New to this group and fairly new to scuba diving

Hi all, I got my certification for Open Water Diver in Sept. 2008 and since that time I have been to Hawaii and Puerto Rico. Unfortunately, my husband has major problems with his ears, so he did a one tank shore dive in Hawaii and I did a two tank dive. We then did a quarry dive last summer where we were part of a group trying to get the Guiness record of the most divers submerged in a quarry for 20 feet for 20 min. Well, we didn't quite get the record and my husband got a very bad ear infection, so we didn't get to scuba dive in PR, which was two weeks later. We are going to Aruba in May, so we are hoping to get a change to scuba dive there. We are also hoping to go to Tenn, to do some practice diving however before we go. He needs to learn better control, so he doesn't pop himself up out of the water, which I think is partly causing his problems.

So, has anyone been to Aruba. Is there any good shallow diving there?

I am looking forward to being a part of this forum.

Rae

Welcome to the community! Hope to see you around. :)

Hi Rae,
Firstly welcome to the boards and congrats to you on getting your OW, such an achievement and the start of an obsession (if that's the right word) to a very expensive hobby.

Even though Aruba must be about 600 odd miles from where I am in St Lucia, I haven't heard what the diving is like down there - hopefully someone else might be able to assist.

What's the problem that your husband is having with his ears? Is the problem happening more on the ascent or the descent? Maybe if you give us a bit more info, we could probably come up with a few suggestions he might like to try.

We're a friendly bunch on here, so please feel free to jump right in with any questions/jokes/pictures/ and anything else for that matter ;)

There are a few different items out there that can help people with ear problems while diving. There is a mask with some type of ear covering that connects to the front of the mask. There are also special diving ear plugs available.

Try SE Aruba Fly 'n Dive or Unique sports of Aruba. Both are very good operators and will take you on some great dives. For your ear challenged husband there is a very shallow site called Pedernales that is a nice site for fishes and max depth 25 to 28 feet, they often take open water students there for training and it is also a nice night dive. Water varied between 79 and 81 last week when I was there.

I think that problem with his ears starts because he comes up too fast. He almost always gets a nose bleed when he comes up and then he gets blood and crud stuck in his ear. He has had to go the ear specialist and take antibiotics and prednisone to get his ears cleared up.

Rae

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Originally Posted by lottie

Hi Rae,
Firstly welcome to the boards and congrats to you on getting your OW, such an achievement and the start of an obsession (if that's the right word) to a very expensive hobby.

Even though Aruba must be about 600 odd miles from where I am in St Lucia, I haven't heard what the diving is like down there - hopefully someone else might be able to ***ist.

What's the problem that your husband is having with his ears? Is the problem happening more on the ascent or the descent? Maybe if you give us a bit more info, we could probably come up with a few suggestions he might like to try.

We're a friendly bunch on here, so please feel free to jump right in with any questions/jokes/pictures/ and anything else for that matter ;)

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Where would we find the mask and ear plugs? I have never heard of them but then as you know we are new to this.

Thanks,

Rae

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Originally Posted by acelockco

There are a few different items out there that can help people with ear problems while diving. There is a mask with some type of ear covering that connects to the front of the mask. There are also special diving ear plugs available.

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I can't wait to go. I will take your recommendation of operators. We had seen an ad for SE Aruba but not Unique sports. I think the Pedernales sounds like a great spot for us. Thanks for letting me know.

Rae

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Originally Posted by diverchrispy

Try SE Aruba Fly 'n Dive or Unique sports of Aruba. Both are very good operators and will take you on some great dives. For your ear challenged husband there is a very shallow site called Pedernales that is a nice site for fishes and max depth 25 to 28 feet, they often take open water students there for training and it is also a nice night dive. Water varied between 79 and 81 last week when I was there.

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Originally Posted by raeskates

Where would we find the mask and ear plugs? I have never heard of them but then as you know we are new to this.

