Nitrox workshop dings - Divers Alert Network

Rubicon Foundation Archive (http://rubicon-foundation.org)Lang (ed.): DAN Nitrox Workshop, Divers Alert Network, November 2000Another use of nitrox has been to dive EAN as "air" in conjunction with standard air tables ordive computers. This incorporates the physiological advantage of breathing the mixture, whichcontains 11% more oxygen and less nitrogen. This provides a significant safety factor since thedivers' tables or computers assume he is breathing standard air. This has appealed to divers whomay not be in the best shape, divers over 40, or anyone making a particularly arduous dive incolder water or when a higher workload is expected. Nitrox offers the diver another dimension byexpanding the no-decompression window. Nitrox may well prove to be a milestone in diving aswas the acceptance of dive computers. Those instruments were initially met with controversyby ultra-conservatives who predicted all sorts of accidents and dire happenings for those diverswho dared to abandon dive tables. Of course, the record of success proved the doom-sayerswrong and now computers are standard equipment for the majority of divers.Although subjective benefits are reported by many divers, nitrox should not be considered amiracle elixir that will increase sexual potency or promise renewed vigor as some over zealousproponents have suggested. It is reported that nitrox divers feel less fatigued at the end of adiving day and that headaches are eliminated. Anyone who has notched a full day of diving froma liveaboard knows the feeling of pleasant exhaustion that hits you right about the time dessert isserved. Nitrox divers on the same schedule seem to have more energy (for whatever activities)and can at least enjoy the movie that evening on the VCR without doing a face plant on the diningtable.So what's the downside? Not much really. Because nitrox does contain more oxygen thanregular air, there are depth limits that must be strictly observed to avoid any effects of oxygentoxicity. There are time limits associated with breathing oxygen at certain partial pressures. Thegood news is that the time limits take care of themselves if the diver remains within the nodecompressionprofiles. For EAN32 the depth limit is 130 feet, a limit that most sport divers arealready conditioned to. As the oxygen percentage is increased, the depth limit is correspondinglyreduced.Will nitrox enjoy a similar embrace from the diving public? The best bet is yes consideringthe phenomenal growth in the last few years and the ever widening spread of availability.Liveaboards now routinely offer nitrox to all divers. Dive resorts now have nitrox availablethroughout the Caribbean, including the once super conservative Grand Cayman Island. Even theBritish Sub Aqua Club (BSAC) now offers nitrox training. The time is rapidly dwindling for youto be viewed as a dive rebel. It's all becoming too respectable...40