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Even
when computers are tested during repairs or calibration they are submerged in
water in a small pressure tank. My old instructor trainer repairs dive equipment
and he said exposure to increased pressure out of water can damage some
computers. Don't know why, pressure is pressure if you ask me. But do you want
to risk it on a $400 dive computer?
Chip
Hi Chuck.
That sounds like a good idea too. But the easiest
thing of all would be to use a non water activating dive computer that would
just read
the air pressure as if it was water
pressure.
Bill.
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, October 28, 2005 6:00
PM
Subject: RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Another
nutcase here.
A
little cleaner setup might be to use an acrylic box that is sealed but
vented to the outside by a couple of tubes. One to bring in the outside
water pressure and one to vent the air out of the box. That way no water is
sloshed aroud in the bucket.
Chip
Right on Paul.
You could put your dive computers into a
small bucket of water inside the dry sub and then the pressure in the
sub
pushing against the water in the bucket
should register the interior pressure and make your dive computers depth
gauge work.
Bill.
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, October 28, 2005
12:41 PM
Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST]
Another nutcase here.
So treat an ambient dry sub like a dive with a big
scooter. I haven't thought much about ambient subs but this has
prompted some rules I might set for myself:
* Be a certified
diver. The education on dive physiology and just general comfort
underwater is crucial.
* Assume you'll be exiting in an
emergency. I'd think entanglement is one of the more likely
accidents, particularly for those of us interested in shipwrecks.
:-) In cold water wear some kind of exposure suit - I can't see
myself wearing my drysuit but at least a thicker wetsuit would
help. Weight belt, mask, survival gear, personal bail out bottle,
maybe a 40cf pony? That could be a lot of gear... but still
less than you'd wear on any normal cold water dive. Store an
ascent line/spool in an exterior compartment. Think what you'll do
on the surface, minus your diesel/electric boat. :-(
* Have
partial droppable ballast - as Rick describes. And it sounds
dangerous to have fully droppable ballast. Right?
* Carry
your dive computers and dive a plan. I've done recreational diving
with tables and with just one computer but would probably spring for a
backup computer of a different model than my primary computer.
Yes, in a dry ambient you'd have to trick them into thinking they were
submerged.
It seems like this being out of the water, even in
a small sub may keep you warmer, and make it easier to manage gear,
particularly breakdowns. You can easily talk to your dive partner
because he's sitting right there behind you. I like it. I
have some of the slowest ears ever for diving and have the hope that
equalizing in air may be easier for me than in water. Also need to
try the ProEar2000 mask or some kind of helmet, which would be much
easier than building a sub to test this idea. :-)
Great
discussions on this list!
Paul
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