Thanks,

Rae

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The mask you are going to look for is called a Pro Ear. Check around, your best bet is to try to find a local dive shop that has one he can try on, but here is a link : Amazon.com: IST Pro-Ear 2000 Scuba Dive Mask - ProEar Swim Mask: Sports & Outdoors

The ear plugs are here:

http://www.proplugs.com/scuba.html


NOW, more importantly why is your husband coming up too fast? This is an extremely serious problem. If we just mask his earache and nose bleed, it could be much worse. If he needs additional training, plenty is available but he needs to be comfortable in the water, know his gear and how to use it and he needs to follow the rules of scuba that he was taught. Many dive operators will supply a personal Dive Master or Dive Guide to you for an additional fee. If you explain to them the situation, they can help your husband figure out the situation.

Good luck.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by acelockco

The mask you are going to look for is called a Pro Ear. Check around, your best bet is to try to find a local dive shop that has one he can try on, but here is a link : Amazon.com: IST Pro-Ear 2000 Scuba Dive Mask - ProEar Swim Mask: Sports & Outdoors

The ear plugs are here:

http://www.proplugs.com/scuba.html


NOW, more importantly why is your husband coming up too fast? This is an extremely serious problem. If we just mask his earache and nose bleed, it could be much worse. If he needs additional training, plenty is available but he needs to be comfortable in the water, know his gear and how to use it and he needs to follow the rules of scuba that he was taught. Many dive operators will supply a personal Dive Master or Dive Guide to you for an additional fee. If you explain to them the situation, they can help your husband figure out the situation.

Good luck.

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Why is he coming up too fast? Well, he is still not very comfortable with finding how to hover. We are planning on taking a refresher course and then going to a lake or quarry to practice in shallow water. I think it's because he's so afraid to touch the bottom (obviously doesn't want to destroy coral or in the quarry, stir up the bottom so you can't see) and so he tries to add air to his BCD, instead of taking a deeper breath or just kicking upward as he gets too close to the bottom. He was not much of a swimmer to start with (He could float but that was it). Until we did this he had never put his head below the water, so I am very proud of what he has achieved so far, but he is still not much of a natural underwater. In Hawaii, we did have our own personal dive master and did a shallow shore dive. He was able to do it, with no nose bleed and no ear problems, so I do think that it would help just ot get more practice.

Thanks for the info about the earplugs.

After 37 years of diving, certain things still give me the heebie-jeebies, like diving in really poor visibility and descending feet first and my feet hit the bottom before I can see it...

Welcome to the Board! Aruba is a lot of wreck diving and the reefs are lacking compared C & B of he ABCs!

It is better when new to be 2lbs heavy than light! So add a couple extra lbs! Everything in the water should be slow motion!

Blood from the nose is very common and has very little do with ear clearing! Start on the surface and continue all the way gently blowing against your closed nose while moving your head from side to side stretching your neck as far as possible! It will become easier the more you do it!

Keep all things out of your ears and do not remove the natural wax with a q-tip! They cause micro abrasions and allow infections in! Use ear beer after each dive! 1/3 alcohol 1/3 white vinegar 1/3 water in a dropper bottle and you will not have a problem!

Barotrauma https://health.google.com/health/ref/Ear+barotrauma is from pushing through the pain instead of equalizing! So be sure to equalize as you go each dive and every time you go deeper!

Good luck and happy diving! Feel free to ask you will get a lot of opinions!

Don't waste your money on masks and ear plugs until you know there is a problem you can't cure any other way!

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Originally Posted by The Publisher

After 37 years of diving, certain things still give me the heebie-jeebies, liek diving in really poor visibility and descending feet first and my feet hit the bottom before I can see it...

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Try being a PSD and doing 100ft in pitch black water! No problem! Been there done that!

