Scuba Diving

[purbeast]

And now today I have a little bit of an ear infection.  I'm glad this happened today and not with more dives left lol.  It's nothing crazy bad or anything but I avoided putting my head in the water today at the beaches.  

 

Also damn my wetsuit is funky as ****.  I soaked it in some fresh water with dish soap after reading about it so hopefully that removes the stench a bit.  So far it seems like it did but it's still wet.

[purbeast]

Here's a couple videos I pulled off my goPro.  I wish I realized it was in this stupid wide mode prior so I could have changed it.

 

This was our deep dive that's required for the AOW certification.  Note the depth on my dive computer, as well as the max depth we had hit a minute of so earlier.  Also, check out the beach ball the instructor is holding.  It's a full beach ball (at the surface) and look at how flat it is.  Pretty cool to see.  Sorry that the video isn't the best quality either, but that'll get better with experience as I get more comfortable with everything.  After that dive too one of the instructors told us how we were all tired at the end of the dive and its cause our buoyancy was bad, and you could see everyone other than the instructor kicking lol.  It really sticks out in the video.

 

 

The next two were from the fish ID reef dive we did that was like max depth 40ft, again for AOW.  These are two swim throughs we did that I didn't expect to do, and was a little apprehensive about it, but just decided to follow everyone and it was cool doing so.  The first video is longer and towards the end it's a bit dark, but it wasn't really that dark in the swim through, you could alway see pretty well. It's just the lighting from the camera making it look that way.  The second one is shorter and the lighting is a bit better.

 

 

 

[purbeast]

I got a couple more but also thought this one was cool.  This was us approaching the Kittiwake.

 

 

[Skinsfan1311]

21 hours ago, purbeast said:

Here's a couple videos I pulled off my goPro.  I wish I realized it was in this stupid wide mode prior so I could have changed it.

 

This was our deep dive that's required for the AOW certification.  Note the depth on my dive computer, as well as the max depth we had hit a minute of so earlier.  Also, check out the beach ball the instructor is holding.  It's a full beach ball (at the surface) and look at how flat it is.  Pretty cool to see.  Sorry that the video isn't the best quality either, but that'll get better with experience as I get more comfortable with everything.  After that dive too one of the instructors told us how we were all tired at the end of the dive and its cause our buoyancy was bad, and you could see everyone other than the instructor kicking lol.  It really sticks out in the video.

 

 

The next two were from the fish ID reef dive we did that was like max depth 40ft, again for AOW.  These are two swim throughs we did that I didn't expect to do, and was a little apprehensive about it, but just decided to follow everyone and it was cool doing so.  The first video is longer and towards the end it's a bit dark, but it wasn't really that dark in the swim through, you could alway see pretty well. It's just the lighting from the camera making it look that way.  The second one is shorter and the lighting is a bit better.

 

 

 

I love swim throughs!  There's quite a few of them in Grand Cayman.

What are the names of the dive sites? 

 

Don't worry about the buoyancy, that'll come with more dives under your belt.

[purbeast]

45 minutes ago, Skinsfan1311 said:

I love swim throughs!  There's quite a few of them in Grand Cayman.

What are the names of the dive sites? 

 

Don't worry about the buoyancy, that'll come with more dives under your belt.

The deep dive was at Eagle's Nest - West and the reef with those swim throughs was Eden Rock - West.  

 

I'm hoping to dive in the Keys in May over Mother's Day weekend where I can just do some shallow reef dives and work on my buoyancy while there.  I feel that everything clicked on my very last dive and next time I dive I know to start with 6lbs of weight and try it out with that, and hopefully I will continue to improve on it and hopefully perfect it.  It's funny watching the videos I took and seeing the instructors compared to us students lol.

[Skinsfan1311]

On 3/29/2019 at 4:01 PM, purbeast said:

The deep dive was at Eagle's Nest - West and the reef with those swim throughs was Eden Rock - West.  

 

I'm hoping to dive in the Keys in May over Mother's Day weekend where I can just do some shallow reef dives and work on my buoyancy while there.  I feel that everything clicked on my very last dive and next time I dive I know to start with 6lbs of weight and try it out with that, and hopefully I will continue to improve on it and hopefully perfect it.  It's funny watching the videos I took and seeing the instructors compared to us students lol.

