Open Water Scuba Diver

If you are working hard during a dive, you might get to the point that you become exhausted. The possible causes include: If any of these describe you, kick back and relax, solve the buoyancy issue, talk to your buddy after the dive, and avoid the current by diving at another location. Remember, the harder […]

New divers tend to use more air during a dive than those with more experience. As a new diver, you might have a tendency to hold back your breathing to reduce the amount of air you are using. This is called skip-breathing and can be very dangerous. The resulting buildup of carbon dioxide in your

If you remember the Depth, Pressure, Volume chart previously? You will realize the deeper you dive, the more air you take from your tank with each breath. Running low or out of air at depth is serious, as you might imagine. In order to avoid running out of air, you might try these suggestions. First,

You discovered earlier, that the gases we breathe dissolve in our body tissues As we dive. This “on gassing” mostly involves nitrogen which comprises about 78 percent of the air we breathe. The deeper we go and the longer we stay there, the more nitrogen is absorbed by the tissues of our bodies. As we

A diver experiencing overheating experiences Hyperthermia. Hyperthermia is a Greek term. Hyper means High,  Therma means Temperature.  Before the dive it is easy to experience hyperthermia due to wearing the thermal protection while preparing for a dive. Heat related emergencies can be broken down to three stages. Heat Cramps are an early stage of dehydration

A diver experiencing a loss of heat experiences Hypothermia. Hypothermia is a Greek term. Hypo means Low  Therma means Temperature.  The best way to prevent hypothermia is to wear the proper exposure suit for your diving condition.  Water absorbs heat 25 times faster than  the same temperature in air.  Hypothermia occurs when the core body

The main purpose of the nose pocket in a scuba mask is to let the diver add air to the mask. This is why we don’t dive with swim goggles. Without adding air from your nose during descent, mask squeeze can occur. Some divers can close off their nose during descent, which stops air from

It is very rare, but a tiny gas bubble can occur as the result of a filling or an infection in a tooth. The result is similar to a tooth ache and can only be diagnosed with the help of a dentist. In some cases, a sinus squeeze or infection can feel like a tooth

The sinuses are cavities in the skull. One of the many purposes of the sinus cavities are  too warm and humidify the air that you inhale through your nose as it heads toward your lungs. On occasions, especially after a cold or other congestion, it is possible to have a sinus squeeze. If you begin

Generally, ear plugs cannot be used while diving. However, there are special vented plugs that may be used if the diver often has outer ear infections. Putting a plug in the ear cannel adds an air space that cannot be cleared to equal the surrounding water pressure. The vented plug solves this issue. If you