nitrox

[scapaman]

hi it`s me again
sorry to be apain but i like to ask a lot of questions .
thinking of doing nitrox course, but whitch one? i`ve never used it never thought of using it and don`t realy understand it .
so can some one pls help me out here ? i know i`m limited to depth but unsure of pro`s and cons and the most important thing ....how much for a fill ? not that i`m a tight sod (honest) thanks for the advice in advance and thanks for the all the help so far lads and lasses .

[MATTBIN]

Quicky as I'm going home.

I did TDI Nitrox (basic) but am Padi AOW so cross agency isnt an issue, if you dont belong to a club then TDI is good as it was (is?) cheaper than Padi as no diving is required, its all theory.
Pros - more dive time at a given depth and you may feel better after a dive
Cons - tanks need cleaning every year, new pooter (possibly)
Costs, the course, tank cleaning and more expensive fills e.g. my shop charge £7 odd for a 12l of 32%, price depends on how much O2 they use so it depends on cylinder size and % fill.

Well worth doing though.

Matt

must dash others will I'm sure add more stuff

ps dont worry about being a pain, we all started somewhere.

[ardhill]

Hi

PADI do a Nitrox Speciality and BSAC do a basic Nitrox, so if you trained by either one of these, then you may want to look a their versions. But as Matt says, you could also do the TDI basic Nitrox. It depends on your preferences and who is available to teach it.

A Nitrox fill can vary a lot. The prices Matt is quoting is a lot cheaper than I can get. I can't remember the exact prices, but it is more expensive. From another thread lately, there was seen to be a fair bit of variation in price for Nitrox fills across the country It may be an idea for you to ask your local fill shops for prices were you are - or let us know and maybe someone on YD is near you and can tell you.

Nitrox is a good course to do as you can use it where you choose - you don't have to use Nitrox all the time, but it can be very useful for particular dives. Some people use it all the time - it's your choice.

Nitrox can give give you more no decompression time, or can add an extra safety margin. But like all aspects of diving there are considerations and safety aspects, but they will be covered in the course.

If you do any deco diving, then Nitrox has other uses, but that's not covered in the basic course.
.

[Kent Tooling]

I did the TDI nitrox course back in 97 after i was posted after a bend.

After that i went on to do the IANTD blending course as i wanted to fill my cylinders myself from my own equipment

You feel a lot better during and after the dive.

I certinally felt a lot better being on Nitrox no headaches as i used to get when diving on air.

Yes it is a bit expensive for the gas and to have your tanks and regulators cleaned but i think it is worth it for the longer bottom times you get and not much deco.

this is just my 2ps worth

[MATTBIN]

Regs cleaned???? These days I thought new from box was 40% Nitrox clean, so no expense there.

Matt

[Mark Chase]

Do the TDI basic Nitrox course its is much cheaper than the PADI course and a little more user friendly if you ask me. ant it only cost around £90
when I did it. It qualifies you up to a 40% mix to a depth of 40m

Its a dry course, no diving involved. You learn about the pros and cons of 02 the benefits and dangers of diving it, how to Analise a tin, how to plan a dive. Apart from that its just a gas to breath and it doesn't even taste different which was a huge disappointment for me

Nitrox is good for extending your in water time or increasing your in water safety. Which ever you feel is more important to you.

The only down side of nitrox is having to have your tanks 02 cleaned every months and paying for the gas. I paid £15 for a 12ltr of 50% the other day so I would expect a 12 of 32 to be around £10. I haven't bought Nitrox gas for years so i am out of touch. (I fill at home)

ATB

Mark Chase

[Lazlo]

Should definitely do a nitrox course with somebody. It's PADI's most popular specialty in the UK for a good reason!

Just to correct something (sorry if I misunderstood your post Matt): the PADI basic nitrox does not require any dives - the standard was changed. That makes it cheaper than before obviously.

I'm not convinced of the theory that you feel better when diving nitrox - there is a lot of anecdotal evidence, but nothing solid. Could be psychosomatic of course, though if it does make a difference then who cares! Personally I don't notice any difference.

The main advantage: consider a dive to 30m (say the Thistlegorm). On the regular tables you get 20 minutes, on nitrox you can get 30 minutes (ish) - and all staying within "no-stop" limits. Marvellous. Another option is to do the same dives in a safer manner - the same bottom times are safer on nitrox than on air as you stay further away from the maximum no-deco limits. This is very reassuring if you are doing a lot of repetitive dives - like you would on a liveaboard.

Cons of nitrox: extra cost of fill (varies), and you must be able to observe a maximum depth - reasonable buoyancy / discipline should deal with that.

[ardhill]

Do you not think there is enough confusion on the net without you lot joining in

Originally Posted by Kent Tooling

Yes it is a bit expensive for the gas and to have your tanks and regulators cleaned

Originally Posted by Mark Chase

The only down side of nitrox is having to have your tanks 02 cleaned every month

A bit expensive this basic Nitrox stuff

OK, to clarify those couple of things Scapaman...
Modern regs are just about all ready for 40% Nitrox as-is, just like MattBin says. It is the richer mixes (not covered nor qualified for in the basic nitrox) which need O2 clean regs. I think our friend from Kent tooling was forgetting this as he would have his regs cleaned for the richer mixes.

Mark meant to say "having your tanks O2 cleaned every year".

Neither of these Guys are trying to confuse you or give false information - it's just a problem with written language rather than a conversation. You make slip ups and don't notice it, 'cause no-one questions you about it a second after it comes out of your mouth.

[scapaman]

thanks for the advice and once again you`ve come up trumps i will take on board every ones coments.
but tell me what does breathing nitrox do ? stop you getting bent ?
lessen your deco stops?
cheers and thanks....

[Lazlo]

Originally Posted by scapaman

thanks for the advice and once again you`ve come up trumps i will take on board every ones coments.
but tell me what does breathing nitrox do ? stop you getting bent ?
lessen your deco stops?
cheers and thanks....

From a purely recreational point of view - i.e. no required stops (except for safety stops which are not the same thing), and say 30-40m max, it means either:

1) getting longer "no stop" time

or

2) doing the same dive as you would on air, but ending up with less nitrogen in your tissues.

or

3) something in between 1 & 2.

Only you can "stop you getting bent", not the gas you breathe. Plan your dive, dive your plan and all that. Even then it's not an exact science.