All posts by Kevin Alexander

Did you want to take Open Water diving from a PADI authorized instructor?  You can dive to 18M.  (That’s 60 feet.)

How about Advanced Open Water, also from PADI?  You get to 30M – or 100 actual real feet.

What does the advanced class consist of?

For Advanced Open Water Diver, student divers meet performance requirements:

• Complete five Adventure Dives including Deep and Underwater Navigation.
• Complete the five Knowledge Reviews for the Completed Adventure Dives

You want a TriMix certification?  You’ll learn how to used mixed gas to go to 165 feet.  (That’s 50M ) What is are the requirements for TriMix what is are the requirements for TriMix certification:

Certified as a PADI Rescue Diver or have a qualifying Certification in a rescue and accident Management

Minimum age: 18 years

Certified as a DSAT Tec Deep Diver

Have a minimum of 150 logged dives

You want to go really really really deep? Not currently a PADI Certification but Try breathing liquid air.  Well, don’t.  But think about it.  If you use

Perfluorocarbon (PFC), a synthetic liquid fluorinated hydrocarbon-clear, odorless, chemically and biologically inert, with a low surface tension and high O2/CO2 carrying capacity. PFCs can hold as much as three times the oxygen and four times the carbon dioxide as human blood. They also act as very efficient heat exchanges. This makes PFCs ideal for use as a liquid ventilation (LV) medium for medical applications.

I think what really startles me is that someone thought: let’s put that in our lungs.  Really, can you imagine breathing in a liquid?  Many of the skills you learn in Open Water are organized around making sure that you can manage NOT putting liquid in your “best to keep dry” spaces.  So you learn lots of different ways to clear your mask, clear your regulator, etc, etc.

What else can you imagine for the future of SCUBA?

How about helmet-to-helmet communications?  That already exists – for both commercial and recreational applications.  The trick here is that systems are completely incompatible with each other.  So if you have *a* system then you want to make sure all your mates have the same system. OTS  makes a system that works well for the recreational Diving. I have one of my Own that I use for underwater weddings and they take a bit to get use to but they work very well.

My favorite SCUBA system is the direct-to-dive teleportation system.  I prefer to take at TARDIS whenever possible, but teleporting is nice too.  I like that I don’t have to carry my bag or any tanks.  (Kidding, that’s not possible. Yet!)

Call By The Shore Scuba at 919-247-0356 or email scubakevin@nc.rr.com or By The Shore Scuba Instruction

If you have one of our momentum watched here is how to set it for the Time change

USING THE SCREW CROWN (C):

Your watch is equipped with a screw-down, locking crown “C”. This screws into the case, to ensure a reliable water tight seal. ALWAYS screw in the crown after setting the time/date – check it before exposing the watch to the water/moisture. To set your watch, you must first unscrew the crown by turning it counter-clockwise 3-4 turns, then pull out gently from the case for setting. After setting or resetting the watch, you will need to screw the crown back in, by pressing it firmly against the case (it is spring-loaded) and simultaneously turning it in a clockwise direction. Then, taking care not

to force or cross-thread the crown, turn it until it is snug against the case and finger-tight. It is absolutely essential that the screw down crown is fully closed before using your watch in or around water and we recommend that this is checked prior to contact with water. Any warranty what s ever will be invalidated if this vital procedure is not adhered to. Watches returned within the warranty period that have suffered from water penetration will be pressure tested to check the effectiveness of the screw down crown.

We have discussed the Lionfish in all its beauty, and grace.  We even touched on the Lionfish invasion, its origination, its habitat, and even if its edible A Lionfish edible?  Wow!

Next we will talk about the Lionfish sting, to begin you and your buddy diver need to establish a hand signal you both understand indicating you, or your buddy have been stung by a lionfish.

You can reduce the risk of getting stung by wearing puncture resistant dive gloves, and, carry a lionfish containment unit.  Both of these are available thru By the Shore Scuba in Raleigh North Carolina, or most of your local dive shops.

Lionfish are typically non predatory to divers.  Only if they feel threatened or at risk will they sting you.  They have 18 venomous spines that put you at risk.  One or several can penetrate the skin at one time.  And, while their sting is venomous you have a greater risk of serious injury, and/or dying by not following the PADI guidelines for diving.  You could have a lung embolism, or, sustain decompression sickness that puts you at greater risk than receiving a Lionfish sting.

In the event you receive a sting you, and your buddy diver must end the dive immediately.  Follow PADI certification requirements for safe diving procedures.  The Lionfish sting is typically not deadly, but standards must be followed.  The sting of a Lionfish is absolutely very painful, yet the venom from a single spine penetration takes several minutes before it becomes painful to the diver.  This gives you ample time for you and your buddy diver to end the dive and begin your ascent to the surface.

The next steps to treatment of a Lionfish sting are as follows:

1. Control bleeding
2. Clean and disinfect the wound site
3. Apply hot water, (as hot as you can tolerate) or, any other source of heat.
4. Take pain medication.
5. Seek professional medical treatment to ensure you have no additional health risks.

Now that you have all the information on a Lionfish sting (but were afraid to ask) I wish you safe diving adventures. We will discuss about Lionfish being edible in our next sequel to the Lionfish.  As, always contact By The Shore Scuba Instruction for all the top notch equipment, Caribbean trips, and all dive adventures at www.scubadivingraleigh.com.

Red Lion Fish

If you’ve never had the opportunity to be down under (literally), you truly need to know what you’ve been missing.While there are many possibilities the one I would like to tell you about is the Lion Fish.

 The Lion Fish’s Origin was the Indo Pacific where they were considered native to the area.

Lion Fish have rapidly populated, from a mated pair that got put into the Ocean during a Hurricane near Miami Florida and now appear in the Western Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico, And the Caribbean Speculation as to how they began appearing in those areas is during a hurricane or high waves some crossed over into the additional areas Having the ability to procreate year around, and be relatively resistant to any parasites has led to an over population of its species. Having few predators also aided the rapid increase of the LionFish population.

However, lets back up a bit and talk about the Lion Fish in all its beauty. The Lion Fish as they appear to float thru the water with grace. Primary habitat is near coral reefs and rocky outcrops, which as it happens is a beautiful place to dive. The scientific name for the Lion Fish is Pterois Volitans, but it is commonly called by several different names. Zebrafish, firefish,turkeyfish, red lion fish, and ornate butterfly cod, just to name a few.

There is so much more to the Lion Fish, and simply not enough space to tell you all at once. We could go into its harmful sting and how to treat it. That they are eatable and protein based.

The poker games played using the Lion Fish, and much much more.

We will stop were we are and pick back up in the sequel to the Lion fish in the next article. Your takeaway for now should be the art and grace and beauty of this species that you can only get down under with By The Shore Scuba Instruction . Call us at 919-247-0356 or email scubainfo@scubadivingraleigh.com or our website at www.scubadivingraleigh.com.