c/commercial-divers

11

johnfoster•9h ago

Sat through a whole safety meeting about Nitrox being a game-changer for deep wrecks

I rolled my eyes for 45 minutes thinking it was just hype from the instructors who wanted to sell more classes. Then last month on a 150-foot charter off Pensacola, my buddy ran through his bottom time in half the time I had left on Nitrox. Am I the only one who took way too long to get on board with gas blending?

3

david821•20h ago

Just got back from a dive in the Gulf of Mexico off Galveston and I'm honestly shocked at how many guys are skipping their oxygen tank checks

I was out there last Tuesday with a crew doing a pipeline inspection at about 90 feet, and three guys on the boat hadn't tested their tanks in over a month. One of their regulators was leaking air bad enough I could hear it from 10 feet away. Is it just me or are people getting way too casual about gear maintenance lately? What do you do to stay on top of your stuff?

0

ben436•3d ago

That $200 drysuit repair kit I bought was a total waste of money

I thought I could save some cash by fixing a small tear in my drysuit myself with one of those DIY repair kits from the marine supply shop. Spent about 200 bucks on the kit with the glue, patches, and special tape. Took me three tries over a weekend to get it patched, but the seal never held right. First dive after the repair, I came up with a wet leg and knew I was sunk. Ended up taking it to a pro shop near the docks in Norfolk and they fixed it proper for 80 bucks. The guy there told me I probably made the tear worse by flexing the material too much. Now I just tell everyone to skip the home repair route and pay a pro from the start. Has anyone else had luck with those kits or am I just that bad at it?

0

sandra715•5d ago

TIL I had been breathing wrong for 8 years of diving

Was reading a dive physics paper last night and realized I was finning against my own airflow on ascents. Took a dive buddy in Port Fourchon pointing out my tank pressure dropping 300 psi faster than his for that to click. Has anyone else had a basic skill suddenly make way more sense years in?

5

jesseb20•5d ago

Heard a surface guy say comms checks are a waste of time - who else thinks that's crazy?

I was on a job off the coast of Louisiana last week helping with a pipeline inspection, and I overheard one of the tender guys telling a new diver that doing comms checks every 10 minutes is just slowing things down. He said if the radio's working, why keep testing it. But I've had two buddies get into serious trouble when comms cut out mid-job and nobody knew for 5 minutes. Doesn't that just beg for an accident, or am I being too cautious about gear checks? What do you all do on your dives?

12

the_anna•5d ago

Wasted $400 on a drysuit zipper repair that failed in 2 weeks

I took my drysuit to a shop in Norfolk that said they specialized in diving gear. Paid $400 to have the front zipper replaced. The second dive after getting it back the zipper blew open at 30 feet. Had to abort the whole job and lost a full day of work. Turns out they used a cheap zipper not rated for commercial use. Anyone else had bad luck with repair shops cutting corners on parts?

11

grant_perry•5d ago

Heads up about a safety issue I saw at a dock in Galveston last week

I was doing a hull inspection job near Pier 20 and noticed a bunch of old lift bags just sitting out in the sun with no covers on them. Two of them had visible dry rot cracks near the inflation valves. Has anyone else seen gear getting left out like that down there?

5

miles_grant35•6d ago

Switched from a drysuit to a hot water suit for a harbor job in Seattle last month

I'm a concrete contractor mostly, but I do some light commercial diving on the side for inspections. Had this gig checking pilings at a marina in Seattle, water was 48 degrees. I been using a drysuit for years, but the mobility with all the tools and the umbilical was killing me. Borrowed a hot water suit from a buddy, and man, the difference in how long I could stay down and actually work was night and day. Finished the job in about 4 hours instead of 7 like I estimated. Anyone else made the switch and seen a big jump in bottom time?

20

hunt.rowan•7d ago

Overheard a deckhand say he never checks his bailout bottle before a dive

That got me thinking about how I've been skipping pre-dive checks on my Kirby Morgan helmet seals for the last 6 months, and now I'm wondering what else I've been lazy about that could actually kill me down there - anyone else catch themselves cutting corners on the little stuff?

28

matthew_owens9•9d ago

TIL a trick for fixing stuck hatches on old oil rigs

I was working a job in the Gulf back in 2018 and this hatch on a platform wouldn't budge for like 30 minutes. A older diver told me to spray penetrating oil around the seal, then hit the latch with a rubber mallet three times fast. I thought he was joking but it popped right open. Anyone else got a weird fix they use on stubborn equipment?

28

felix_jones•11d ago

New guys need to stop ignoring their drysuit valves during pre-dive checks

I was working an inspection job off the Gulf Coast last Tuesday and watched a guy suit up, jump in, and surface five minutes later because he never opened his exhaust valve. He said he 'thought it was fine' and just skipped the check. That kind of stuff drives me nuts because it wastes time and puts people at risk for something that takes 30 seconds. Ive been diving commercial for around 12 years now and I can tell you the difference between a smooth day and a cluster starts with those little checks. If you cant be bothered to twist your valves and check your seals before you get wet, you shouldnt be in the water at all. How do you guys handle new guys who blow off the basics like that?

25

sage_perry•12d ago

Old school diver told me to skip the drysuit for 45 degree water

Guy named Mike from a Gulf rig swore I'd overheat in a drysuit on a shallow job. Sure enough, I was shivering 20 min in and had to call it quits early. Anyone else get bad advice from a salty vet that backfired?