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Originally Posted by raeskates

Why is he coming up too fast? Well, he is still not very comfortable with finding how to hover. We are planning on taking a refresher course and then going to a lake or quarry to practice in shallow water. I think it's because he's so afraid to touch the bottom (obviously doesn't want to destroy coral or in the quarry, stir up the bottom so you can't see) and so he tries to add air to his BCD, instead of taking a deeper breath or just kicking upward as he gets too close to the bottom. He was not much of a swimmer to start with (He could float but that was it). Until we did this he had never put his head below the water, so I am very proud of what he has achieved so far, but he is still not much of a natural underwater. In Hawaii, we did have our own personal dive master and did a shallow shore dive. He was able to do it, with no nose bleed and no ear problems, so I do think that it would help just ot get more practice.

Thanks for the info about the earplugs.

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Sounds like you both have accomplished a lot. The key is practice so he becomes comfortable under the water. Also as Papa said, take it slow. Tell your instructor that he needs to work on his buoyancy and practice together until he really has it down. It is probably the single most important diving skill and one that is difficult for a lot of divers to master. Changing equipment (rental gear) makes it harder to learn too. If he uses the same gear every time, it will make it easier for him to become accustomed to how it works and how it's bouyancy is affected by it.

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Originally Posted by Papa Bear

Welcome to the Board! Aruba is a lot of wreck diving and the reefs are lacking compared C & B of he ABCs!

It is better when new to be 2lbs heavy than light! So add a couple extra lbs! Everything in the water should be slow motion!

Blood from the nose is very common and has very little do with ear clearing! Start on the surface and continue all the way genitally blowing against your closed nose while moving your head from side to side stretching your neck as far as possible! It will become easier the more you do it!

Keep all things out of your ears and do not remove the natural wax with a q-tip! They cause micro abrasions and allow infections in! Use ear beer after each dive! 1/3 alcohol 1/3 white vinegar 1/3 water in a dropper bottle and you will not have a problem!

Barotrauma https://health.google.com/health/ref/Ear+barotrauma is from pushing through the pain instead of equalizing! So be sure to equalize as you go each dive and every time you go deeper!

Good luck and happy diving! Feel free to ask you will get a lot of opinions!

Don't waste your money on masks and ear plugs until you know there is a problem you can't cure any other way!

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It's interesting that you mentioned the extra weight. I was discussing with my husband all the things that everyone said, and before I read your response, he told me that he felt that he needed more weight. He feels that he can't control mostly when it's near the end of the dive and his tanks are emptier. He also told me that he felt that it was time to at least get our own BCD. The only equipment we own are our masks, snorkles, fins and boots. Since he had so many problems, we were not anxious to buy equipment that wouldn't be able to be used, if he couldn't get the ear problem cleared up.

Thanks for your help.

Rae

I'm sorry but I have to bring this up. I laughed so hard when I saw your spelling of "gently". At least I ***ume you meant gently and not blowing through the genitals.

Rae

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Originally Posted by Papa Bear

Welcome to the Board! Aruba is a lot of wreck diving and the reefs are lacking compared C & B of he ABCs!

It is better when new to be 2lbs heavy than light! So add a couple extra lbs! Everything in the water should be slow motion!

Blood from the nose is very common and has very little do with ear clearing! Start on the surface and continue all the way genitally blowing against your closed nose while moving your head from side to side stretching your neck as far as possible! It will become easier the more you do it!

Keep all things out of your ears and do not remove the natural wax with a q-tip! They cause micro abrasions and allow infections in! Use ear beer after each dive! 1/3 alcohol 1/3 white vinegar 1/3 water in a dropper bottle and you will not have a problem!

Barotrauma https://health.google.com/health/ref/Ear+barotrauma is from pushing through the pain instead of equalizing! So be sure to equalize as you go each dive and every time you go deeper!

Good luck and happy diving! Feel free to ask you will get a lot of opinions!

Don't waste your money on masks and ear plugs until you know there is a problem you can't cure any other way!

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Ok, one more question since you all have been so kind. Is it smart to buy a used BCD? I haven't looked for one yet, but it might be an option for us till we knowfor sure that we are going to be able to continue scuba diving.