Is that the dive center in Georgetown? The one with the big apple in front of the building?

On a cruise, (late 90's, I think),that was me very first dive, after getting certified. I had rental equipment, and my regulator blew up, at the end of the first dive.

We had dove those swim throughs,  which I love.

Fortunately,  it was shortly after I surfaced, when we were back-stroking to the dive center.  Needless to say, I bought my own gear after the cruise.

We've been back, a few times, and stay at the Morritt's, on the East End, and dive with Ocean Frontiers.

There are several great sites with swim throughs,  especially on the East End. 

[Skinsfan1311]

@purbeast

 

The pics aren't the greatest, but you get the idea. 

[Skinsfan1311]

Here's a few from diving the Cenotes, in Riviera Maya. Claustrophobes need not apply! That is an old school Sean Taylor Jersey. It intimidates sharks. 

 

[purbeast]

15 hours ago, Skinsfan1311 said:

Is that the dive center in Georgetown? The one with the big apple in front of the building?

On a cruise, (late 90's, I think),that was me very first dive, after getting certified. I had rental equipment, and my regulator blew up, at the end of the first dive.

We had dove those swim throughs,  which I love.

Fortunately,  it was shortly after I surfaced, when we were back-stroking to the dive center.  Needless to say, I bought my own gear after the cruise.

We've been back, a few times, and stay at the Morritt's, on the East End, and dive with Ocean Frontiers.

There are several great sites with swim throughs,  especially on the East End. 

The dive shop I used is right out of Georgetown.  It was Diver's Down.  They don't have the big apple out there.  I'm not sure which that is but there are a few right there in Georgetown.  Lobster Pot is pretty close to the one I used.  It is right to the left of Rackams.

 

And no thanks to any type of cave diving lol.  I Just don't have interest in that and those cenotes.  That's too freaky for me for now and just not much of interest.  The swim throughs were a little sketch to me but it wasn't that bad.  I did get a little disoriented when we swam through the Kittiwake though.  Since it wasn't upright and we swam in a door and out the smoke stack, it was just a bit disorienting not swimming "up" and kind of zig zagging.  It was a very short swim through though.  And it was darker than I expected.

[purbeast]

I'm a bit cised that I got these in the mail today....

 

[purbeast]

Headed down to the Keys tomorrow and staying in Marathon.  I plan on doing a 2 tank dive Saturday morning as my first "real" dives since getting certified.  I'm a little nervous just because it's not going to be as structured as before, so it should be fun and interesting.

[Skinsfan1311]

10 hours ago, purbeast said:

Headed down to the Keys tomorrow and staying in Marathon.  I plan on doing a 2 tank dive Saturday morning as my first "real" dives since getting certified.  I'm a little nervous just because it's not going to be as structured as before, so it should be fun and interesting.

Relax! 

You'll have a blast. 

[purbeast]

On 5/9/2019 at 7:52 AM, Skinsfan1311 said:

Relax! 

You'll have a blast. 

Yeah I psyched myself out a bit before and was thinking about it even the day before.  But 30 seconds into the dive I felt super comfortable lol.

 

It ended up being me the only diver and like 20+ snorkelers.  But I ended up going down with just a dive master who was super cool.  I explained my situation with him and he was like there is nothing to worry about down here and it was like 30 feet max depth.  We had 2 50 minute dives and I have 900 psi and 1100 psi left my second one. 

 

As soon as we jumped in the first dive we saw like a 6ft reef shark swim by that was cool, but that ended up being the only reef shark we saw in both dives. 

 

We saw a baby goliath grouper, and 2 nurse sharks sleeping, which was really cool.  Saw some cool schools too especially this huge school of these big black and blue parrotfish.  

 

Visibility was kinda weak though, probably 30 feet.  He said that it's just been this way so far this season.  It would have sucked to snorkel though, but at least when diving, once you get down like 10 feet it cleared up a lot more.

 

Great diving and I will look forward to my next ones which will probably be in September down here again with some buddies.

