All Posts By

Jill Heinerth

Jul 15
3

Cave Diving History

By | All Posts, Cave Diving, Sidemount Diving, We Are Water, Women Underwater | No Comments

On July 14, 1935 Penelope Powell and Graham Balcombe made what is considered to be the first cave dive. It was conducted at Wookey Hole in England. This historic site is still open to the small membership of divers belonging to the Cave Divers Group (CDG). On the day following the anniversary Jill Heinerth was invited to dive by members Duncan Price, Gavin Newman and Claire Cohen. Swimming from the cave resurgence through to Sump 22 fulfilled a dream for Heinerth who has had her sight focussed on visiting the historic site for more than 20 years. Wookey Hole is…

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Jul 07
0

Preserving Canada’s Maritime Past

By | All Posts, Bell Island, Newfoundland, Cave Diving, Rebreather Diving, Underwater Photo and Video, Women Underwater | No Comments

On July 7, 2015 Jill Heinerth had the opportunity to assist in the documentation of the recovery and delivery to provincial conservators of the sextant from the WWII shipwreck SS Rose Castle. The Rose Castle was sunk on November 2nd, 1942 by a German U-Boat that was attempting to disrupt the supply of high grade iron ore coming from Bell Island, Newfoundland, Canada. The event  also marks the only time a torpedo struck land in what is now Canadian soil. 28 crew were lost, but many were saved by citizens of the island. The sextant was discovered by diver Luc Michel…

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Jun 18
1

Scrubber Time

By | All Posts, Rebreather Diving | No Comments

Q. A reader asked for recommendations regarding a typical weekend of diving. If he dives two hours on Saturday, is it fine to dive the same canister on Sunday for two more hours? A. The answer is not exactly black and white. If you look at the PRISM2 Assembly and Operational Checklists, they clearly state the tested duration of the scrubber. It reads: “Maximum Scrubber Duration: 240 min (0.5% SEV CO2) using 6-12 @ 40 °F/4.4 °C, 1.35 slpm CO2, 40 lpm RMV, 60 fsw/28 msw” Operational Checklist If you dive deeper, colder or in more strenuous conditions, the duration of…

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Jun 12
0

Light Management in Technical Diving

By | All Posts, Cave Diving, Rebreather Diving, Sidemount Diving, Uncategorized, Underwater Photo and Video | No Comments

I carry a tiny handheld Light and Motion Sola Tech600 for my primary light while technical diving. I love being unencumbered. No cord. No canister. Lightweight for travel. Some of my diving colleagues have asked about whether such a small light can have adequate runtime for two serious cave or technical dives in a day. The answer is unequivocally, “yes!” The Sola Tech600 offers up a robust nine hours maximum burn time. Better yet, you can easily monitor the remaining capacity as you dive. This feature alone provides an unprecedented advantage over other lights. It acts as a fuel gauge,…

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Jun 10
0

Nitrox in Your Diluent?

By | All Posts, Rebreather Diving | No Comments

Q. Can you use nitrox in your diluent tank? Yes. When working on a Hollywood set that was 15 feet deep, I actually filled both the oxygen and diluent tanks with oxygen. It prevented a lot of potential issues the actors could have experienced. But let’s consider the best recipe for diluent. First, it must be breathable at your planned maximum depth. Ideally, it should NOT match the PO2 of planned setpoint for maximum depth. You need your diluent to serve several purposes. Safe open circuit bailout Diluent flush to confirm sensors – you want to see some movement when…

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May 31
0

Drying your Counterlungs

By | All Posts, Rebreather Diving | No Comments

After disinfecting your counterlungs, there is often a pool of water left behind. Here is a tip for drying the inside of the counterlungs. Take a rectangular piece of chamois material and cut it like the pattern in the picture. You will end up with a really long strip of absorbent fabric. Now you can slip the chamois inside the countering and leave a tail hanging out the end. Hang it up overnight and the chamois will absorb all the remaining water.

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May 23
0

Motorcycle Diaries

By | All Posts, Rebreather Diving | No Comments

A few years ago, I completed a Motorcycle Safety Class and was struck by the similarities to training rebreather divers. It was really good to be a student instead of an instructor for a change. It’s one of those experiences that reminds you what performance pressure feels like and reinforces the qualities of good instruction. I have to say that I am accustomed to thriving and performing well in new learning situations. However, I has absolutely no background in motorcycles and started off at the bottom of the heap amongst my fellow students. Everything was new. I was pleased to be…

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May 19
0

Awesome Things You Can Do with GoPro

By | All Posts, Underwater Photo and Video | No Comments

Guest Post from Camrig Camrig offers us a reminder to pull that GoPro out of our dive bag and use it to document life and adventure in many other ways. If you have an idea about how to use your GoPro, there has probably already been a cool mount developed for it! Since the very beginning, GoPro users have been pushing the envelope, finding new ways to get amazing photos and videos. From taking the time to enjoy kite boarding POV to dropping GoPro cameras into the ocean, GoPro lovers have done everything they can to make the most of these amazing…

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May 16
0

Advanced Lighting for Video

By | All Posts, Underwater Photo and Video | No Comments

Most underwater videographers buy a couple of lights and mount them to their camera on arms, illuminating the environment, or a dive buddy at close range. Camera-mounted lights are generally acceptable for highlighting the main subjects in a scene, whether they be fish, fellow divers or a beautiful reef. However, if you want to elevate your creative underwater game, you may want to become familiar with “Practical Lighting Techniques.” Practical light sources are defined as lighting sources that appear in a frame and can be perceived as a part of the on-screen world. In other words, they appear “justified.” (Sometimes…

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