It depends on how old the liner is, and whether the nylon outer shell is breaking down from sunlight exposure. The rubber hoses can always been changed.

Good quality BC's should last at least a decade, and good deals are to be had on E-bay. I would stick with name brand ones though. I have a Zeagle that is probably still good after 20 years.

Everyone struggles to some degree when starting out, it is just part of the process. Once you try different gear over time, you get a little bit more competent each time.

That struggle people have of flopping around underwater, or on the surface, of not being weighted right, with adjustments, tweaks, etc, over time, it all goes away.

Update edit: I am seeing AWESOME deals on used Zeagle Ranger BC's on Ebay for around $100-$200. They have integrated quick release weight pouches which is a feature I always found REALLY nice and increases comfort levels.

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Originally Posted by raeskates

Ok, one more question since you all have been so kind. Is it smart to buy a used BCD? I haven't looked for one yet, but it might be an option for us till we knowfor sure that we are going to be able to continue scuba diving.

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The majority of my equipment was purchased used. The biggest thing is to know what you are buying and the actual condition of the item. There are some amazing deals on new entry level equipment as well, so if you don't know what you are looking you may want to go that route as well. Even the most basic gear will get you in and out of the water safely as long as it is operating properly and you know how to use it.

Now BC's are an entire animal in themselves as there are so many different manufactures, styles and features. I personally like the wing style BC which puts the diver in a horizontal position while in the water. My wife on the other hand prefers the standard jacket style BC as it keeps her in a better position while on the surface. I have seen some XS scuba BC demos for sale for $125 each at Leisure Pro. You can also check out your local dive shop for used gear. Usually they can provide a warranty on the stuff you buy as they have serviced it, buy you NEED TO ASK.

Good luck, let us know if we can be for more help.

Ace

Not only does LP have demos and used equipment but we also have great specials on closeout items. You don't always have to pay full price for a new BC.

I highly encourage getting a little more dive time before purchasing gear on the flipside its a great investment but better to be sure that you into scuba for the long haul.

Safe diving!

Adam

Adam Waddell
Leisure Pro Customer Service Amb***ador
adamw@leisurepro.com
www.leisurepro.com

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Originally Posted by adambayam

Adam Waddell
Leisure Pro Customer Service Amb***ador
adamw@leisurepro.com
www.leisurepro.com

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Welcome to our forum Adam. From a long time customer, it is good to have someone here to represent LP.

Ace

Thanks for the warm welcome Ace.

Adam

Thanks to all of you for your help. I guess maybe we will wait until after this year to see if my husband can get comfortable enough and eliminate the ear problems before we buy anything, but we will start looking to see what we might like. Great suggestions from you all.

Rae

Along with agreeing with my friend, Ace; I would ask that snorkeling skills be added to the equation for both of you, as well. You can't be too strong, or too comfortable in the water.

Remember that many things can impact buoyancy at the end of a dive:

-Breathing heavily, when you're tired, can cause you to hold more air in your lungs. You'll need to breathe normally to control your swimming ascent.

-A thick wetsuit (or a new one) is more buoyant, especially near the surface.
Salt water is also more buoyant than fresh water. Be aware of this if you alternate types of water when you dive. Your weights may be different. (Personally, the fresh stuff tastes horrible...)

-Aluminum 80 tanks go from being negatively buoyant when full, to slightly positively buoyant when near empty. Papabears advice of taking a few extra pounds of weight is sound. So is using steel scuba tanks.

It also occurs to me that some people are actually trained to put air into their BC's every time they dive. Stop this right away. Wear weights based upon your body, your equipment, and depth to be dived. If you MUST add air sometime, make darn sure you know how to dump it all out.

If this sounds foreign to you, spend your next money on further education, and not more gear.

Neutral bouyancy is difficult enough for Instructors to master;
let alone teach. Be patient with yourself.

