5 replies to this topic

[finGrabber]

what is the DIR procedure for bungeeing a tank on a charter boat??

WWPD..........?

[PerroneFord]

Not sure I understand your question? Do you mean placing the bungie on the valve for the ride out/in?

If so, I put the bungie over my valve and under the knob until it was time to assemble the rig. After assembling, I put the bungie back over the valve and knob until it's time to splash.

When diving doubles I put a half twist in the bungie and place it around the isolator knob. The sideways pressure keeps it from slipping up and off.

Mind you I do NOT do much boat diving, so I don't know if this is "DIR" or not. In pictures of DIR boat diving I have seen the manifolds were secured by ropes. But that was on a research vessel. There was probably no bungie arrangement.

[scubafanatic]

Hi Kim,

...so I see you too had a reg 'taken out' by a toppling tank........ on the 'same' trip on the July SD.com wreck diving trip, 'Divegirl' and I both had regs taken out by tanks falling over and impacting the steel deck...... in my case, I had too many things going on at once, I'd momentarily truned my back on my tank, with no bungie, and that's all it took...a wave at the wrong moment. ...had the same thing happen in Cozumel a couple years ago, diving off a 6-pack, the boat was moving very fast over hard waves, and my tank toppled over onto the deck, but not damaged as it impacted gear bags on the floor, very narrowly missing my dive buddies dive camera...however, that incident wasn't my fault, the crew stowed our tanks/regs and didn't use bungies, we impacted a big wave at speed and it popped out of the rack.............have also had a couple close calls on the Flower Gardens boats, with tanks caught in 'mid-topple'....so I feel your pain.

Most boats I've been on don't use bungies, just make REALLY sure you have your tank fully pushed back into the tank holder/clamp, moreover, most boats require you to offload your integrated weight pockets overnite while the boats transitions between dive sites to make your rig less top-heavy and, thus, less likely to pop-out if it's rack/clamp.

...with respect to bungeeing a tank on a NC day-boat, I saw divers using a variety of different 'styles' to secure their rigs, some better than others.....the key is make sure there's absolutely no slack in the bungee....REALLY tight is the goal, also, loop the bungee over the tank valve knob as well as the reg.......... when the boat takes a wave, the tank can experience momentary 'weightlessness', it sort of 'floats' , relaxing the bungee tension and causing the bungee to slip off...then disaster !

...it's hard for me to descibe in words the best solution, althought it wouldn't take me 5 seconds to show you what I mean......avoid using a 'simple' 1 dimensional 'loop' when bungeeing, I use a 2-dimensional loop when bungeeing so the bungee is exerting force in 2 directions simultaneuosly....... a wave impact may 'relax' the bungee in 1 direction, but not in 2 directions simultaneuosly, so the tank remains captured.

Karl

[JimG]

what is the DIR procedure for bungeeing a tank on a charter boat?

I don't know that there is one, but the other suggestions that have been made are excellent.

One word of caution on affixing the bungee after the reg is attached - make sure you do it in such a way that it does not put strain on the rubber-to-metal fittings (i.e. the "swages") on the hoses. I see a lot of people who bind the hoses in such a way that there is a lot of excess stress on the swages. This could cause the hose to wear prematurely at that point, or possibly even break.

I usually wrap the bungee around the tank knob (on the metal shaft, not the rubber part). If there is too much slack, then I will loop it a second or even a third time to make sure everything is snug. I also turn the tank so that the knob is facing a little more into the center of the boat, which reduces the chances of having the bungee slip off.

The main thing is to make sure you have as little slack as possible. If the tank wobbles even a little bit, then that might be just enough to unhook the bungee and send everything tumbling.

[ScubaDadMiami]

Make a trip to Home Depot of the equivalent. Bring your own in case what the boat provides is not adequate. It's cheap, light and stores easily. That's what I've been doing, and it works quite well.

[Diverbrian]

Actually, I am with SDM on this one. I seldom have to use my own, but they are nice to have in my dive bag just in case.

One of the boats in Tobermory (I have never been on a liveaboard so overnight doesn't apply in my case) has been known to make the divers put their tanks on the deck in transit even though they again allow bungees. I was there a few years ago when a bungee broke aboard that boat when leaving one of the wrecks and those doubles nearly crushed a diver lying on the deck (I have never seen anyone that large move that fast and doubt that I ever will. Those tanks barely missed him.)