Northwest Dive Club

I was just reading an article that claimed if you were diving in "waters that are significantly colder than 14 degrees Celsius / 57 degrees Fahrenheit" you should use an environmentally sealed reg to help prevent freeze-up.

Uh, really? I've been diving for years with regs that are not environmentally sealed, in water that is always colder than that, and never had a problem. The water temperature on yesterday's dive was 45F and the only thing that froze was my hands.

So I'm wondering, have you ever had a reg freeze up while ocean diving in the PNW?

Wow. With your experience and credentials, I would defer to you on all such matters. But yes, I have had a regulator freeze up and free flow. The temperature was in the 20's or less. Ice had formed at the edge of sound. This was at Edgewater Park just east of Mukilteo. I made the assumption that the surface layer was colder than that below and that it would be a thin layer. The reg started to free flow on the surface swim, the freezing enhanced by the expanding air. I put my mouthpiece in the warmer water, just a foot or so down, and it stopped. The rest of the dive went well. I don't remember what kind of reg it was, but I always checked the ratings put out by the navy's experimental diving unit and followed their recommendations. I agree with your implication, that a normal regulator meets the requirements of Salish Sea diving. But I am a fossil.
-Curt

oldsalt wrote: ↑Mon Dec 19, 2022 1:32 pm But I am a fossil.

ha. With any luck, we'll all be fossils some day. I'm well on my way too.

Ya, I can see how a really cold day (air temperature) could cause problems at or above the surface, especially for the second stage. Under normal circumstances, I've dismissed any water temps warmer than, say, 38F as being too warm for a reg to freeze.

Now that suggests an interesting experiment... take a separate tank/reg down during the coldest part of the year (water 43F?) and hold the purge button continuously. Wheee, freeflow! Would *that* cool the first stage enough to eventually freeze it? Hmm. Might have to try that.

Otherwise, I think that article is way too conservative.

Never had a reg freeze period. I have had a power inflator freeze up in Plura (2C). The BC nipple froze on too

No, never had a reg freeze on me. I've gone diving plenty of times when there was ice on the water too. Mostly using ScubaPro Mk25 1st stage regs which are not sealed. That said, I would be very careful when diving in air temps below 30F.

A second stage can freeze quickly if it free flows or gets wet before going underwater. Even the water vapor in your breath can freeze up if it's cold enough outside. At 25F or lower any second stage can freeze up.

How often have you witnessed a second stage, maybe the octopus, start to free flow when someone first gets into the water? If this happens in very cold weather, even with water temps in the low 40's, your first stage can freeze up and the second stage can turn into a block of ice.

A sealed 1st stage will resist freezing better, but none of them are immune to problems in the worst-case scenario.

Read this for more details: https://divelab.com/download/procedures ... 4-9-14.pdf

I've never had my rigs freeze during cold water diving... I think you have to be a hardcore diver load up your gear get down to the site when it's below 20° like we had last week...
Get your gear on throw it on your back turn on your air walk into the water... This is a good question for all of us in Puget sound the only stories that I have heard over the years of regulators freezing up underwater.. have been commercial divers in Alaska and people who dive clear lake in Oregon...
So the answer is you can get into the water during cold temperatures , or sub freezing temperatures if you do what everybody else does and that is don't turn your air on until you and everybody else is up to your neck in water and your gear is submerged..
I have always never turned my air on during cold weather or snow on the ground and my crazy scuba buddies are going to get in the water and scuba during winter months, I have always had my buddy turn my air on when we're all in the water and our gear is submerged at Puget sound water temps not affected by air temperature... This is a great question and I think it'd be easily answered by a person that dives in polar or Arctic conditions

I have had my Mark 25s freeze twice over the years. It’s always when I’m below 80’ in water in the upper 30s. Once when I was filling float bag my regs started free flowing. That was my fault as I over worked the reef. A couple other times I’ve had it happen in the same manner at lower depth. It’s a simple fix if you turn off your air then turn it back on…..if you have the guts and flexibility. These cold water free flows are an issue to be prepared for. Also check your IP pressure because
If it’s too high you can have free flows in the cold. I put a shut off on my second stage but have not tried it in a free flow frozen situation yet.

Cetacea wrote: ↑Wed Dec 28, 2022 1:15 pmin water in the upper 30s.

That's when I would start being cautious. But that wasn't in Puget Sound, was it? I don't think I've ever seen water colder than maybe 43F here.