[purbeast]

We ended up snorkeling in Key Largo on our drive back up, and damn, the visibility there was SSSSSOOOOOO much better than down when I dove at Looe Key.  It was like I was snorkeling in Grand Cayman is was ridiculously clearly.  The captain said it was probably 100-120 feet of visibility and some of the best he's ever seen.

[purbeast]

Any of you guys in the DMV area recommend any specific dive shops?  

 

Ever since my recent dives I kind of have the itch to buy my own gear.  I figure even if I use it like 5x a year, after like 5-10 years it will pay for itself plus I will know how everything has been maintained.  

 

I've been doing some research about regulators and the Atomic Z2 is one that seems to be a good "starter" regulator with a lot of positive feedback.

[TheGreatBuzz]

1 hour ago, purbeast said:

 

I've been doing some research about regulators and the Atomic Z2 is one that seems to be a good "starter" regulator with a lot of positive feedback.

In my experience, a basic reg is all most need.  The mouthpiece is where you need to not go cheap.

[Skinsfan1311]

2 hours ago, purbeast said:

Any of you guys in the DMV area recommend any specific dive shops?  

 

Ever since my recent dives I kind of have the itch to buy my own gear.  I figure even if I use it like 5x a year, after like 5-10 years it will pay for itself plus I will know how everything has been maintained.  

 

I've been doing some research about regulators and the Atomic Z2 is one that seems to be a good "starter" regulator with a lot of positive feedback.

Buy online. Cheaper

I will only buy from Scubatoys.com Google them for reviews.

They're great to work with and they stand behind everything that they sell.  Their prices for annual service on regs is very reasonable, and turnaround time is fast.  

I have a Zeagle BC and regs. Not at home now, but I think that they are DS-V regs. They're bullet-proof. 

[thegreaterbuzzette]

On 3/25/2019 at 8:15 PM, purbeast said:

And now today I have a little bit of an ear infection.  I'm glad this happened today and not with more dives left lol.  It's nothing crazy bad or anything but I avoided putting my head in the water today at the beaches.  

 

Also damn my wetsuit is funky as ****.  I soaked it in some fresh water with dish soap after reading about it so hopefully that removes the stench a bit.  So far it seems like it did but it's still wet.

I realize I'm a little late to the party...I suffer swimmers ear and I am an avid diver. After every dive, few drops of alcohol in the ears once your are home and done for the day.  Alcohol evaporates quickly and encourages the water left in your ear to do the same.

[purbeast]

On 5/17/2019 at 6:57 PM, Skinsfan1311 said:

Buy online. Cheaper

I will only buy from Scubatoys.com Google them for reviews.

They're great to work with and they stand behind everything that they sell.  Their prices for annual service on regs is very reasonable, and turnaround time is fast.  

I have a Zeagle BC and regs. Not at home now, but I think that they are DS-V regs. They're bullet-proof. 

Do you have one of the Zeagle travel BC's?  I'm primarily looking at a travel one and noticed they had one that is a back inflate one that seems to be good based on reviews.  So far I've been leaning towards the Cressi Travelight jacket style one but nothing is definite.

 

Anyone taken Nitrox class in the DMV area?  I'm just wondering if you liked it and how much you paid for it.  I think I may take it next month and am shopping around where to take it.  The leading candidate so far is the shop in Gaithersburg, Atlantic Edge, due to primarily the price and fact that I've liked talking with them when I've gone to the shop a few times.  The company I did my OW with is charging like $300 after all fees and Atlantic Edge is only $150, but it requires a bit of time on your own, whereas the company I did OW with it's all in a classroom environment.

[TheGreatBuzz]

18 minutes ago, purbeast said:

Anyone taken Nitrox class in the DMV area?  I'm just wondering if you liked it and how much you paid for it.  I think I may take it next month and am shopping around where to take it.

 

i got mine out in Guam but found that I almost never used it.  It seems like you don't suck down air like a lot of newbies so if you are doing a group dive, you'll most likely have to come up with some newbie before you get the advantage of Nitrox.  The only time that I really found it useful is when we took a trip to Palau and were doing 2-3 dives a day plus partying at night.  But even then, we used it more to help us feel better than for increased bottom time.

