Regulator Guide

now buying your regulator is arguably your most important piece of kit so you want to be sure that you buy the right one but there are lots of different features to a regulator and pint II out there so let's take a closer look at regulator to make your choice an easier one first stage your first stage is usually overlooked but it actually does most of the work of the regulator your first stage will take all of the pressure from your cylinder and step it down to an inter stage pressure so that you can breathe comfortably on it it has plenty of ports that you can see on the side and they allow you to attach multiple hoses to it second stage your second stage is your mouthpiece that you breathe from most of them have the same usual features they have a mouthpiece of course they have an inlet and a purge button with an exhaust tee but they do come in lots of different shapes and sizes and they have different features on them to use octo your octo or alternate second stage is exactly the same as your primary second stage except it will have yellow details on it to make it easier to find in an emergency it functions exactly the same way it has the same mouthpiece and purge button on it except some of them are set up a little bit stiffer so they don't free flow as readily when you first jump in gauges with every regulator you should have some gauges and they range from a single submersible pressure gauge to triple gauges that have your pressure gauge your depth gauge and a compass with some you can even embed your dive computer but most just stick to traditional analog gauges quick disconnect hoses quick disconnect hoses allow you to connect your regulator to your BCD or your dry suit but they don't come as standard with your regulator whilst they do normally come as standard with your BCD or dry suit so if you're thinking of investing in a b c d or a dry suit at a later date then hold off on buying a quick disconnect hose because you'll get one with your BCD drysuit spoke first-stage spoke design first ages or in line first stages are as the name suggests in line but the hoses come out at a 90-degree angle from your cylinder valve so they do come out in a bit of a spoke pattern for wheels which can make hose routing a little bit trickier they also tend to be a little bit longer so they can touch the back of your head if your cylinder is a bit too high and you look up 90-degree first stage ninety degree first stages are more common and they have their hoses routed directly out sideways which makes hose routing a little bit more natural the only downside to these is you get slight disturbance in the airflow but depending on the regulator manufacturer it usually doesn't pose too much of a problem half inch port whilst most regulator low-pressure ports are 3/8 of an inch UNF there are a rare few that use a half inch like this one from Marez these half inch ports allow a greater airflow but it does mean it's a little bit harder to find replacement hoses swivel turret swivel turret first stages are much like ninety degree first stages except at the top where your low-pressure ports are located they are fitted to a swiveling turret so you have a great control over your hose routing most of them have a v port coming out of the top so you have an extra port to attach a different low-pressure hose and some regulators can also be inverted it does limit the amount of swiveling that the hoses can do but you still get a bit of flex and movements so when you turn your head your hose can move instead of pulling the regulator out of your mouth a clamp and in your first days will come in two different options either a clamp or din a clamp is a lot larger than din but the more traditional style it works by trapping an o-ring and using the a clamp or yoke to clamp over your cylinder valve the only downside to these other than being bigger and heavier is that they can only go to 203 to bar of pressure din is the more modern fitting by using a screw thread to physically screw itself into the cylinder valve it traps the o-ring much more securely so it can go to much higher pressures including 300 bar ports on your first stage you'll have different ports and when you first buy it they'll have port plugs plugging the unused holes these come in two basic sizes for low pressure and high pressure the most common is 3/8 inch and I've already mentioned the 1/2 inch but for your high pressure this is a larger size so you can't mix and match your hoses and you can't make any mistakes typically you get for low pressure ports and too high pressure ports and they're angled in such a way that half go to one side and the other half will go to the other side hoses regulators will come with different hoses as standard the rubber hoses your more traditional heavier hose they're very tough and very reliable but more modern braided hoses are starting to come as standard braided hoses are much lighter and more flexible than traditional rubber hoses but they can be a little light in the water so if you have a long hose with too much slack they can float up away from you traditional second stage traditional second stages you will recognize from all over the globe they have a universal shape and design with the hose coming in over your right hand shoulder a purge button on the front and your mouthpiece behind it underneath you'll have your exhaust tee where your exhaled breath will escape from they're very tough and reliable and because of their universal design you can pick up any traditional second stage and immediately know how to use it side exhaust second stage side exhaust second stages are very similar to traditional second stages except they're a bit more laterally compressed in that their exhaust t only sits on one side so your bubbles are much more natural and they're going to push it out towards one side other designs can be unidirectional so it doesn't matter which way is up because every ways up so you never have to worry about pushing a second stage in the wrong way up purge button purge buttons are typically on the front of your regulator in 99% of the cases it's always gonna be on the front with the ref you being on one side purge buttons can either cover the entire front cover or you can have a solid button like this one which is graduated so the harder you push it the more air it's going to give you they all work in basically the same way by opening the valve and filling the second stage with air so you can breathe clearly breathing adjustment some second stages will come with a breathing adjustments fitted to them this means that whilst you're on the dive you can adjust the breathing resistance level as you're diving screwing it in will make it stiffer and a little bit harder to breathe whilst opening it out will make it a lot lighter to breathe depending on your preference venturi lever a venturi lever or pre dive lever works to prevent a free flow when you first jump in it works by turning a small deflector on the inside that goes around the barrel