Welcome to Rebreather Word.
Quote: (Originally Posted by
Armson)
Where do I start?
Well, you already did.
You talked with someone actually diving one.
You'll find a few more of them around here.
Best way to proceed in my opinion:
- get Jeff Bozanic's "Mastering Rebreathers"
That will cover all the basic theory of Rebreather diving, different operational designs etc.
- Read the articles in the 'New to Rebreather' section in our library
- Read through our archives, as well as those on other boards (like Scubaboard and The Deco Stop). They've been around longer than we have and thus have some older info, including accidents. In our archives you'll find a lot of good info on accidents and incidents as members have luckily been quite open sharing the experiences.
- Want more accidents, google "Madmole", he has an Inspiration site. With an accident section, needs to be updated, but quite some info there. Also check his survey, it does put some numbers into perspective. Google "Wrolf's Wreck" and "Cautionary Tales". More accident reoports, hasn't been updated in a long time but worth reading if it's still around. One problem with accidents is that reports usually are not very thorough, info hard to come by. Which frequently leaves with more questions than answers.
As for deciding and diving a rebreather, have a look at the dives you do, and the ones you would like to do. No one rebreather does it all very well, so choose the one that fits your needs. If possible do an intro with an instructor, will give you some practicle experience if a rebreather is really something you want to use.
By the way, diving is dangerous.