[purbeast]

19 minutes ago, TheGreatBuzz said:

 

i got mine out in Guam but found that I almost never used it.  It seems like you don't suck down air like a lot of newbies so if you are doing a group dive, you'll most likely have to come up with some newbie before you get the advantage of Nitrox.  The only time that I really found it useful is when we took a trip to Palau and were doing 2-3 dives a day plus partying at night.  But even then, we used it more to help us feel better than for increased bottom time.

That's interesting.  Most of my dives I'm guessing will be on boats and stuff with others, since it's primarily vacation diving.  I also wanted to do it for continued education, and that seemed like the next logical step.  It's also fairly cheap, but that money could probably be better spent now guying reg or bcd.

[Skinsfan1311]

4 hours ago, purbeast said:

Do you have one of the Zeagle travel BC's?  I'm primarily looking at a travel one and noticed they had one that is a back inflate one that seems to be good based on reviews.  So far I've been leaning towards the Cressi Travelight jacket style one but nothing is definite.

 

Anyone taken Nitrox class in the DMV area?  I'm just wondering if you liked it and how much you paid for it.  I think I may take it next month and am shopping around where to take it.  The leading candidate so far is the shop in Gaithersburg, Atlantic Edge, due to primarily the price and fact that I've liked talking with them when I've gone to the shop a few times.  The company I did my OW with is charging like $300 after all fees and Atlantic Edge is only $150, but it requires a bit of time on your own, whereas the company I did OW with it's all in a classroom environment.

My BC is a Stiletto and it packs nicely.  

I have my Nitrox card, and have used it, if available, especially for multiple days of repetitive diving.

 

One advantage is that your SI is shorter, but it's not much of an advantage if your dive buddy isn't using it too.

 

If you're an "air hog", you should note that Nitrox has no affect on your air consumption. 

You can get longer dive times because you're absorbing less nitrogen, (I won't go into further detail, which would be irresponsible,  I'm not an instructor).

 

 It's all class work, and it's easy, so I would go with whoever is cheaper.  

 

 

3 hours ago, purbeast said:

That's interesting.  Most of my dives I'm guessing will be on boats and stuff with others, since it's primarily vacation diving.  I also wanted to do it for continued education, and that seemed like the next logical step.  It's also fairly cheap, but that money could probably be better spent now guying reg or bcd.

Definitely use the $$  for gear, and get Nitrox certified down the road.

Edited May 21, 2019 by Skinsfan1311

[TheGreatBuzz]

1 hour ago, Skinsfan1311 said:

If you're an "air hog", you should note that Nitrox has no affect on your air consumption. 

While this is correct, it should also be noted that if you are an "air hog" you may find yourself too low on air before reaching the point of getting more bottom time through Nitrox.  That was the point I was trying to make.

[purbeast]

Yeah I know the basics of how Nitrox works just from the OW course so I get the whole "air hog" thing won't change a thing.  If you run out of air before your bottom time limits with normal air, then with Nixtrox you will still run out of air since your bottom time is longer.  I'm working on my breathing and my last dives, while shallow, were pretty long (for me) and I still had quite a bit of air left at the end.

[purbeast]

Went to this store in Rockville to check out some regs and BCD's and they are pretty much just a Scuba Pro dealer.  I really liked chatting with the girl that works there and she was dropping some knowledge on me which was really informational.  I then asked her how do people decide on what to buy without trying them out and she was like 'well that is the thing - you CAN try them out!' and it turns out they rent gear that they sell, and they allow you to try it out at their pool sessions.

 

So most likely next weekend I am going to try out some new gear.  I'm going to try out multiple different regs and I'm going to try out some back inflated BCD's which I've never tried before.  Based on pretty much everyone I've talked to who has been doing SCUBA for a while, they say back is the way to go over jacket style, and the science behind it makes complete sense why.  But it will be very nice to be able to actually FEEL the difference myself and experience it, so then I can make an informed decision.

 

Those of you who have done this for a while - have you tried the back inflated ones?  I'm just curious as to if you have and what your preference is.