Closed Circuit Rebreather constant Po2 Tables March 9, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Rebreathers , add a commentAs I was wandering around the internet today as you do, I stumbled across the DiveRite e-commerce store and saw these constant Po2 tables which might be useful for closed circuit rebreather divers.
As the partial pressure of oxygen is constant on a closed circuit rebreather the rebreather diver needs a set of slightly different tables than the open circuit diver. These tables are produced by IANTD and according to the spiel;
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Rebreather Workshops for scuba divers in Chelmsford, MA February 16, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Rebreathers , add a commentSomeone sent me notification today of a rebreather workshop, sponsored by Northeast Scuba. Its a one day workshop and suitable for an scuba divers interested in finding out more about rebreathers with hands-on demonstrations, and pool time with units from the leading manufacturers of rebreathers. There are a number of different units you can try and Optima, Inspiration, and Megaladon rebreathers will be available in the pool.
The workshop is being held on 3rd March 2006 at 8am and runs through til 4pm. The cost is $75 which is a lot cheaper than buying one and deciding you don’t like it. More details at www.northeastscuba.com
Jackie Smith rebreather fatality ‘Diver found peace, happiness in water’ January 19, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Rebreathers , add a commentA moving article has been published yesterday in the Charlotte Observer, regarding Jackie Smith, who sadly died whilst rebreather diving on January 1st.
His dive buddy, Charles johnson, also a rebreather diver, is still baffled over how Jackie died, but says
“He was so good, so safety-conscious. He’d saved other men’s lives before; he was an extraordinary man. He was like the big brother I never had.”
The pair had dived on old ship wrecks, Charles said. The most intriguing was the City of Houston, a ship that sank in the 1850s off the S.C. coast from which they retrieved old medicine bottles and ink wells.
“We’ve done some really spectacular dives and were first to the Bow Mariner off the coast of Maryland. It was what is called a virgin wreck. He was a real trailblazer in rebreather diving. Jackie was a doer, not a talker. He was world class.”
Thinking about scuba diving with a rebreather? January 18, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Rebreathers , add a commentI have been a member of the Rebreather World forum for a while, but have never posted as I prefer to ‘lurk’ and simply read the great resource which is Rebreather World. The site is owned by Stuart Ford, himself a scuba diver who dives the Megalodon rebreather, a closed circuit rebreather. At the time of writing Rebreather World has nearly 2000 members and there are over 2500 threads and nearly 30,000 posts, so it is definitely an active forum, and has plenty of resources for anyone thinking about rebreather diving or who scuba dives with a rebreather already.
The real interest for me isn’t the forum as such but the articles and features which are written by its members. There are reports written on a wide variety of subjects (all rebreather related) covering all levels of skill with a rebreather. One such article aimed at beginners is ‘A Learner’s guide to CCR Ops‘ by Richard Pyle and there is also an interesting article on crossing over from the Inspiration rebreather to the megalodon rebreather, by Dave Cooper.
Is this a website you might be interested in? Perhaps I should leave you with the words of Stuart, the owner of Rebreather World;
If you don’t know what a scuba rebreather is compared to normal scuba diving then you are in for a treat - imagine diving for longer, deeper, and using less gas! There are several rebreathers on the market and we cover them all here - if it is a Megalodon or Inspiration rebreather, Ouroboros or Sport Kiss rebreather. Then we have them in our extensive rebreather forums and our rebreather library.
Gordon Smith, popular inventor of the KISS rebreather, dies from illness January 12, 2006
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Rebreathers , add a commentSad news for family and friends of Gordon, who on monday, died of a non diving related illness. Here is the letter from the Jetsam website;
It is with much grief that I write this letter. Gordon Smith, President of Jetsam Technologies Ltd. has passed away. He died suddenly on Monday, January 9th of an illness. It was unexpected. This was in no way a diving related death or accident. At this time, the staff at Jetsam Technologies, the executer of his estate and I will be evaluating the business. At this point, no decision has been made with regards to Jetsam. During this evaluation period, the business will be open and staff will be there to answer any technical questions or help with any repairs. As this is an extremely difficult time for us, I ask that you please respect our privacy with regards to Gordon’s death.
Kim Smith
Gordon was the creator of the KISS rebreather, which is a Closed Circuit Rebreather operated manually rather than by electronics. Very sad news.
Rebreather Scuba Diver dies of Asphyxia in Swimming Pool December 28, 2005
Posted by Andy Carroll in : Accidents, Rebreathers , add a commentscuba diver who was found dead in the pool at Thunder Reef Divers on Monday ran out of air while using a rebreather, a highly technical device that allows divers to breathe the gases in their equipment over and over, says CDNN
Havey Harris is reported to have died of accidental drowning by asphyxia. Harris was reportedly an advanced scuba diver with rebreather qualifications. He was found sitting on the bottom of the pool, ‘as if asleep’ Brad Lunberg, jumped into the pool and dragged him out, but he was unresponsive to cardiopulmonary resuscitation. He was regarded as a highly experienced diver which is why he was allowed in the pool by himself.
“He dove solo with his rebreather in the ocean all the time” said Nikki McGinnis, manager of Thunder Reef Divers
CDNN were not able to report the manufacturer of the rebreather but they have determined it was semi-closed. Read the full story here.
