The Benefits of Nitrox and When to use it
If you’ve been diving for any amount of time you’ve most likely come across the term “Nitrox.”, and have heard that if you dive with it you can stay down longer. This may or may not be the case depending on your planned dive, but before we get into the specifics, let’s define “Nitrox”.
What is Nitrox?
Nitrox is the shortened name for Enriched Air Nitrox, or EAN. EAN is any mixture of breathing air in a scuba cylinder that has an oxygen concentration above 21 percent, what is normally found in air. 32 percent oxygen being the most common Nitrox mix.
Benefits of Using Nitrox
The benefit of using Nitrox is that with the increased amount of oxygen in the air you are using, there is less nitrogen. And, as we all learned in our Open Water course, it’s the build up of dissolved nitrogen in our tissues that make you have to ascend from every dive so you do not go into decompression mode. If too much nitrogen accumulates in you tissues, as you ascend the gas comes out of your tissues as bubbles, which can cause Decompression Sickness.
If you are breathing Enriched Air there is less nitrogen to build up during you dive, therefore, allowing you to stay longer at depth. For example, if you are diving at 105 feet on 36 percent Nitrox, the nitrogen would be absorbed into your tissues at the same rate as would breathing air at 80 feet. This means that your ordinary bottom time extends from 20 minutes at depth to 40 minutes!
The benefits of Nitrox is best unitized within the 50 – 100 foot diving range since most divers above 50 feet will just run out of air before they come close to hitting their decompression limit, and diving on Nitrox below 100 feet requires additional considerations such as the possibility of oxygen toxicity.
Why Get Nitrox Certified?
Enriched Air Nitrox Courses are available all over the world and the majority of dive operators offer it on their boats. It is very important, however, to make sure you are trained as a certified Nitrox Diver before using it. It’s a quick and easy course, but you learn some very important stuff that could keep your life out of endangerment. For instance, all Nitrox bottles should be marked as such in a very specific way and should only be used with oxygen compatible air. You will also learn how to use an Oxygen Analyzer to get an accurate reading on the Nitrox mix in your tank. The Nitrox Diver Course teaches you these important facts plus many more. Now go get certified to use EAN and get diving!
