Are Rebreather's a waste for sport depth limits?

abowie

My personal view? I would not personally use a CCR regularly to do 20m dives.

RBs are much more complex devices with more potential failure paths than OC.

They are more difficult to set up (I have an SK; it is a LOT more complex to set up than single tank OC) and more frequently cause you to miss a dive through failure.

I see the true advantages (gas duration and efficient deco) of RBs starting to kick in under about 60m, and increasing asymptotically the deeper you go. Steve et al did a 20 min 130m dive on a new wreck on Monday. The logistics of doing that dive on OC in open ocean water looks pretty horrible. To oversimplify it perhaps, if you need to use helium you should consider using a Rebreather too.

My Rebreather diving friends all have different views though. Dave T likes his SK because it is silent and warms him up. Dave H likes it because he's been bent twice and feels more confident with the deco advantages of CCR. Both do predominately "recreational" depth diving. Chriso just hates OC; he'd dive his Prism in the bathtub.

Horses for courses, I say.

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Andrew Bowie

Rebreather-friendly Buddy

kpalas

Thanks everyone for your insight, especially "Gillenvy". I know there are alot of variables in making a decision, and I was just interested in what experienced Rebreather's divers had to say about this. My wife and I currently dive with Aga full face masks w/comms, which we love except for one thing: we burn through alot more gas and have to end our dive not because we are tired or close to deco limits, we are out of air! I did think about doubles, but my back, too, is a consideration. I have had lower back pain for a while and I am only getting older. Plus, I am somewhat of a gear geek, so I don't think the pre and post dive checks would bother me so much. I will say, however, that my wife has no desire to go to a rebreather, at least not now. She just wants to get in the water with as little fuss as possible. So if I went the RB route, I would have to find other RB divers in my area (Sacramento, Ca.) until she saw the advantages of the RB first hand. Anyway, just wanted to get some opinions and create a conversation! Thanks again to all.

dteubner

This is why I use a CCR even on 5m dives. This is not a picture I could have taken open circuit.



Dave T

kpalas

[quote=dteubner]This is why I use a CCR even on 5m dives. This is not a picture I could have taken open circuit.

kpalas

Sweet pic! I am just getting into underwater digital photography and is one of the reasons I'm considering a rebreather. Thanks for sharing.

cameron

When I got into RBs, the simple dives in the rec range became a whole new experience. I havn't really dove OC for fun since I got the unit and don't think I ever will again. I am glad I made the shift, and I don't venture below 140...yet

KISS 124

Drmike

IMO certainly yes, unless we are talking overheads.

Throw a twin set of air on your back and jump in.

Heck of a lot safer/cheaper/easier/less complicated/less task loading than a Rebreather for 130ft OW non deco dives!

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Cave diving is a sport
Wreck diving is a sport
Diving in general is a sport

'Rebreather diving' is not a sport
its the delusional obsession with a highly dangerous and often inappropriate piece of equipment

RonMicjan

I just love the silence of the CCR, I would not go back to OC and now that I have the FFM, I dont even have to go OC for salvage and Public safety diving. Dave and I did our Intro to Cave on Oc last january and I couldnt believe how much louder OC is. Gives me a headache just thinking about it. When diving ccr, you are much more a part of the environment, rather than an unwelcome visitor. I can literally watch critters scramble for cover when OC divers come around. In Cayman, I hung a couple feet over a cleaning station for about 5 minutes, watching a fish get a manicure, I think the cleaners were ready to have a go at me next...

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Ron
"Life is pain princess, anyone who tells you different, is selling something", The Dread Pirate Wesley.


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Andy Del

Swings and roundabouts.

I mostly look on a CCR at any depth as a positive thing. Shallow it's just quieter, more fish life, and the ability to do the dive to my satisfaction, not some tank's capacity. If I get the $hits with the dive, I can can it and use the sorb and gas another time. Deep, I still have to carry bailout/deco gas like on OC, however, there is a new element: time. I have time to work something out, to have a good look see at the new bit of the wreck / fish / interesting nudi, etc.

The negatives are there in set up, complexity and failure. Setup now takes about 25 minutes, unless there's an issue I catch and need to resolve. Complexity of the unit is taken care of through a mix of careful preparation (25 minutes) and firmly established dive procedures, like when the mask goes on, when I start my pre-breathe, etc. Failure... hmm... with the exception of an issue on setup, my CK has not failed, ever. I have had one display leak a little at depth and that was resolved by a 45 minute repair the next day. No recurrance...

For simple diving when away diving pretty reefs, for example in Vanuatu, OC is fine. But, I'm limited by the gas in ther tank, other divers gas, and that does give me the irrits a bit at times.

In the end, I just take it as it comes and have a good time underwater, OC or CCR, I just prefer CCR...

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Yellow - the colour of greatness!

Mark Chase

What he said,

I have twin 7s for max 30m diving and I feel like I am swimming naked when i dive them compared the the clutter and hassle and bulk of a CCR.

I dive twin 7s on shallow no deco dives and have built in redundancy but on a CCR I would always have to carry a separate bailout stage.

A 20m OC dive is a bimble (for an experienced diver) A 20m CCR dive is a serious event demanding the same levels of preparation and discipline as much deeper dives.

CCR is in its element deep. 50-60m+ it starts to become the safer way to dive. Shallower than that there has to be a good reason to take on board the added risks. That could be photography, video, local gas logistics, temperature of the water, penetrating etc. For me if i was doing a 10m deep dive 2000m into a cave Id prefer to be on CCR than OC, or a 30m dive 200m inside a collapsing shipwreck.

In the end not every one can afford to switch between systems and not every one does so much diving in a year that they can do so without loosing valuable experience on the CCR. However if you are never doing those sort of dives you have to balance the simplicity and safety of OC against the complexity and risk of CCR.

ATB

Mark Chase

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I took my unit to the dive shop and demanded they bolt on every thing that would fit.

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