Scuba Gear I - BCD

What is a BCD or Buoyancy Compensator Device?

It is what all people call the jacket that scuba divers wear it mainly have few basic functions:

• It contains an inflatable bladder which you can add or subtract air from, allowing you to change your buoyancy in the water.
• The dive cylinder is attached to the back of the BCD using a tank strap.
• It allows the diver to carry or attach all of their accessories using its inbuilt pockets and D-Rings.

a more scientific definition ...

It is simply an air bladder that you can inflate or deflate to insure a good buoyancy throughout your dive depending on the depth you are in.

The BCD is a mandatory piece of safety equipment that every scuba diver must have. 

BCDs started out as simple life jackets designed to make a diver float face-up on the surface. They then morphed into front-mounted "horse collar" vests that tended to put divers off-balance and were hard to blow up. Today, BCs have evolved into ever more complex multi-functional systems that do all sorts of things other than just providing the proper buoyancy while diving and acting as safety flotation devices when a diver is on on the surface waiting for a pickup.

Type of BCDs 

There are a variety of different types of BCDs, each type affects underwater movement, buoyancy control and floating behavior and your ability to carry things. These different types are mainly split into 2 main categories;

Back mount BCD also called Wing or Back Flotation Jackets  have their bladders located on the back to the left and right of the tank this leave the front area uncluttered which makes the BCDs popular with photographers , technical divers, back mounts provide good stability.

vers.

Stabilizing Jackets or Vests allow air to move anywhere inside the jacket , air will gather at the highest point and therefore provide a good stability.  Stabilizing jackets have natural confortable feel and excellent buoyancy and are the best choice for most of recreational divers.

What does a BCD contain?

 Air bladder - Air bladders are made of very durable urethane plastic/polyethylene. Some designs have just a single bladder of various shapes and designs, whereas others use a twin-bag system where the inner polyethylene bladder can be replaced if it breaks or springs a leak. In twin-bag designs, the outer layer isn't necessarily a bladder; it primarily serves to protect the inner bladder. Twin-bag designs are usually heavier and bulkier and thus less convenient to transport.

Power inflator - This is a low-pressure direct feed tube from the first-stage regulator. You press a button to pump more air into the suit. Some power inflator systems have their own separate air source which might even also serve as a backup air supply. Some BCs have/had carbon dioxide cartridges for emergency inflation at the surface. These present a risk of accidental inflation and are no longer available in the US.

Oral inflator -- An inflator hose attached to the diver's left shoulder that lets you inflate the BC via blowing into a mouthpiece.

Dump valve - This is to let air out of the BC and is usually located on the left shoulder where the inflator hose is. The valve is actuated by pulling a cord. Some BCs have two or more dump valves, and they can be in varying locations.

Pressure release valve - This valve is there to keep the BC from bursting due to overinflation, which could happen if it is left sitting in the sun or during ascent. The pressure release valve and the dump valve are often combined into a single system.

Cylinder mount - Most current BCs include a tank mount in sort of a backpack type of design. The heavy cylinder is secured by strong nylon webbing and a strap with a locking buckle.
Waistband - That's the usually fairly thick "cummerbund"-style abdominal harness strap that keeps the BC in place.

Integrated weight - Some BCs have pockets for weights, making clumsy weight belts unnecessary. An additional advantage is that weights can quickly be discarded in emergencies. Weights come in different denominations, usually from one to five pounds each. Some have a hard shell whereas others are soft cushions.
Quick-release shoulder straps - Those make it easier to get in and out of the BC.
Pockets - One or more easily accessible zippered mesh accessory pockets to carry all sorts of items.
Accessory rings - Generally located in the front, these stainless steel rings let you clip on additional items.
Hose retainers - If you don't like to have hoses float all over the place, get a BC with clips and Velcro tabs to secure the hoses so you always know where they are and so they won't get in the way or caught.  

Maintenance

Just like all other diving equipements BCDs should be rinsed with fresh water then dried and stored away from sunlight in a dry cool place. However you also need to rinse the inside of the air bladders form time to time, and rinse it from time to time with warm water to dissolve any salt crystal that may have formed inside the bladder.

Scuba Gear History

During the month of November we are going to talk about Scuba Diving Gear stating some historical fact, current inventions and description on each and every single part of the Scuba Gears that we use in our dives.
Today's post is a small historical information about the Scuba gear, invention and progress throughout history.

We all use the word SCUBA but do we really know that this is an abbreviation of Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus.
The Scuba Gear that we know nowadays was not the same several years ago... but it was a simple gear that started with:

• In 1771, British engineer, John Smeaton invented the air pump. A hose was connected between the air pump and the diving barrel, allowing air to be pumped to the diver.
• In 1772, Frenchmen, Sieur Freminet invented a rebreathing device that recycled the exhaled air from inside of the barrel, this was the first self-contained air device. Freminet's invention was a poor one, the inventor died from lack of oxygen after being in his own device for twenty minutes.

• In 1825, English inventor, William James designed another self-contained breather, a cylindrical iron "belt" attached to a copper helmet. The belt held about 450 psi of air, enough for a seven-minute dive.

