lessphp fatal error: load error: failed to find /home4/undersea/public_html/blog/wp-content/themes/Underseas/style.less{"id":75,"date":"2015-07-03T17:20:10","date_gmt":"2015-07-03T22:20:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/underseas.com\/blog\/?p=75"},"modified":"2015-07-03T17:20:10","modified_gmt":"2015-07-03T22:20:10","slug":"why-dive-nitrox","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.underseas.com\/blog\/why-dive-nitrox\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Dive Nitrox?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"PADI<\/a><\/h2>\n

The\u00a0Benefits of Nitrox and When to use it<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019ve been diving for any amount of time you\u2019ve most likely come across the term \u201cNitrox.\u201d, and have heard that if you dive with it\u00a0you 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\u2019s define \u201cNitrox\u201d.<\/p>\n

What is Nitrox?<\/h3>\n

Nitrox is the shortened name for Enriched Air Nitrox, or EAN.\u00a0 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. \u00a032 percent oxygen being the most common\u00a0Nitrox mix.<\/p>\n

Benefits of Using Nitrox<\/h3>\n

The benefit of using Nitrox is that with the increased amount of oxygen in the air you are using, there is less nitrogen.\u00a0 And, as we all learned in our Open Water course, it\u2019s the build up of dissolved nitrogen in our tissues that make you\u00a0have to ascend from every dive so you\u00a0do not go into decompression mode.\u00a0 If too much nitrogen accumulates in you\u00a0tissues, as you\u00a0ascend the gas comes out of your\u00a0tissues as bubbles, which can cause\u00a0Decompression Sickness.<\/p>\n

If you\u00a0are breathing Enriched Air there is less nitrogen to build up during you\u00a0dive, therefore, allowing you\u00a0to stay longer at depth. \u00a0For example, if you\u00a0are diving at 105 feet on 36 percent Nitrox, the nitrogen would be absorbed into your\u00a0tissues at the same rate as would breathing air at 80 feet.\u00a0 This means that your\u00a0ordinary bottom time extends from 20 minutes at depth to 40 minutes!<\/p>\n

The benefits of Nitrox is best unitized\u00a0within the 50 \u2013 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\u00a0possibility of oxygen toxicity.<\/p>\n

Why Get Nitrox Certified?<\/h3>\n

Enriched Air Nitrox Courses<\/a>\u00a0are available all over the world and the majority of dive operators offer it on their boats.\u00a0 It is very important, however, to make sure you are trained as a certified Nitrox Diver before using it.\u00a0 It\u2019s a quick and easy course, but you learn some very important stuff that could keep your life out of endangerment.\u00a0 For instance, all Nitrox bottles should be marked as such in a very specific way and should only be used with oxygen compatible air.\u00a0 You will also learn how to use an Oxygen Analyzer to get an accurate reading on the Nitrox mix in your tank.\u00a0 The Nitrox Diver Course teaches you these important facts plus many more.\u00a0 Now go get certified to use EAN and get diving!<\/p>\n