Printable View
Did a dive on 21/30 to Henley's Castle. There was virtually no flow but some say it is syphoning. This was my first Trimix dive and I found it interesting to actually enjoy The Castle. Run time was 87 min Vis 30-40 ft.
They say it was better last week but still it was really cool.
Curt
Curt:
That's a LOT of helium for a 170' - 180' dive. A 21/25 mix would've more than sufficed. It's also cheaper in cost and quicker to mix, especially if you're getting your Trimix fills at "Cave Excursions East".
The more helium the better, why are you questioning a man about his mix when it is on the side of safety. an end of 100ft is the deepest I want to have.Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptainSpeleo
Quote:
Originally Posted by Caver95
wussy
And on top of what Caver95 said, it's not easier to mix.Quote:
Originally Posted by Caver95
21/30 works for me...but I'm a self proclaimed nitrogen whimp.Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptainSpeleo
muzz:
It's easier for CEE because they already have 10/50 and EANx 32 pre-mixed in their banks. It's just a matter of filling half with 10/50 and half with EANx 32 to create a 21/25 mix.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
mmcauliffe:
I prefer more oxygen and less helium and prefer to do a 150' - 180' profile with a 23/12 mix, but I use a 21/25 mix because that's what's available to me to use.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ya that is easy, I use another method. I put the he in first then top off with 32%. It works with 18/40, 15/55 and 10/50%. I'm suprise CE doesn't use that method since they bank so much 32.Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptainSpeleo
Real men dive that just on air.
John:
Up until 1996 when I got IANTD Trimix-certified, I was diving every where(Eagles Nest, Ward Sink, Arch Sink, 40 Fathom Grotto, etc.) on Air. I was doing so much of it that I had a pretty good narcosis tolerance below 200'. Those days are long gone. I'm older and smarter now. Any dive below 160' - 180', I get off Nitrox and use Trimix.
Frank
It is easy to state that you can develop a narcosis tolerance. That may be when all is well and all you have to do is maintain your buoyancy, frog kick and remember which way is out. What about when the sheet hits the fan? Your brain processing skills are already significantly reduced at those depths on air and sharing air, gas loss management, searching for lost or broken line in reduced viz or towing/being towed would send that developed tolerance right out of the cave.
It is similar to the person who says they can drive drunk because they have a developed tolerance. Meaning they can stay on the road and not run into the car in front of them. When those signal processing skills are needed they won't be there.
These are just my opinions.
I have had to bail out another diver below 200' on Air on more than one occasion.
Like I already said, I'm older and smarter now. I haven't used anything other than Nitrox or Trimix for ANY dive in several years.
Enough said about that.
It is amazing just how much stress and task loading can add to that equation. After doing a number of dives to 175 while spearfishing, with no problems, I found myself narced big time at 150 during a class. The more I tried to figure out what the instructor was signaling me about, the worse it got. I had some congestion that had caused me problems clearing that weekend which may have added to it as well. Bottom line is every dive is different.Quote:
Originally Posted by OutlawCaver
Hey Knuckle Heads!!! ( I mean that in the most loving way)
Rennekar banks 21/30 (duh). A lot faster and easier than working up a mix. If you work it right, a backfill later with air will still get you some benefit from the remaining helium plus two dives for a little less $$$.
8)
I thought that was the case I Pm'd Speloe that since they have it as a set price item at .25 per foot on the computer.
Thanks, Angie. I wasn't aware that Bill was pre-mixing 21/30.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DeWayne, my Air narcosis tolerance varied, depending on the visibility. I've been narked in murky water at less than 150', and I've been pretty clear-headed in clear water at more than 250'. Some days were better than others.
I remember making a wall dive in 1990 at Andros Island to 270' and getting narked, then doing another wall dive the next day to 281' and being clear-headed. Those days are gone forever for me.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hahahahahahaha. Wow! I start feeling drunk at 90' (1 martini). By 100-110' I start losing short term memory. I 'don't remember nuthin' about depths sans helium greater than that. Then again, I'm a cheap drunk too - unfortunately NOT a cheap diver. :lol:Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptainSpeleo
So you dive mix at Little River and Cow?Quote:
Originally Posted by Angie Reim
i was gonna say, i'm glad i can deal with some depth, i couldnt imagine paying for mix everytime i wanted to dive to 100ft.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tegg
A bit because not needing testosterone to make good decisions, my 'stones' are not proportional to size of my brain. I actually acknowledge that it is better to be a straight diver than to be afraid of ridicule. My buddies can count on me to have a clear mind and a 'stone cold' attitude when the feces hit the fan. I'd say that's worth the extra bucks. 8)Quote:
Originally Posted by Tegg
Yeah, it sucks, but worth every penny. Old diver sh** I guess.......Quote:
Originally Posted by Titen
I used to dive it all on EAN32 but once I hit the mix, dives were so much more pleasant. :-)
It had nothing to do with testosterone and everything to do with helium.Quote:
Originally Posted by Angie Reim
It was a mere question of what you dive at given sites, thats all.
People are different in their physiology and effects of gases at depth and their ability to work with "said" effects. I merely asked what worked for you.
