Would you like to save some cash? Maybe save a dive one day? By putting some of these everyday items to use when you go scuba diving, you can do both!
Our beloved sport/hobby/career of scuba diving could not exist without scuba gear manufacturers, and they could not exist without us. Check out any dive gear store or website and you will find hundreds of gadgets and bits and bobs designed to make a scuba diver’s life easier. But before you pay big bucks for your little toys, consider whether any of these day-to-day household items can do the job just as well…
1. Pantyliners
You have a dive camera and no matter how hard you try, you always seem to get moisture inside the housing which fogs up your lens when you get in the water. What you need is something, slim, discreet and with super abilities to lock in moisture. What better than some pantyliners? Just cut a little square to fit inside the housing.
2. Magic sponges
Truly a revelation the first time you use one on your dive slates! They are designed for getting marks from white walls in the home, but they also instantly and effortlessly remove pencil from your dive slate. Essential equipment during an IDC and for new Instructors.
3. Ketchup
A dual use for this one. Everyone knows that one of the best things for jellyfish stings is vinegar. However ketchup has almost the same pH of vinegar and because of its thicker consistency, it can be easier to apply to the affected area.
Ketchup’s second scuba use is a life-saver for all those blonde Instructors who spend a long time teaching in the swimming pool. The chlorine in pools will turn blonde hair a lovely shade of green, and apparently by applying ketchup liberally to the hair and leaving it on for a while, it helps to neautralise the chemical balance and restore the proper colour.
4. Toothpaste
Most new masks come with a protective silicone film which is invisible to the eye. However if you don’t remove this film then your new mask will drive you crazy, fogging up as soon as you descend. One easy way to remove this film is to use normal toothpaste (not gel) to very gently scour the inside of your mask to remove the film.
5. Baby oil
Did you lose the tiny tube of silica gel and need to lubricate the o-rings for your camera housing? Then a little drop of baby oil will do the trick. (Tip. Don’t use this on any equipment that will be in contact with your compressed air – such as tank, regulator)
6. Plastic bags
No need to struggle to get your wetsuit on anymore! If you haven’t tried this trick before, give it a go. Just wrap a plastic bag around your feet to help the neoprene slide on easily. Just make sure you dispose of the bag properly afterwards, or better still, re-use it. No more plastic in our oceans please!
7. Cable ties
A great invention which I must have seen used a hundred different ways in scuba diving. One use is to keep the mouthpiece in place on your second stage, but they are also a great way to keep your teaching slates together.
8. Spit
It may not be the prettiest way to de-fog your mask, or even the most effective, but it is the most ecologically sound and you will NEVER run out!
Have we missed anything off this list? What everyday items do you use when you go scuba diving? Let us know in the comments below
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