Lastly, a safe rate of ascent is 1 foot per second. This is not a guideline. What it is, is diving physics. Violate natural laws, and nature can be a mother...

Hi Tigerbeach, Actually we have now done more snorkeling than scuba diving, since it doesn't require the ears to be equalized. My husband is continuing to get more comfortable in the water. We knew about the fresh vs salt water differences and also full vs empty tanks. Since we are still renting equipment (BC, Regulator, tanks etc), I don't know if we have too much say in the type of tanks we use, but we have definitely decided that my husband will wear more weights. I am trying to get him to learn to breathe better and that is why we are planning to go toa quarry in Tenn for a weekend in late April to see if we can more practice just on our own. It will just take time and practice to get him more practice and we want some time where we are not trying to quickly follow a dive master, so that we can practice these skills. BTW, he had no ear problems in the pool at all, so this was a surprise when we went to the quarry in Ohio for our Open water skills test.

Thanks,

Rae

Sounds like a great idea. The quarry is an excellent place to learn your skills.

Thanks to all of you for your advice. I got very busy with my other main activity which is ice skating and wasn't on here from Feb till now. Feb - April is our main competition season. Anyway, my husband and I went to Nashville to practice in Martha's quarry and feel a little bit better. We both worked on neutral bouyancy, but we both had trouble with equalizing our ears. We both had slight colds so I figure that was the problem. Also, the weather was horrible (rainy and cold) but at least we were one week before the flooding.

Next week we leave for Aruba.

Thanks,

Rae

Aruba!? Can we expect a trip report?! ;)

Have a great time in Aruba, I'm sure you will enjoy it immensely. Don't worry about your diving, and stay relaxed.. oh and keep breathing!
:D

Hi, Welcome. Hope you have a great Trip, love to see some photo’s when you get back from Aruba.

Ok, if I can figure out how to download pics here. I know that we will take lots of them and we have an underwater case for our camera, so hope to get some wreck photos.

Rae

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Originally Posted by raeskates

Ok, if I can figure out how to download pics here. I know that we will take lots of them and we have an underwater case for our camera, so hope to get some wreck photos.

Rae

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Rae,

Although I am sure having underwater photos would be great, the reality is that with the issues the two of you are still having while diving the best bet is to leave the camera on the boat for photos when you are not diving. Having a camera will seriously inhibit you from paying attention to more important issues you need to pay attention to.

Once you have your diving skills down so that you can do everything without even really thinking about it, then it is time for the camera. It will also be about that time that you realize that unless you spend a couple of thousand dollars on an u/w camera your photos will be disappointing at best.

I am not trying to knock you or anything like that, I just know from personal experience and want you to have a safe and fun time. If you are lucky you will find someone else on the dive that has a camera or video camera. Usually other divers will love to share the photos/video with you.

Rae, acelockco is right, focus on your diving, cameras are very distracting. See if you can get other people to share their photos, the good thing about that is if you lucky you will get some great photos with you in them :). Still interested in seeing Photo’s of Aruba, I’ve never been their and would love to see what it’s like, I also love just scanning through photos. I love taking photos myself; I’m no good but just enjoy being able to look back at memories and shearing with other people. Have a great Trip and be safe.

Best way of sharing photo is with Photo Bucket or a photo sharing service like that and most of them are free. I have my own Web Page and use that to share my photos.

See below

We have a robust photo sharing system here in the Gallery where users can create their own albums, upload photos, the forum will generate sharing codes for thumbnails, full size images, hyperlinks, you name it.

Ace raised some good points. Speaking from personal experience, the first time I took a UW camera down on a dive, my buoyancy just went AOT and my buoyancy wasn't 100% there before.

so we didn't get to scuba dive in PR, which was two weeks later. We are going to Aruba in May, so we are hoping to get a change to scuba dive there. We are also hoping to go to Tenn, to do some practice diving however before we go. He needs to learn better control, so he doesn't pop himself up out of the water, which I think is partly causing his problem??

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