• In 1876, Englishmen, Henry Fleuss invented a closed circuit, oxygen rebreather. His invention was originally intended to be used in the repair of an iron door of a flooded ship's chamber. Fleuss then decided to use his invention for a thirty-foot deep dive underwater. He died from the pure oxygen; oxygen is toxic to humans under pressure (This is what we call O2 toxicity).

It wasnt before 1942 and thanks to Jacques Cousteau and Emile Gagnant that we have currently what we call a regulator.

Emile Gagnan and Jacques Cousteau invented the modern demand regulator and an improved autonomous diving suit. In 1942, redesigned a car regulator and invented a demand regulator that would automatically fresh air when a diver breathed.

A year Later, they started selling what they call the Aqua-Lung or what we currently call a Regulator, and since this year a new era of Recreational divers started.

So we can say with confidence Thank you Cousteau for giving us what we currently have as Scuba Gears.

SS YONGALA

The SS YONGALA is a passenger ship build in England in 1903 and took up the busy passenger road from the gold mines of eastern Australia to the port of Adelaid , Melborne and Sydney.
The Ship sank in a Cyclone in  23 march 1923 and all 199 passenger on board died in what is known the worst marine tragedy in the history of Australia.

IT took 50 years for this Wreck to be found , In 1943 a minesweeper identified an object of around 90 meters (300 feet)  and was probably the wreck of a fair sized steamer vessel  but no further investigation has been done.
In 1958 two divers located the wreck and came up with a steel safe form one of its cabin, no identification from the safe other than the serial number, in 1961 the response from the safe manufacturer in London is received and confirmed that this safe is manufactured for the SS Yongala.

The SS Yongala lies on the bottom of a sandy seabed which makes of it an artificial reef and house of a large array of marine life , from gray nurse shark to rays to the huge number of reef fish , groupers and much more. Not to forget the famous grouper found on the bow of the ship nicknamed VW because of its enormous size.

The best time to dive the Yongala is from June to August where the water temperature are (21 to 25 C ) but the visibility is between (15 to 20 meters) or from September to December where the water temperature are higher (25 to 30 ) but the visibility is lower between (10 to 15 meters).
With a maximum depth of 30 meters, and the great historical and marine life , the SS Yongala is one of the best wreck dives in the world and has on average 10000 + divers each year.

McMURDO SOUND , ANTARCTICA

This is a dive that you can call STRANGE, Imagine yourself digging a hole in the Ice to dive ... Needless to say your dry suite should be on... This dive is not for beginners as it needs some special skills to return alive :)

 
Think about it twice, despite the temperature that usually drops below -40 Degree Celsius , and the strong winds that resulted in a LifeLess land; on the contrary to that the life thrives below the thick layer of ice which makes it a spectacular dives, for the lucky person that can experience it.

Diving can be done during summer, from september to February where the outside temparature is around -2 degree Celsius, the divers will have to dig a hole in the 1 to 3 meters (3 to 10 feet) thick ice using one of the following tools:

Diesel powered auger, ice saws, ice chippers or even high explosives, to make a hole of a diameter of around 1 meter (3 feet), a portable Hut is placed over the whole to prevent it from freezing again and makes a room for diver to wear the suite and prevent the diving equipment from beeing exposed to excess cold that may defect it.

 
Once in the water the diver will contemplate a visibility of 300+ meters (990 feet) ,once you have your eyes adjusted to the low sunlight that makes it through the ice, you experience of flying over a darkened landscape,

 

you will also encounter colorful sea life, including Cactus sponges,globe sponges, starfish, sea urchin, sea urchin, jellyfish and some brilliant soft coral., if you are lucky enough you may sometimes encounter an Emperor Penguin swimming to find a meal under the ice.

MS ZENOBIA

Check out our Post on the Recent Ban on Diving the Zenobia Here

MS Zenobia, is a Roll On Roll Out vessel (RORO) vessel that was carrying cargo from Sweeden to Syria, she never reached her final destination as a computer problem with the ballast system caused her to list, although an SOS message has been sent but the help has been delayed and the ship now lie on the sandy sea floor at a depth of 42 meters (138 feet) 1,5 Km offshore of Larnaca, Cyprus.

The Common name , known by divers is ZEN , MS Zenobia is listed among the top 25 Wreck dive around the world.

No matter if you are OW, advanced or technical diver Zenobia provides you with an ultimate diving experience with a depth varying from 18 meters (60 feet) to reach the bottom at 42 meters (138 feet).

 Diving outside the wreck their is plenty to see, the trucs that Zenobia used to carry are now scattered at depth varying from 25 meters (82 feet) to 42 meters (148 feet), and still 2 trucks are hanging on chains to the deck.

the propeller can be found at the stern of the wreck one at 28 meters (92 feet) and the other at 38 meters (125 feet).
 The cantene and the bridge are found on around 27 meters (122 feet) and are a nice dive with little penetration for all levels divers.
For advanced divers more advanced penetration can be done to the main lorry deck, which runs 72 meters (236 feet) and allows the divers to watch the truck wrecks that are located in the deck.
The technical divers their is another deck that runs 172 meters (565 feet) the long of the Ship , and there you can see Cars and JCB, you can also see the engine room.

 
Accessible to all divers and with plenty of historical value and variety of sea creature... no wonder why this wreck is on of the world best dive sites...