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The first stage of the regulator is where the octopus connects to the air tank.
The second stage is at the end of the pipe and is the part you put in your mouth (Not the whole thing, just the mouth piece!). 
When the regulator is static,the lever blocks the inlet valve so no air escapes from the air tank. The exhaust valve is closed so water does not get into the regulator. When the diver inhales or the purge button is pressed, the lever moves opening the inlet valve and the air from the tank (which is under pressure) flows into the regulator and out through the mouthpiece. When the diver exhales, the lever is closed to prevent wastage of the tank air. The force of the diver exhaling forces the purge valve open and the waste air escapes. As air is moving out of the valve, water can not get in. When the diver stops exhaling the regulator returns to the static position. This is the very basic regulator design and is also the most used amongst recreational divers. There are other metods of diving while still using a regulator that you hold in your mouth. These include re-breathers and nitrox systems. Re-breathers take the air you exhale and recycle it through the system adding a bit more oxygen to it while removing some of the carbon dioxide. This allows an air supply to last for a much longer time allowing for longer dives. It also allows for deeper dives for technical reasons (such as reducing the oxygen content to lower the toxicity of oxygen at increased pressures) which I obviously know everything about but won't go into right now. Nitrox systems also recycle your exhaled air but they also reduce the amount of nitrogen in the air you are breathing. This allows for much deeper depths of diving than either the standard regulator or the re-breather systems allow while still keeping the diver in a minimal decompression zone (Sorry, more technical stuff). Well that's as far as I've got. Don't forget the Diving Photos. I also have some Plans for the Future of my Web site. A Scuba DiverAnd all that goes with him/her. Back to the Start. You know you want to. Go on. Do it! What do you think about the web page? Tell me by e-mailing [email protected] |