.. for being such a feminist, you sure talk about testosterone alot.... :wink:
Okay. I flew off the handle. Sorry. Probably had something to do with your 'stones' comment this last weekend. See....what you say, does matter. Nevermind what you are really thinking. As for being a feminist....bahahahahahahaha. Okay if you say so.....must be my 1970's experience - I wouldn't be caught dead in the 'real' world without my bra.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tegg
Yes, it was surprising (and annoying) to discover that my physiology called for the use of helium at only 100ish feet. I'm glad you acknowledge it because I have run into a number of folks that are in denial about it and I think that might be a dangerous attitude. Some people really can handle deeper depths on air only, but some people 'really' can't. I think some of the scooter divers in Ginnie are half-stoned and don't know it. Nothing personal scooter folks but how can you hit someone or the ceiling in a huge passage if you are not 1/2 stoned? I mean it was funny at the time but now that I think about it, it was not so funny to watch or to be hit.
Peace Tegg 'cause that would be better. 8)
How many cave divers are actually diving on AIR now, regardless of the depth? With all the exertion and extended bottom times that occur during a dive, EANx is obviously safer.
I did a dive at Madison Blue Spring to "The Court Yard" on AIR which took 108 minutes round-trip and required 102 minutes of decompression afterwards. A year later, I did the exact same dive on EANx 32 and it only required 5 minutes of decompression afterwards.
I don't know how many folks are still using air - depends on the depths you dive. TMX ain't cheap. However, I sure do appreciate ALL of the dive shop folks that had the nerve to start those business's so the gases are available. 102 minutes of deco? What a drag. Like having to get up to change the TV channels. You can still do it, but why not use the remote? :lol:
Holy crap!! I've never done a dive requiring 102 minutes of deco - intuitively I knew it must suck pretty bad, but now you've really put it into terms that I can understand!! Thanks Angie :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Angie Reim
Brian
After discovering first-hand about the drastically-reduced decompression times on long dives using EANx instead of Air, I made the switch real quick, and the added cost of EANx over Air was well worth it.
I have always felt better post dive when using the maximum amount of O2 in my breathing mix. A shop owner with shoulder problems tried to convince me it was nothing more than a myth until I got her to start diving EANX for a while and she found that her shoulder felt much better after her dives as well. Throw in the reduced deco obligations you get from it and it more than makes up for the slight increase in cost. I only breathe air when standing on dry ground.
I agree- more helium is better and more up to date deco tables don't penalize much for it. In the Northeast, 21/40 is the minimum mix most of us dive at that depth. Lower END's are safer and you can't put a price on that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Caver95
DeWayne:
I like having an higher O2 content and prefer to mix for about 1.50 PO2 exposure on non-exerting dives. I've got a cave dive coming up next week in which I'll be using EANx 36 for a max depth of about 102'.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
jpdiver:
The mix that I prefer to use for 170' - 180' depths is 23/12, but I can't get it anywhere unless I pre-mix it myself, so I settle for the 21/25 that's readily available to me.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Capt,
Two things When You did that dive on air did you use a computer like a Alladan Pro Air? The first time I went to Henley's Castle was on air and the Deco was stupid long from the Alladan Pro I was using. I think we are enjoying a two fold thing the new computers or software for tables is much better. Those old air computers were based on tables that were very conservative.
The other thing is you say you prefer a higher pO2 and that you are doing a dive at 1.5, this is on the high side of every instructor I have had. One says never more than 1.4 and one prefers 1.2. What is your logic in using the higher pO2.
As Capt Speleo noted, the 1.5 PO2 would be for a non-exerting dive so it would still be considered relatively safe. I like maximizing my PO2 whenever possible as I do feel notably better following the dive. When 32% is readily available and comes close to being what I want I will use it, other dives I will specify some oddball FO2 to have my bottom PO2 where I want it for the dive at hand.
curtschu:
Back in the late 80's and early 90's when I was heavily involved in deep air diving below 200', I bought 2 of the "Beuchat Aladdin" air computers. The Sport and Pro versions had not come out yet. I still use one to this day as a backup computer to my "Oceanic Data Plus" nitrox computer.
I agree that they were very conservative. I did a 35-minute dive in the Lockwood Tunnel(235') in Eagles Nest on Air and paid the price with 165 minutes of decompression afterwards. The 10' stop was 56 minutes.
I don't get reckless with PO2's. I took an O2 hit on Air at 270' in 1990 and know what it's like. I prefer a 1.5 PO2 for non-exerting dives and prefer a 1.4 PO2(or lower) for exerting dives.
Frank
Most people don't come in with their tanks drained so to add He usually require a Haskel boost of the He before the Nitrox 32 top off. Typical losses while boosting He with a Haskel can approach 30%. Not very efficient and would greatly increase the cost of a fill. We blend all our trimix through the compressor and that is how Bill/CE makes his different mixes. This is much more cost effective way to make trimix but it requires more dedicated bank capacity. As CEE grows and if there is a demand for 25/30 or 30/30 we can develope a bank for that mix.Quote:
Originally Posted by muzz
Lee
30/30 mix would be awesome! Can't you do that just for meeee?? :-D
Hey Angie, go for the 18/40, it will work better at the park! :wink: