Doubles advice

[knfmn]

Hello all! I will be in Florida in January and want to do some diving at the intro to cave level. My question is this: I did my certification dives with a single tank with an H valve. I have experience diving in doubles, specifically AL80's and limited experience with HP100's. I would be more comfortable diving a single big tank with H valve in the caves, especially since I use a wetsuit instead of a drysuit. How common is this? Is this unusual? Any recommendations?

Thanks,

Kristopher

[Greenwood_60]

I can't say I've ever seen a "single tank" past the cavern zone. I'm sure it happens, but it's not common.

Regardless, if that's how you're comfortable, go for it.

[Sabado]

Eventually you're gonna want to be in double LP steels with a drysuit. If you're not comfortable in that rig, i'd practice in it open water/cavern dives and be comfortable with valve shutdowns and gas sharing. If that isn't an option right now...dive how you were trained. FWIW i can't remember ever seeing someone in a single tank doing any sort of technical dive...let alone a cave dive.

[Puttzer]

I can't say I've ever seen a "single tank" past the cavern zone. I'm sure it happens, but it's not common.

Regardless, if that's how you're comfortable, go for it.

My wife ALWAYS dives past the cavern zone with a single tank.

[allen]

I am sorry that my original post was not clear. The heaviest set of doubles I can carry is a pair of 100's. 1/6 of 208 cu.ft. is 34.3cu.ft. I can, however, carry a 130 cu.ft. single which gives me 1/3 of 130 cu.ft. which is 43.3 cu.ft. Thus as an Intro Cave Diver I could get farther in a single than in doubles without breaking the rules. This ignored the safety and balance advantages of doubles. A blown burst disc on a single tank is a disaster for a solo diver in any event. It is fatal in a cave and may be fatal on a deep wreck. (On a deep wreck I carry a pony bottle. I intended to do so in caves when I bought my 130.) This is the reason for Alex Brylske's rule, "Solo dive only to twice the depth or distance you could free dive." An intro cave diver certainly should not be cave diving solo.

[knfmn]

Ok. Plan for this time will probably be to dive how I trained and get practice in LP doubles over the next year. Thanks for the advice!

Kristopher.

[mmarcoux]

Hey Kristopher,
I'd be happy to help you with a couple dives in doubles up here before you go down. Ultimately you really should get into doubles with the route your going, additionally it will make you more balanced. I have some doubles you can borrow if you'd like.

-Matt

[graepaep]

Hey Kristopher,
I'd be happy to help you with a couple dives in doubles up here before you go down. Ultimately you really should get into doubles with the route your going, additionally it will make you more balanced. I have some doubles you can borrow if you'd like.

-Matt

This is what I like about the caving (in general) community

[knfmn]

That would be awesome, Matt. Thank you for the offer. I'll definitely be in touch.

Kristopher

[deepdiverbob]

For what its worth, I dive my doubles LP 108 in a wet suit all the time down there. Its all about what you are comfortable with.