Michigan Sea Snoopers 2026 Safety Blog Kickoff: Recap of 2025 Safety Topics
To start the Michigan Sea Snoopers 2026 Safety Blog series, I’m reflecting on the safety topics we explored in 2025. Each topic brought valuable insights, practical tips, and real-world lessons to help us become safer, more skilled divers. Each post in its entirety can be found at Dive Safety Blog – Michigan SeaSnoopers
Here’s a summary of each post:
📆January 2025 – Understanding Nosebleeds During Scuba Diving
Overview: A guide to causes, prevention, and management of nosebleeds while diving.
Common Causes:
- Sinus barotrauma: This occurs when pressure in the paranasal sinuses cannot equalize.
- Sinus squeeze: Negative pressure during descent causes capillaries to burst.
- Reverse block: High pressure is trapped during ascent, often resulting in a “sudden explosion” of blood and mucus into the mask.
- Dry nasal passages: Dehydration from air travel or breathing dry tank air can irritate the nasal lining.
- Digital trauma: Physical irritation or “nose picking” can damage the delicate nasal mucosa.
Prevention Tips:
- Stay hydrated
- Manage allergies
- Descend slowly
- Use medications cautiously
During a Dive:
- Signal your buddy
- Assess severity
- Ascend slowly
- Post-dive care: pinch nostrils, apply ice, avoid tilting head back
📆 February 2025 – Maintaining Dive Skills in the Winter
Overview: Stay sharp during the off-season with events and practice. Dennis scheduled the pool session for January 23rd (this Friday) and the Shipwreck Festival is on February 28th
Recommendations:
- Attend the Great Lakes Shipwreck Festival
- Join pool sessions for buoyancy and drills
- Practice tool use (dSMBs, reels, cutters)
- Watch expert dive videos
- Read dive books like Shadow Divers or Under Pressure
📆 March 2025 – Common Mistakes Divers Make (DAN Report)
Overview: Seven common errors and how to avoid them.
Mistakes to Watch For:
- Ignoring health and fitness → Before the dive season or any planned dive, take an honest assessment of your health.
- Skipping gear maintenance →The cost of failing to service a regulator and experiencing a malfunction at depth far outweighs the expense of an annual inspection or service.
- Poor dive planning → While it’s okay to let a more experienced diver lead, there should still be discussions beforehand. The lead diver needs to understand your training level, experience, and comfort limits.
- Weak buoyancy control → Spending time on buoyancy drills can significantly improve your trim, air consumption, and overall dive experience.
- Diving beyond limits → Attempting dives beyond your training and experience level can be life-threatening—not just for you, but also for your buddy and dive team.
- Running out of gas → Follow the rule of thirds, refine your buoyancy and trim to improve air efficiency, and consider using a larger capacity cylinder or carrying a pony bottle for added safety
- Failing to take personal responsibility → Follow the rule of thirds, refine your buoyancy and trim to improve air efficiency, and consider using a larger capacity cylinder or carrying a pony bottle for added safety
📆 April 2025 – Safety Quiz
Overview: Test your dive safety knowledge. Link: Take the quiz (Quiz link)
📆 May 2025 – Practice Makes the Diver
Overview: Why repetition matters at every level.
Key Points:
- Skill mastery through repetition
- Muscle memory for emergencies
- Continuous improvement (Kaizen mindset)
Skills to Refine:
- Buoyancy and trim
- Mask clearing
- Emergency procedures
- Finning techniques
Local Practice Sites: Gilboa Quarry, White Star Quarry
📆 August 2025 – Emergency Action Plans (EAPs)
Overview: Why every diver needs an EAP.
What to Include:
- Dive site details
- Emergency contacts
- Roles and responsibilities
- Evacuation procedures
- Insurance info
Resources:
- DAN webinars and e-learning
- Fillable EAP PDF
📆 September 2025 – DAN Incident Report (Edition 1)
Overview: Real incidents and lessons learned.
Case Summaries:
- Mouthpiece failure → Regularly inspect and service “small” gear components like mouthpieces, O-rings, and zip ties, as their failure can significantly impact a dive.
- Out of air at depth → Maintain regulators properly and ensure buddy contact is close enough for assistance. A calm response using a redundant air source (like a pony bottle) is preferable to a panicked ascent.
- Task loading →Manage “task loading” by prioritizing buoyancy control and equalization instead of focusing on minor equipment issues. If a problem cannot be addressed while maintaining control, the dive should be aborted.
📆 November 2025 – End-of-Season Gear TLC
Overview: Clean, inspect, and store gear properly.
Checklist:
- Rinse and clean → Be sure to let everything dry completely
- Inspect thoroughly as you go → Look for cracks, leaks, or wear. If anything seems questionable, make a note — or better yet, schedule service now while technicians have shorter lead times than in spring.
- Update maintenance records → Record purchase dates, serial numbers, and last service dates. Photos or videos are great to keep for insurance purposes (e.g., lightning can strike) — and your log helps you track maintenance and plan upgrades.
- Store smart → Store your gear in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight, dust, and temperature swings. Avoid attics, garages, or basements where humidity and freeze–thaw cycles can damage materials.
- Make notes for next season → While you’re in maintenance mode, jot down anything you’d like to replace or upgrade before next dive season.