0

alice_reed47•13d ago

Shoutout to the old timer who warned me about wire entanglement off the coast of Louisiana

Last month I got my umbilical caught on some old cable near a platform in the Gulf. I thought I could just pull free but it took me nearly 45 minutes to untangle myself. My air was getting low and my hands were shaking by the time I got loose. That's when I remembered a veteran diver telling me to always carry a spare knife on my ankle. Has anyone else had a close call with entanglement that took way longer to fix than you figured?

20

pipera50•13d ago

Split decision on dry suits vs wetsuits after a deep dive off Catalina

I was out near Catalina Island last Saturday on a 90 foot wreck dive and noticed the crew was split right down the middle on gear. Half the guys were in dry suits saying it's the only way to stay warm on long bottom times. The other half were in thick wetsuits claiming dry suits are too much hassle with all the valves and seals. I was in my 7mm wetsuit and got cold after about 25 minutes on that wreck. But the dry suit guys looked like they were sweating in their heavy suit. One old timer told me dry suits are for posers and real divers just layer up. What do you all run on deep cold work dives and why?

2

jamesmason•13d ago

Old-timer told me to always piss in my wetsuit before a cold dive and I laughed until I tried it

I figured he was joking but after a 45-minute bottom time in 48-degree water off Port Townsend last month, that burst of warmth bought me an extra 10 minutes of comfort before the shivers set in - anyone else pick up weird tips from the salty guys that actually work?

7

riverp37•14d ago

Still think the Kirby Morgan SMB is overkill, even after watching a guy almost get run over

I used to think a cheap 50 dollar SMB and a spool was good enough. Did that for like 8 years on pipeline jobs in the Gulf. Then last November, this guy on my crew popped up a tiny orange sausage in 2 foot seas and a supply boat nearly turned him into paste. Captain never saw it. I switched to a 6 foot orange and yellow KM the next day. Cost me 230 bucks but I can see it from a mile away now. Has anyone else had a close call that made you totally rethink your gear?

8

betty_scott18•14d ago

Hot take: the full face mask almost killed me on a job last month

I get that everyone loves the Kirby Morgan setup for safety, but I was working a pipeline repair in the Gulf near Port Fourchon and my regulator started free-flowing at 60 feet. I had to rip the mask off and switch to my backup air supply before I blacked out. Anyone else ditch the full face for a half mask after a close call like that?

5

sagey69•15d ago

That stat about drowning in fresh water vs salt water shook me up

I was reading some safety stuff online last night, just killing time before a job, and came across this fact that you're way more likely to drown in fresh water than salt water. Something about how fresh water messes with your lungs faster or something, I don't remember the exact science. It got me thinking about all those low vis river dives I've done for bridge inspections. Anyone else ever look into that and get kinda spooked about their next inland job?

7

hunt.rowan•16d ago

That old timer's tip about equalizing ear pressure actually works like a charm

Had a grizzled offshore diver named Pete tell me to swallow hard with my mask strap tight before descending, and I thought he was messing with me. Last week during a 60-foot dive in the Gulf, my ears were screaming until I tried it - cleared right up with zero pain. Anyone else get a weird trick from a salty vet that ended up being gospel?

26

ray_webb6•18d ago

Rant: That dive site off the coast of St. Croix was a total letdown for the price

Paid 180 bucks for a two-tank boat dive there last month and half the coral was dead or bleached out. The viz was maybe 20 feet on a good day too. Anyone else feel like some of these tropical spots are just riding on their old reputation?

10

anthony127•18d ago

My supervisor told me my drysuit zipper routine was killing it

I always put a little silicone lube on the zipper every month, thought I was doing good. He said I was just trapping grit inside. Now I just rinse it with fresh water after every dive and only use a wax stick twice a year. Has anyone else gotten bad advice about zipper care?

13

river_hart18•18d ago

Found a stat about dive computer failures that caught me off guard

I was reading through some DAN accident reports last night and saw that over 60% of decompression sickness cases involved a diver who either ignored or misread their dive computer. That number seems way too high for a piece of gear we all trust our lives to. Makes me wonder if we rely too much on the screen and not enough on our own tables and gas planning. Has anyone else here gone back to using a backup analog depth gauge and timer?

24

alexlewis•20d ago

Just found out most dry suits are tested at 20 feet not 200

I was reading through the HSE diving equipment standards last night and saw the test pressure for a dry suit is only 10 psi. That's about 20 feet of water. I always assumed they were tested to the full depth rating. Makes me wonder how many suits are actually water tight at 100 feet plus. Has anyone else noticed leaks showing up deeper than they expected?

12

anthony_fox90•22d ago

Wasted $400 on a fancy drysuit valve kit that failed in two weeks

Ngl, I thought I was being smart upgrading to those lightweight titanium valves on my drysuit. Spent $400 on a kit from a popular brand, installed it myself on a Sunday morning. First real dive after that, the exhaust valve started sticking open on a 60-foot bottom time. I was fighting to stay warm and dry for the whole deco stop. The O-ring failed inside the housing, just cheap rubber I guess. Should have stuck with the standard brass valves my old instructor swore by. They cost half as much and I never had a single problem with them in three years. Has anyone else had bad luck with the fancy lightweight hardware or did I just get a defective batch?

3

coleman.jade•24d ago

Swapped my Kirby Morgan for a Neptune bandmask on a 60-foot bridge job last week

I figured the lighter weight would save my neck on a long day, but the communication was way quieter and I missed the visibility of the KM. Anyone else tried both and have a preference for deep water vs. shallow current work?