice is to not have things hanging from you that can become entangled on wreckage or other items on the bottom.<br><br>Have fun!!

It may be that it's been a while since I've done any diving (problem with equalizing my left ear!) or it could be a "canadian-ism", but I know spare air as "pony-bottles" and I am pretty sure it is what you are thinking about. They are handheld compressed air cylinders with the reg attached pretty much right to the bottle and attaches to your rig somewhere for emergency ascents.<br><br>Iron

I was wondering if anyone in here knew where to get the same type flares that are in the SAS Survival Guide. This looks like a very compact set-up, and would be easy to carry anywhere, even in a small emergency kit. Thanks!<br><br>John McIntire

Pony Bottles are pretty much the same idea as "Spare Air" or bailout bottles, but the Ponys are in the size range of 13 to 40 cubic feet of air and accept a standard SCUBA regulator. Bailout bottles are in the size range of 1.2 to 3 cubic feet of air, so it is a more compact, but less enduring supply of air.

It obviously depends on your rate of breathing, so i don't know if this can be answered, but:<br><br>How many breathes/much time can you get out of a certain amount air (cubic meters/feet, bars, etc)?

Number of breaths per cubic foot varies with depth. Consumption rate varies with stress and exertion level. It would be a complicated formula, but maybe it could be searched up on the internet if you were that interested. Some SCUBA divers calculate their average consumption rates in the 0.5 to 0.75 cubic feet per minute rate range and under stress, it could be 3 or 4 times that much.<br><br>As a rule of thumb, the spare air would probably not last much more than a minute or two at shallow depths. May not last even long enough to get to the surface from great depths (say 60+ feet) at safe ascent rates. But that minute or two could be the margin you would need to exit a submerged car or aircraft. I would consider it a very temporary air supply. <br><br>Pony bottles can provide a scuba diver with the ability to ascend from depth with a greater margin of safety.

You could put your PSK in an Otterbox model 1000. It has almost as much interior space as an altoids tin but is rated waterproof to 110 feet. It's very beefy for the price. May help if you make landfall. PIC

John,

The flares shown in the SAS Survival Guide are standard British Military issue. They are made by a company called Pains-Wessex. They produce a civilian version called the MIniflare 3. You will not be able to get people to ship these to you by mail generally, so you need a boat yard to visit. Some mountain shops sell them. They cost about £25 GB pounds. Try this website for details:
http://www.lifesupportintl.com/miniflare3SignalKit.htm
Several issues:
a. The flare doesn't burn long or fly very high (about 200 feet)
b. Relatively short shelf life, check out the expiry date before buying.
c. You'll generally only get red flares, although for the military there are white and green as well.
On a positive note:
a. they are reliable
b. easy to use
c. very compact

Hope this helps.

some knife considerations...
The blunt point is not for safety, but strength. One seems to do a LOT of prying with it. The blunt end works much better than any pointy kniife.

I prefer a double edged knife, one being serrated. Much of what you cut will be very fiberous. Old anchor lines, stringy matted vines that want to keep you down, things like that. The serrations make a big difference. The other edge, the normal smooth edge. for normal cutting.

Don't carry a shiny knife (or anything else shiny either) as many BIG fish will mistake it for a flashing small (food) fish. And their aim seems to be rather like a shotgun. They go after the flash and get your arm.

Strap it to your body. Not on your tank rig. You may entangle the tank rig and have to remove it. There goes your knife. I like it on my leg (inside left calf, I am left handed), but that is a personal choice. The thing is to make sure it can not catch the above mentioned vines or anchor rope. It can be like wearing a grapling hook on your leg if done wrong. And when it is afoul of weeds, you won't be able to un-sheath it to cut the weeds (catch 22?)

I did a lot of diving until a motorcycle accident (skull fracture) made diving impossible. Sure I had a few close calls diving, just as I have had close calls driving. But I sure miss diving. the best advice was given above. Do it by the numbers and pay attention to your instructors. It is not any more dangerous than many of the other things we do every day, but the environment is totally different and it takes awhile to become as knowledgable of the undersea world. Yep.. I sure miss it.

I haven't had time to review this whole thread since it was started a while ago. But I'm a wreck diver in the NE and spend most of my time on a boat this is what I carry while diving:

1.) Serated sheepfoot knife (UK Remora) in a sheath mounted on my harness waist strap
2.) EMT Shears mounted in a sheath next to the knife
3.) Wreck reel (Halcyon) w/ 400' of line
4.) Safty Spool w/ 250' of line clipped off in drysuit pocket
5.) 100 lb yellow lift bag/surface maker (Carter) (it looks like a big safty sausage it's about 10' tall)
6.) Back Up tables in wetnotes
7.) Storm Whistle cliped off in dry suit pocket
8.) Stainless Steel signal mirror clipped off in drysuit pocket
9.) 2 backup twist on lights w/ focusable lenses
10.) Compass w/ bezel
11.) All the normal scuba equipement plus what ever is needed for this particular dive.
12.) A GOOD BUDDY!

I would consider flares and marker dye if I was way offshore we dive a few wrecks which are 50+ miles out but flares and dye have limited value.

As for the "Spare Air" it's not a total waste of money but close <img src="images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> - in the area I dive in we've nick named it "3 breaths 'till death". I'm not totally dismissing this a usefull piece of equipement but a pony tank setup or a set of doubles will give you a real back up instead of something that looks good.

You could carry other equipement but if you use a dependable dive boat for your trips EPIRB's and personal life rafts should not be needed. If your past due the boat should preform a search for you.

So how was your class?

You should visit this link, as it shows the basic scuba gear needed.

http://www.wkpp.org/articles/Gear/gearlist.htm

Thanks to all who posted.

adam

The openwater 1 course was great! lot of fun, and i've now got many new toys to play with! I Started my advanced course about 2 months ago, but my instructer has had an operation, and has been out of diving for a while. When she's better (and after my schools exams), i'll do about 2 months worth of catchup dives <img src="images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Well good luck to you and remeber there is no subsitute for experience. Take as many classes as you can and dive as often as you can.

Hey folks, you can checkout what 'Spare Air' is at www.spareair.com
I for one find them EXTREMELY comforting to have aboard our submarines! Oh, I forgot to mention a few months back when I logged on here, that I'm in the Mini-submarine building business <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Yes, REAL submarines, ambient pressure vessels to tthose of you who are engineer types <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> check us out at www.caribsub.com, now THAT's a survival vehicle!! If no one can find you how can they steal your survival rations/gear? LOL! In from the woods, working WAY too hard, for too little money! Gene