The Different Contents of Scuba Tanks
Friday, February 17th, 2012The following article lists some simple, informative tips that will help you have a better experience with Scuba Diving.
You may have seen people at the beach, on TV, and on movies going scuba diving. You may have noticed all the equipments and gadgets attached to the diver that seems so complicated, and perhaps one of the most noticeable about scuba diving is the scuba tank. Scuba tanks are attached at the back of scuba divers and are filled with compressed air and never oxygen.
Most people who never took scuba lessons commonly think that scuba tanks are filled with oxygen. This is a common misconception and you should know that scuba tanks are never filled with pure oxygen. This is because, ironically, this gas that gives people life is lethal when breathed under pressure. This can cause oxygen toxicity and can cause instant death.
Scuba tanks are often filled with air, similar to what we breathe on the surface, that are compressed to about 250 bar or 3000 pounds per square inch. Sometimes, scuba tanks are filled with special mixtures for special diving.
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You can also have a tank filled with NITROX that will enable a diver to have longer bottom time but shallower dives. NITROX mixes alters the air mixture by increasing the oxygen content and decreasing the nitrogen content. This is done by measuring the scuba tank content with NITROX analyzer. This is typically safer for most divers because this lessens the risk of nitrogen being trapped inside the body and cause bends.
Another kind of mixture is called the TRIMIX. This mixture of gases inside the scuba tank enables you to dive deeper and is commonly used by technical divers and on salvage operations. This is the most expensive mixture available. TRIMIX is a mixture of oxygen, nitrogen and helium. The mixture ratio also varies depending on how deep the dive is. A simple way top put it is the deeper the dive is the lesser the oxygen and nitrogen and the more there will be helium in the mixture.
Helium is used because it is less narcotic than nitrogen and you can dive deeper without worrying about oxygen toxicity. This is because you lessen the oxygen and nitrogen content in the mix and are replaced by helium. However, if you want to dive deep than conventional diving, this requires special training and also a lot of discipline before you can do this.
Always remember that diving is a fun hobby and will never be dangerous if you follow all the things you have learned in your scuba diving lessons. Maintaining all your equipments, including your scuba tank will ensure safe and enjoyable dives.
About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his soon to be top ranked Perpetual20 training site: Perpetual 20