As a diver uses more equipment, his save-a-dive kit will expand accordingly. He may want to carry spare torch bulbs, regulator ports, and exposure suit repair kits. A diver who will be far from dive shops, either at home or abroad, may carry equipment as well as just spare parts. What can't be repaired will simply be replaced. Basic save-a-dive kits can be bought commercially or made up individually and then added to as necessary. Their price is very modest compared to the price of a missed dive.
A small corrosion-resistant toolkit is useful. A handy alternative is a purpose-built Swiss Army penknife-style tool that includes spanners for removing and replacing regulator hoses, Allen keys to fit regulator ports, and general-purpose screwdrivers.
It is important for your own safety that you do not attempt field maintenance or repair of equipment for which you are not trained. The equipment specialty courses offered by many training agencies may be helpful.
As new divers begin to gain experience, start to explore without immediate supervision, and then start diving completely independently, it becomes their responsibility to make themselves 'visible' to shore or boat cover, other water users, rescue services and each other.
Most buddy pairs use a surface marker buoy with the appropriate flag to indicate their position to others on the surface. Provided the float has plenty of buoyancy, it can be used as a resting station or to carry equipment, such as a spare tank for emergency decompression if no-decompression limits or planned stage-decompression limits are exceeded unintentionally.
If a diver gets 'lost', equipment is available that will make it easier for searchers to find him, even in darkness. By day, fluorescent hoods are highly visible, as are telescopic flags which can stand 1.5 m or so clear of the water, and can be seen from much greater distances than a diver's head. Flags can be stored beside your tank until needed (hopefully, never). Inflatable marker tubes are a popular alternative to flags and can be stored in their own pouch or a BCD pocket. Personal flares can also be used by divers. Some are pressure-proof, others can be protected in divelight bodies (available from some companies, such as Underwater Kinetics, as spares). Flares often have a smoke end for daylight use only, and a rocket for day and night use.
Torches are obviously useful for gaining attention at night, as are flashing strobes. Chemical lights and small marker torches are also useful.
Sound can be used to attract attention. Most BCDs now come with whistles. However, since you may need to make yourself heard over the noise of boat engines, something louder is better. Electronic alarms (useable underwater as well, though range will be limited) and air horns which run off your regulator are worth considering. However, you need to have working batteries or air in your tank for these to operate.
Boaters and aviators used to be the only ones who knew what EPIRB stood for. Electronic position-indicating radio beacons, which provide a boat or plane's exact location in the event of an emergency - newer versions use satellites to relay an SOS signal to rescuers - are now being adopted by some divers.
Still, it is better not to get lost in the first place. Good navigation skills and proper dive planning should prevent this happening, but good dive planning requires that you do plan for emergencies and it is important to be properly equipped for the worst.
Reels are useful accessories for divers to own. They can be used to control surface marker buoys; to get you back to your starting point, such as an anchor line; or, if you are properly trained, for searches and for penetrating overhead environments including wrecks, caves and under ice.
SMB reels usually have a ratchet on them and incorporate a pistol grip. Some divers attach a small lift bag or marker tube to these and send this up at the end of their dive. They reel up to their first stop level and hang onto the reel, decompressing in comfort. The ratchet easily supports them, even if they are slightly negative, buoyantly-speaking. This technique is popular with British wreck divers.
A variation on this is the up-line. An up-line is usually used as an emergency procedure when a diver fails to make it back to his planned ascent point - normally the shot or anchor line - and is concerned that currents will sweep him away from the boat before he can surface and make himself visible. The up-line comprises a rolling pin-like reel stored beside the tanks with 60 m or so of 6 mm line on it, and a lifting bag. The diver ties the line to the wreck, sends up the lifting bag, and can now make his ascent up the moored line, safe in the knowledge that the bag is visible and that he won't drift off-site. If sisal twine is used, which is bio-degradable and will eventually break down when the diver cuts the line at the end of the hang, it needs to be checked regularly to ensure it won't snap when needed.
Penetration reels have an L-grip which enables a diver to hold a torch in the same hand, freeing the other hand for proper line deployment and other tasks. The design of some SMB reels impairs handling and so these should be rejected for penetration diving. Entering any overhead environment requires special training, much of which concentrates on proper reel and line management. Penetration divers often carry a small back-up reel in case they lose the main line. They can then make sweeps to find the main line or an exit, and can also return to the point at which they first became lost, if the sweeps are unsuccessful. This helps to stop them wandering even further away from safety and provides a guideline for rescuers to follow.
Most divers will be involved in light salvage at some time. Often divers have to find and recover lost personal equipment, such as knives, or are asked to look for sunglasses or other items dropped from boats. Apart from acquiring the skills needed to carry out effective search and recovery dives successfully, specific equipment will also be useful or required.
Goody bags are used to store tools and to carry finds. The most basic are mesh bags which close with a drawstring. These are easily stored in a BCD pocket. Bull bags have hoop closures, which make them easier to open and close, even with one hand, and are normally clipped to the waist. Some have smooth sides to make it easier to place and remove spikey objects that easily tangle in mesh bags. Goody bags should not be overloaded, as this can create buoyancy problems. They should be immediately 'droppable' if an incident occurs and the diver needs to get buoyant quickly.
Lift bags are used to lift heavy finds and normally have lifting capacities of 25 kg upwards. Bags of 25 kg capability will usually fit in a BCD pocket; larger bags can be attached to the side of a tank with bungees. Dump valves make it easier to control lifts and maintain proper ascent rates. Safe seconds, or air guns fed from your tank, should be used to inflate lift bags, not your primary regulator. Lift bags can use a lot of air, so proper air management is important. Because air bags can get out of control, break the surface and capsize - and then sink - it is a good idea to attach a small recovery float and line to your find so you can quickly and easily relocate it if the worst happens. Such floats are cheap and compact and can also be used to mark points of interest during any dive.
Experienced divers inevitably manage to accumulate a wealth of equipment,
including accessories. As important as owning the equipment is having the
knowledge to use it properly. It is also important to realise that not every
item of equipment you own needs to accompany you on every dive. The accessories
you choose to take with you on any given descent should be items of equipment
you need for that dive.
