Rebreather Pro

New Hollis Prism 2 Rebreather Online Prep Course By Jill Heinerth

If you are thinking about, or currently diving the Hollis Prism 2 CCR, this prep course will have you miles ahead of the learning curve! 

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE COURSE PAGE

Hollis Prism 2 Rebreather Prep Course Offered Online!

Jill Heinerth, along with the good folks at LFE.com have produced a web-based video course to prepare divers who are taking the new Hollis Prism 2 Rebreather course.

If you are currently diving, or considering purchasing this great new CCR, Go to LFE.com and check out this cool new course! (Photo of Jill diving the Prism 2 by Mark Long)

Here's the URL:

http://www.lfe.com/courses/scuba/jill-heinerth/prism-2-rebreather-preparation-class#video

Rebreather Diving: Mixing Sensors

Mixing Sensors is a crap shoot.

Your oxygen sensors are the heart of your CCR, offering critical information about your life support status. Attempting to save money by stretching your sensors beyond their service life may greatly increase your diving risks.

Teledyne stopped supplying sensors to the diving market well over eighteen months ago. If your rebreather contains any Teledyne sensors, they are beyond their expiration, whether they have just been installed recently or not. While you are checking your sensors, ensure that you have not mixed different brands within your rebreather. Your three sensors should be of the same brand. Each manufacturer has a proprietary algorithm that compensates for temperature changes within the unit. If you mix brands you may find that they drift apart through the duration of your dive. This might not be attributed to depth, but rather temperature changes. Ensure the sensors within your rig are made by one manufacturer and are approved by the manufacturer of the unit.

It is critical that these sensors were tested by the CCR manufacturer. CE standards ensure these critical tests have been completed. If your rebreather is not CE EN:14143 approved, then contact the manufacturer for verification of their test protocols for sensors and the approved brands that are documented through their testing. If your sensors are in good order, risks are reduced and without reliable sensors, its all a crap shoot. - Photo: Jill Heinerth testing the new Hollis Prism rebreather.

iPad + CCR = Predive Bliss!

My iPad really enhances the organization of all my critical CCR files. I've added all the manufacturer's instruction manuals to my Book app. I've also organized all the checklists for my rebreathers as editable PDF files. Now I can sit in the garage, do a pre-dive and fill it all out on the iPad, then file the checklist electronically for my records. I'm saving paper and improving productivity. My gas blending and decompression software are also at my fingertips and everything is easily legible for my aging eyes (yes, I sometimes forget where I put my reading glasses).

For those instructors out there, you can add your slide shows, teaching guides and exams if copyright allows. You can even make answer keys interactive so your student can fill it out on the iPad

I want to give a shout out to PADI's Karl Shreeves, since he is the key influence that pushed me into the iPad world. I was long overdue!.

I highly recommend the iPad so anyone that wants to streamline and enhance their CCR organizational experience!

Poseidon Discovery eCCR Assembly Video

The Discovery Rebreather from Poseidon is very easily put together, follow this video from beginning to end to get everything in the right place.

Observe that the predive test shown in the film may not be 100% accurate due to software updates after the film was recorded.

 

 

Discovery Montage from dive poseidon on Vimeo.

We never find checklist on a dead rebreather diver's body!

Dead guys don't have checklists!

Tim Waldo sent us a link to the following video that illustrates, yet again, how important checklists are. In the Mayo Clinic, checklists have improved the outcomes of heart surgery patients. Dr. Simon Mitchell wrote last year in several medical journals about how checklists similarly improved outcomes in his hospital in Auckland, NZ. But there was one other key point in this video that is worth noting. They also improved outcomes when nurses were empowered to speak up if they felt something was wrong. That means changing the culture of the workplace in surgery. That is essentially what I am trying to advocate for our rebreather industry, changing the work ethic and culture of how we use complex equipment.

So the next time you see someone trying to jump in the water without doing their checklist or pre-breathe, or the the next time your buddy wants to dive with an equipment problem, please tell them to take the time to fix it. You may or may not be saving a life that day, but you help influence better behaviors that have been proven to save lives.

Dead guys don't have checklists.

Are you protected? Never dive without protection!

Never dive without protection!