and changing where it directs the airflow as when a free flow starts to occur it will redirect the airflow back towards the front of the second stage and interrupt it by closing the valve exhaust T your exhaust he works to deflect the bubbles that come out of the second stage away from your mask so they don't obstruct your view larger ones deflect bubbles further away from your face but they do get a little large and cumbersome so some like this on the xdx range allow you to remove the exhaust T by pushing on a button and swapping it for a more compact size underneath the exhaust T you'll find a simple mushroom valve which is a one-way valve that allows gas to escape when you exhale and then the exhaust t just directs that bubbles away from your face speciality first stages for different types of diving you can get specialized first stages like this one for example that is specialized for twinset diving because it only has ports on one side this means that you don't have excess ports that aren't going to be used that can be failure points for a technical diver the hose routing means that the hoses can route down in a natural position for twinset diving but for other types of diving it's not a great deal of use heat exchange on many first stages and the inlet hose to second stages you'll notice metal ribs these are heat exchangers by increasing the surface area to volume ratio they absorb heat from the surrounding water and this acts to warm up the metal of the first and second stage and in turn warm up the gas that flows through them preventing ice from forming bypass tube bypass tubes are fairly unique Tamara's brand regulators but these act to to redirect the airflow that comes into the second stage instead of the gas coming straight into the body of the second stage and then finally finding its way into your mouth using this bypass tube acts as another heat sink whilst deflecting the air and pointing it straight towards your mouth which means that you get a really great smooth brief balanced balance first stages work by using environmental pressure to adjust the interstage pressure inside the regulator and what this means is that with an unbalanced regulator the further down you go the harder it will be to breathe with a balanced regulator it will stay exactly the same resistance so you'll always get the same amount of air over balanced over balanced first stages will actually get easier to breathe the further down you go by clever mechanics on the inside they increase the interstage pressure at a faster rate than you descend so the first stage will actually be able to deliver more gas the deeper down you go hose protectors hose protectors are simple rubber tubes that attach to either end of your hose they work by preventing the hose from bending in one point which is usually this point that attaches to the metal / bending the hose can create damage so it's always best to keep your hose protectors in position but always check underneath them to make sure there's no wear and tear going unseen environmental seal environmental seals are simple elastomer plates that prevent contaminants from getting inside of the working part of your regulator they're flexible so they still allow that transfer of environmental pressure so they can stay balanced but preventing salt and any other contaminant from getting inside metal bodies second stage metal bodies second stages are much tougher and harder than the traditional polymers but they're a little bit heavier as well they do work as a great heat sink to keep the airflow nice and warm but they also work to condense moisture from your breath to keep a little bit of moisture in the air that you breathe so you don't get quite such a red dry mouth materials titanium is a very lightweight and very strong material which makes it great for traveling but the downside is is that it's not so great in colder temperatures most regulators are made out of chrome-plated marine grade brass which is a very soft metal which is why it requires the chrome plating but it does have a great thermal coefficient so it's good at cold water diving stainless steel is rare but you do find some regulators made from it it's strong and reliable it's great in cold water but you do have to make sure you keep it nice and clean and dry when you're storing it angled ports some regulators have parallel ports coming straight out to the first stage which makes routing hoses a little bit cramped as well as removing and replacing hoses a little awkward to get in there angle ports mean you get a bit more breathing space so the hoses come out at a more obtuse angle making it easier to swap hoses and you get more space to fit hoses and be dexterous whilst most second stages have the hose fit is over your right hand shoulder some are ambidextrous and can be changed to a left hand design by a technician removing the barrel turning it around and fitting it to the other side these can be particularly useful for unusual hose routing options and where you need that hose to come over your left hand shoulder stage-three whilst most regulators come with a first agent of primary stage 3 regulators include an octo so you get a first stage a primary and a matching octo so all you need to add are gauges and low-pressure inflator hoses stage 4 stage 4 regulator's go one step further they include a first stage a primary and octo as well as some gauges so you're well on your way to a complete set of regulators and all you need to add are the low-pressure inflator hoses that you need for your BCD and your dry suit PVD some higher-end first ages you'll notice will have a PVD coating this physical vapor deposit has two main benefits the first one is superficial by giving it a black color but the second benefit is that it makes the second stage harder and tougher so it's more likely to resist the usual bumps and scratches that they get from travel and being around the dive site en 250a when you're buying your regulator trying to make sure that it has an en 250 a stamp this means that has been tested in a laboratory under very harsh conditions while still being able to deliver plenty of gas but next to it some will have a temperature rating so this one for example you have to keep it above 10 degrees Celsius so there are hundreds of regulators on the market today but let us know in the comments below which regulator you use and why thanks for watching and safe diving if you enjoyed this video don't forget to hit that like share and subscribe

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Keywords: simplyscuba, simply scuba, The Simply Group (TSG), Regulator Guide, regulator, guide, how to, scuba dive, gear guide, scuba diving, scuba diving (interest), scuba diving (sport), dive regulator, scuba diving regulator, best scuba regulators, best regulators, diving, regulators, aqua lung, hollis, apeks, mares, scubapro, dive equipment, scuba diving equipment

Id: UsIsiD3Ml-s

Length: 15min 1sec (901 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 30 2017