gear problems

[mrubinfeld]

Hello Peeps,
So What is the best test too see if the mask fits properly. I dont know if it should stick without inhaling or if the store sales dude was playing me for a fool.

[Jack Hammer]

Originally Posted by mrubinfeld

Hello Peeps,
So What is the best test too see if the mask fits properly. I dont know if it should stick without inhaling or if the store sales dude was playing me for a fool.

There's no test better than getting in the water with it. On land it should stick to your face without having to keep inhaling. What that means is place it on your face and create suction either by sucking air in through your nose or pushing it on. Once on it should stay in place without any further inhaling, just you holding your breath.

HTH

Jack

[pafindr]

You should inhale a little to get the air out of the mask. Once the air is out, and while you're holding your breath, it should stay on your face.
Make sure the mask feels comfortable and it's the right weight for you. I've see some people come to class with an aquarium for a mask because the DS told her that it was the perfect fit for her.

[mrubinfeld]

so lets see if I understand you. i should inhale a little with the mask on and no strap used through my nose stop then breath normally with my mouth if the mask falls off then it doesn't fit.

[scubadiver888]

Just to add to what Jack Hammer and pafindr have said, if you have to keep inhaling to hold the mask on you will have to constantly inhale underwater to keep the mask water tight.

I always breath a little out my nose unless I'm holding my breath. So when I try a mask on in the store I'll put the mask on my face, push on it to create suction and hold my breath. If the mask falls off or I have to inhale, it is no good.

I've also found that having a regulator in my mouth changes the shape of my mouth enough that some masks leak. So I'll pop a regulator in my mouth while I'm trying out masks. If you don't have a regulator handy, a snorkel will do.

Darrell

P.S. once you find a mask which fits, don't pull the strap too tight or it will misshapen the mask and it will leak.

[mrubinfeld]

the salesman said none will stick without inhaling he is probably lying to sell more masks. He told me to inhale hard and then he pulled hard on the mask to come off my face. If there was diffculty he said good fit. Bunch of hooeey huh. He mentioned that the pressure of water on my mask will match the inhaled pressure on land is that true. I cant find a scuba or snorkel mask that sticks to my face with just pushing it on I had to inhale hard.

[Recon]

Ok, you SHOULD have to inhale at first, to remove the air from your mask, then after you can feel suction on your face from the mask, then you should just HOLD your breath, and NOT inhale anymore. this will be the same as the effect of the water pressure underwater, however while underwater you WILL have to exhale through your nose to "add" air to your mask at depth, or you will come up looking like rocky raccoon. So in short, I will let my tech paper writing skills work a little (as that is what I am freaking doing right now, writing a tech paper for my replacement, so I can be fired as of friday )

1. Place mask on face with 2nd Stage Regulator or snorkle in mouth.
2. inhale slightly through nose to remove air that is trapped between the skirt and your face.
3. After above mentioned air is removed from mask, hold breath.
4. Look down, to the sides, move your head around slightly to ensure that the mask stays on your face WITHOUT the aid of a mask strap.

If the mask does NOT stay in place during the above stated exercise then the mask is not a good fit for you. Begin at step 1 again, until the mask stays in place while holding your breath, AFTER a slight inhale through your nose. /rant

~Recon

[fire diver]

So far, everyone has given great advice on making sure a mask fits. I would like to add one caveat. You can have a mask that "fits", doesn't leak, etc but can still cause troubles. My current mask fits great as long as I don't dive too much. If I'm doing 4-5 dives a day, it puts pressure on the nerve bundle at the junction of the upper lip and nasal septum.

So I guess what I'm saying is that you can pick the right mask and still have problems. Or maybe make sure that it isn't pushing on that nerve at all.

[navyhmc]

That works best if you don't have a mustache. If you do, then it will not have a full seal. But the sales dude wasn't messing with you, that's how to tell if it fits.

Some will fit better than others. Try several masks, set aside those that passed the stay on your face test and set them aside. After you have a few,lightly hold them on your face and see which ones feel better/are more comfortable than the others. The most comfortable one is the one you should get. It will seal and won't hurt when worn.

Recon's method of having a reg or snorkel in your mouth is valid as well since you will have the mouthpied behind your lips with the mask on, a mask that fits just placed on your face may not when you add a reg or snorkel.

[pafindr]

Originally Posted by mrubinfeld

the salesman said none will stick without inhaling he is probably lying to sell more masks. He told me to inhale hard and then he pulled hard on the mask to come off my face. If there was diffculty he said good fit. Bunch of hooeey huh. He mentioned that the pressure of water on my mask will match the inhaled pressure on land is that true. I cant find a scuba or snorkel mask that sticks to my face with just pushing it on I had to inhale hard.

Don't breathe through your mouth while trying on your mask. You shouldn't have to keep inhaling but you do have to hold your breath.
When doing this and I pull on your mask it will come off with little force but it doesn't mean that it does not fit properly.
The goal is to have negative pressure inside your mask that way the ambient pressure outside of the mask will hold the mask in place.

I haven't been able to do the "pushing it on your face" technique but it doesn't meant that it wont work.