There has been much press in the last year about carbon monoxide poisoning that has caused the deaths of divers within our community. As such, there has been a growth in the CO analyzer market. I recently saw this new product that I think is truly brilliant. Its essentially a condom-type ballon with a CO sensor inside. You inflate the clear balloon and see if the disk inside changes color. Once you break open the package, you have eight hours to use the balloon on as many tanks as you like, unless carbon monoxide is detected. In that case, it may have just saved your life. When you travel to a new place and want some peace of mind in a small package, this device is easy to operate and easy to carry. There is no need for a large device, calibration or anything else. I salute the manufacturers for filling an important need!

www.co-pro.com

Rebreather Divers: Jill Heinerth's travel tips to ease your airline pain

Traveling with a CCR can have its challenges. Some airports are completely familiar with the technology and others are terrified of the wires and sensors! Here is some advice for traveling with your unit.

If you can avoid carrying sorb, it is generally cheaper to get it at your destination. In Florida it is cheap and easy to get at $110 per 45 pound keg. Many other destinations offer sorb and onboard cylinders. It is usually cheaper to rent than pay extra baggage fees. If you are traveling somewhere without support, then you may have to carry sorb in your checked baggage.

Download the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) from the internet for the brand of sorb that you are carrying. Tape the MSDS to the keg and if you feel like being a bit creative, print a sticker on your computer that reads "Safe for Airline Transport" in large block letters and stick it to the keg.

 

I like to put a formal letter in each case of luggage that begins: "Dear TSA Agent..."  Essentially, you want to advise them that this is a diving apparatus known as a rebreather and that it is delicate life support equipment. Put your cell phone and seat assignment on the letter and urge them to call if they have questions. Thank them for their diligence in securing your life support equipment. Put a small bundle of replacement zip ties inside the luggage so they can re-secure the zip pulls or case. If you have a title, logo or company letterhead that looks impressive, put that on the letter. If you have photograph of your smiling face in that diving equipment, print that on the letter. If this is the trip of a lifetime, tell them. Making their job easy, fun and light will increase your chances of getting to the destination with all gear intact.

If you are traveling with your tanks, take the valve out of the tank and place a piece of CLEAR packing tape over the opening of the tank. Only clear tape is acceptable... no plugs... nothing else. Cover the "Oxygen" label with some other duct tape or packing tape. You don't want any labels that say "Oxygen" to be viewable on any part of the unit. Technically, that voids the oxygen-clean status of the tank, but there does not seem to be a way around it at this point in time. You will need to do at least a visual inspection at your destination, so ensure your have an appropriate light to do so.

I have at times resorted to putting a small plastic flower, sticking through the clear tape, out of the tank. I've stood there with TSA agents and argued that I was carrying a unique flower vase rather than a scuba tank. Yes... some folks just don't understand pressure. In fact, Dr. Tom Iliffe, was once instructed to put the valves back in the tanks, then place a scuba regulator on the tank to prove to the agent that there was no pressure in the open tanks!

In any case, don't insult their intelligence. Be patient and give them every tool possible to make your trip easy. But just in case, photograph each piece of baggage outside and inside in the unlikely event you need to track a lost piece or make a claim on insurance. Every bit of evidence will help.

Safe travels! -- Jill Heinerth

PS - Recognizing the growing numbers in dive tourism, the TSA will attend Rebreather Forum 3.0 in Orlando this month. Perhaps we'll have an easier time in the future!

Guest Article by Rebreather Diving Legend Kevin Gurr

What is Optocon? Why is it important? Why Do I need it?

 Two years ago, recognizing the vulnerabilities of hard wired electronics in rebreathers, VR Technology started developing a paradigm shifting system called Optocon. The goal was to  remove potentially unreliable wiring and connectors within safety critical systems from our Sentinel rebreather and replace them with a much more robust and redundant system. With this change, we delivered a long-term, more reliable system as well as one that was far easier to replace and maintain in a simple modular fashion. 

 

After countless hours of developing, testing and certifying this new technology under CE standards, I want you to understand why we tackled such a challenging issue, so I will try to explain why VR has bothered to spend so long developing the system and why, as a rebreather diver, it is important for you.

CLICK HERE to get the entire article as a .pdf